General Information

COMMON NAMES: Surge Wrasse, Purple Wrasse; German Brandungs-Junker; French Girelle Paon de Feu, Girelle Hublot TRADITIONAL NAMES: Karore / Patako? (RR), Pa‘oro Matakiva (MG), Pākoukou (AT), Matakiva (MK MT), Karore (AK), Pātakotako (TS TW), Patakotako (MH), Lenga / Pālengalenga [M] < Lenga < Wakaulu-lenga / Pāuloulo [F] (PK); Other Polynesian - Poou (TAH) GLOBAL DISTRIBUTION: NATIVE e.Africa - Easter, Hawai‘i; n. to s.Japan; s. to Lord Howe - Kermadecs - Rapa COOK ISLANDS STATUS: Native; S.Group and N.Group. PLUS:; Marine, near-shore, reef-flats, esp surf zone; lagoons and outer slope to 10m KEY FEATURES: To 45cm SL. TP (male) head green & pink, cheek green; behind the eye wide pink diagonal-line divides once; below Pectoral single short pink stripe. Body green with 3 pink-red stripes, upper 2 stripes ±joined ladder-like. IP (female) pale-green shading white below; with 3 stripes ±joined ladder-like; dorsal stripe broad & broken, lower 2 narrow & continuous. SIMILAR SPECIES: Christmas Wrass (Thalassoma trilobatum) IP almost identical; mid & lower body stripes disrupted (vs. continuous & even); maroon mark on snout in front of eye C or oval shaped (vs vertical to Y shaped).

Cook Islands Distribution

View Distribution Map

Southern Group: Present    Makatea:
RR	MG	AT	MK	MT	AK	PL	TK	MN
	^P	^P	^P

Northern Group: Present
TN	MH	RK	PK	NS	SW
	P		P		P

Thalassoma purpureum (Forsskål, 1775)
SYNONYMS: Scarus purpureus [O]; Thalassoma umbrostygma [authors incl. Schultz... 1960]

TAXONOMY: ANIMALIA; CHORDATA; GNATHOSTOMATA (Jawed Vertebrates); PISCES; OSTEICHTHYES; Perciformes; Labroidei; LABRIDAE, Julidini

Vouchers:
Mangaia: specimens ip & tp, College, 9/2000, ID GM; Teruapuºi, Keia District, reef-pool 0-2m, CAS 73943 (DSM58). Atiu: field-specimen, College collection, 10/2000, ID GMcC. Mauke: fieldspecimen, College, 3/2001, ID GMcC. Manihiki: A958-24speciemens, as Thalassoma umbrostygma after Schultz et al 1960 (B&M74) reID after Myers 1989-2nd ed. Pukapuka: fieldspecimen+photo, 2/2004, G.McCormack with ID as Thalassoma purpureum. Suwarrow: field ID N.Sims (Sims EIA99).

References:
text p.190 Myers (1991 2nd Ed.) Fishes of Micronesia
plate 102g Myers (1991 2nd Ed.) Fishes of Micronesia
p.338 Randall et al. (1990) Fishes of the Great Barrier Reef....
p.468 Burgess et al. (1988) Atlas of Marine Aquarium Fishes (TFH)
plate 103-09 Lieske & Myers (1996) Coral Reef Fishes
plate 78-01 Allen (1997) Marine Fishes of Tropical Australia....

Data Update History (information):
zTX, zB02, zM02, zupM04bzD02

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