Secretive Wrasse

Secretive Wrasse

The Secretive Wrasse (Pseudocheilinus evanidus), also called the pinstripe or striated wrasse, is a hardy little reef wrasse — a rich red-orange body traced with fine white pinstripes and a white cheek mark. As its common name suggests, it is shy and quick to dart into cover, but once established it is a tough, long-lived fish and, like its relatives the sixline and mystery wrasses, a useful hunter of pest invertebrates.

It is bold once settled, with a feisty streak toward other small wrasses, so its temperament is worth planning around.

Natural Habitat & Origin

Pseudocheilinus evanidus is found across the Indo-Pacific, where it darts between coral and rubble hunting tiny crustaceans and other small invertebrates. It is a particularly secretive fish that stays close to cover, often taking time to settle and show itself in a new tank.

In the aquarium it wants plenty of live rock with crevices to explore and shelter in, ideally in a mature system with natural microfauna.

Care Requirements

Maintain stable marine conditions: salinity around 1.024–1.026, pH 8.1–8.4, and a temperature of about 24–26°C (75–79°F). Reaching about 10 cm (4 inches), it suits a tank of around 75 litres (20 US gallons) or more with abundant rockwork. A secure, gap-free lid is essential — like most wrasses, it is a jumper. It is hardy and adaptable once it has settled in.

Diet & Feeding

The Secretive Wrasse is a carnivore, feeding on small crustaceans and invertebrates in the wild — including pest species such as small bristleworms, which makes it useful in a reef. Offer a varied diet of frozen mysis and enriched brine shrimp, finely chopped seafood and quality marine pellets, fed once or twice a day.

Behavior & Temperament

This is a semi-aggressive fish, shy at first but assertive once established, particularly toward other small wrasses and similar fish that compete for its niche. It is best kept as the only small wrasse in most tanks, and added later in a stocking plan. It spends its day working the rockwork, retreating quickly to cover when startled.

Tank Mates

Good companions are a wide range of peaceful to semi-aggressive reef fish — tangs, clownfish, gobies, larger wrasses and similar. Avoid keeping it with other Pseudocheilinus or similar small wrasses in a small system. It is reef-safe with corals and ornamental invertebrates, though as a small predator it may eat tiny shrimp along with the pests it controls.

Breeding

Pseudocheilinus evanidus is a pelagic spawner and is not bred in the home aquarium, so trade specimens are wild-collected.

Common Health Issues

The Secretive Wrasse is hardy but, like all marine fish, can be affected by marine ich (Cryptocaryon irritans) and marine velvet (Amyloodinium ocellatum), particularly when stressed. Quarantine new arrivals, keep water quality stable, and secure the lid against jumping. Give it plenty of rockwork and time to settle, and it is a hardy, useful and characterful wrasse for a reef aquarium.