All fish / Labridae

Bicolor Cleaner Wrasse

Labroides bicolor

Also known as bicolor cleaner wrasse, two-colour cleaner wrasse, bicolour cleaner wrasse, yellowtail cleaner wrasse, cleaner wrasse, ソメワケベラ, 双色裂唇鱼, 二色裂唇鱼

This slender wrasse has a dark front half that fades into a pale yellow or whitish rear, and juveniles are black with a yellow stripe along the back. It runs cleaning stations on the reef, picking parasites off other fish, and aquarists buy it for this unusual behaviour.

Care at a glance

Care level

Hard

Temperament

Peaceful

Adult size

12 cm

Temperature

24 to 28 °C

pH

8.1 to 8.4

Smallest tank

400 litres

Keep as

Singly, or as a mated pair in a very large tank

Diet

Carnivore: in the wild it eats parasites and mucus picked off other fish; in tanks offer frequent small meaty foods such as mysis, enriched brine shrimp and finely chopped seafood

Swims

Middle of the tank

Lifespan

3 to 6 years

Water

Marine (saltwater)

Wild range

Indo-West Pacific, from East Africa to the Line Islands and southern Japan to Australia

Breeding

It is a protogynous hermaphrodite, so females can turn into males, and pairs scatter pelagic eggs. Captive breeding is practically unknown and raising the larvae would be very difficult.

Good to know

Most specimens slowly starve in captivity because the tank cannot supply enough parasites and many never accept prepared foods, so many aquarists advise against buying it. Adults roam widely and need a large, mature reef with plenty of fish.