Blue Margin Fairy Wrasse

Blue Margin Fairy Wrasse, Cirrhilabrus pylei, also go by the name Pylei Fairy Wrasse.

These spectacular wrasse are undeniably eye catching. Females have slender hot pink bodies, framed by transparent fins tinged with yellow and blue. Whereas the Males have a dusky red and orange body. Yellow and orange stripes decorate their faces and fins. As the name suggests, the males sport blue flashes across their backs and in their fins.

Blue Margin Fairy Wrasse, Cirrhilabrus pylei, Ecology.

These beautiful fish are found around Indonesia and throughout the Pacific Ocean. They range from: Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Philippines, and Vanuatu.

The complex habitat help the wrasse avoid predation. Unlike some species, these fish do not bury themselves to sleep or hide. Instead, they have quite a nifty trick. In order to sleep safely, Blue Margin Fairy Wrasse find a nook they like. They then envelope themselves in a protective mucus coat. Supposedly, this hides the wrasses scent from predators. These sticky invisibility cloaks do not degrade your water quality like some coral wax jackets’ might.

In Nature, Blue Margin Fairy Wrasse live in groups with one male to a few or more females. Dominant males instigate spawning by preforming their courtship display. He will dash around, showing off his colours to the harem. These fish are protogynous hermaphrodites. Which means that, when they get old enough, breeding females turn into a male. As a result, all juveniles are immature females.

Pylei Fairy Wrasse in the Aquarium.

It is important to imitate the natural environment by providing plenty of nooks and crannies for the wrasse to hide in. Hobbyists should invest in a jump guard to prevent any unfortunate mishaps.

Blue Margin Fairy Wrasse do best when fed a varied diet. They will accept enriched frozen mysis shrimp and enriched frozen brine shrimp. They will also devour live foods, such as copepods and amphipods, that can be cultivated in attached refugium. Over time they will accept high-quality pellet or flake. We adapt all our wrasse to aquarium life before they leave us. We focus on their health, and most are eating a good quality flake food and/or pellet, such as JBL Maris, before being offered for sale.