Six-line wrasse

Pseudocheilinus hexataenia

Also known as Sixline wrasse, Six-stripe wrasse, Sixstripe wrasse, Pyjama wrasse

SaltwaterFish

Six-line wrasse (Pseudocheilinus hexataenia) — Brian Gratwicke · CC BY 2.0

Care at a glance

Temperature: 72–79°F (22–26°C)
pH: 8.1–8.4
Adult size: 3.1 in (8 cm)
Minimum tank: 29 gal (110 L)
Temperament: Mostly peaceful
Social behavior: Solitary
Swim level: Middle
Difficulty: Easy
Breeding: Hard
Rarity: Very common
Reef safe: Reef safe
Origin: Indo-Pacific reefs from the Red Sea and East Africa to the central Pacific
Family: Labridae

Overview

This is the aggression caveat of the group. The six-line is reef safe and will not touch corals, and it earns its keep hunting pest snails, commensal flatworms, and small bristleworms in the rock, which is a real plus for a reef. But it is only mostly peaceful, and it turns into a scrappy bully as it settles in, chasing other wrasses, fairy wrasses, and shy or slow tankmates around the tank. The standard advice is to add it last so it cannot claim the whole tank as territory, and to keep just one per tank. It swims through the middle of the water column and rockwork rather than schooling. Hold stable marine water at a pH of 8.1 to 8.4 and 22 to 26 C with a covered top. Feed meaty foods like mysis and enriched brine, though an established tank supplies much of its natural pod and worm diet.

In the wild

Six-line wrasses live on Indo-Pacific reefs from the Red Sea and East Africa across to the central Pacific, threading through branching corals and live rock in search of tiny crustaceans. They are small, restless fish that spend the day working over the rockwork and coral, so they want a mature tank with plenty of live rock full of pods and hiding places. Keep them in stable marine water at a pH of 8.1 to 8.4 and a temperature of 22 to 26 C, with a tight lid, since like most wrasses they can jump. They wedge into a crevice to sleep and can vanish for a day or two after being added.

Good to know

This is a small wrasse in the family Labridae, reaching about 8 cm, marked with six horizontal blue lines over an orange to purple body and a small false eyespot near the tail. Unlike sand-diving wrasses it does not bury itself but sleeps wedged in the rock. It is a protogynous hermaphrodite like many wrasses, but it is only very rarely bred in captivity, so trade fish are wild-caught.

Did you know

It is a favorite for pest control, since it hunts and eats pyramidellid snails that attack clams, along with commensal flatworms and small bristleworms. The trade-off is temperament: a fish sold as reef safe and peaceful frequently grows into the tank bully, so the six-line is best added last and kept as the only wrasse in a smaller reef.