Tripletail Wrasse

Cheilinus trilobatus

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Labriformes
Family: Labridae
Genus: Cheilinus
Species: Cheilinus trilobatus

The tripletail wrasse (Cheilinus trilobatus) is a large, green-brown wrasse with red-orange dashes on its head and pale bands on its body. Adults have a three-lobed tail fin, which gives the species its name.

It grows to about 45 cm and feeds on molluscs, crabs and other hard-shelled prey that it crushes with strong teeth. It is a cautious fish that stays close to cover on reef flats and lagoons.

The tripletail wrasse is found throughout the Indo-Pacific, including the Philippines, where it lives on shallow reefs with mixed coral and rubble.