patrols the deep kelp forest reefs

Size
Length: up to 32 cm, Wt: 0.55-0.60 kg
Lifespan
Unknown
Diet
Forages in encrusting algae and holdfasts for hermit crabs, brittle stars, and small invertebrates. Uses large canine teeth to extract prey from the substrate.
Habitat
Rocky reefs beyond 10 m depth, most common in Ecklonia kelp forest and deeper reef habitats. Less common in the shallows occupied by spotty and banded wrasse.
Range
Throughout New Zealand and the Chatham Islands, most abundant south of East Cape. Also found in south-eastern Australia, southern Australia, and Japan.
Endemism
Endemic
Main Threats
No significant threats. Not commercially targeted. Taken incidentally as bycatch and occasionally by recreational anglers in southern waters. Not assessed by DOC.
Population
Common throughout New Zealand on rocky reefs south of East Cape. Most abundant in Fiordland and around Stewart Island and the Chatham Islands. Not assessed by DOC.
Conservation Status
Not Threatened
Human Risk
harmless
Handling Note
native wrasse, harmless but wild handle with care
Conservation Note
Endemic marine fish; not assessed by NZTCS as marine fish are outside the scope of current threat classifications.
Te Ao Māori
The scarlet wrasse has no specific Māori name in widespread use. Its southern distribution means it was encountered in the rohe of southern iwi. Ngāi Tahu fished and harvested kaimoana throughout the South Island coastal waters and Fiordland. As a small reef fish without significant food value, it did not attract the cultural naming and significance reserved for more economically important species. Its abundance in southern waters made it a familiar incidental presence in fishing contexts. In contemporary southern coastal management it forms part of the reef ecosystem that mana whenua oversee as kaitiaki.
You bring it to the surface. The colour fades. Pseudolabrus miles earns its name in the water. Terminal-phase males are a vivid uniform red. A distinct white patch sits behind the pectoral fins. A black bar marks the base of the tail. The colouring looks borrowed from a tropical reef. Initial-phase fish carry red and yellow horizontal stripes along the sides. Then you bring one to the surface in a bucket. Within minutes the colour fades to a dull pink. This is where the alternative name comes from. It is a reasonable summary of what happens to most vivid things removed from their context. Pseudolabrus miles is one of New Zealand's more colourful endemic wrasse. It is one of the few reef fish that becomes more abundant as you travel south. Most gaudy reef fish peak in warm northern waters. The scarlet wrasse is most common south of East Cape. It reaches its highest densities in Fiordland, around Stewart Island, and in the Chatham Islands. Fiordland divers report schools of them trailing hooked fish to the surface. They occasionally get caught on the same hook as the intended target. This is a degree of initiative not commonly observed in prey fish. Like the spotty, this species is a protogynous hermaphrodite. All individuals begin life as females in the initial colour phase. Sex change to terminal-phase male occurs between 150 and 200 millimetres in length. This happens at around four years of age. The colour change is complete. No intermediate males are present in the population at any one time. The caudal fin also changes shape. It shifts from square-cut in initial-phase fish to lunate in terminal males. This is a structural revision in addition to a cosmetic one. Feeding is benthic and methodical. Those large, forward-projecting canine teeth are not for display. The scarlet wrasse fossicks through encrusting algae and holdfast material. It hunts hermit crabs, brittle stars, and other invertebrates. It prises them from the substrate with the direct application of leverage. In southern New Zealand this covers a considerable range of options. The scarlet wrasse is not a targeted food fish. It is regarded as palatable. Recreational anglers in southern waters encounter it regularly. They often wish they encountered it less. It reliably intercepts baits intended for blue cod and tarakihi. This is not the fish's problem. It is doing exactly what it is supposed to be doing. It does so efficiently and at volume. It has been doing so on reefs for a very long time. No significant threats. Not commercially targeted. Taken incidentally as bycatch and occasionally by recreational anglers in southern waters. Not assessed by DOC.