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Old 01/03/2008, 07:28 AM
H.Tanaka H.Tanaka is offline
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Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: Miyazaki City, Japan
Posts: 568
It is one of undescribed species of Cirrhilabrus. It is known from southern Japan, Taiwan and the Philippines, and it almost enters the aquarium trade from Cebu. Not known from Indonesian waters but it may exist in northern part around Sangihe Islands or Manado, Sulawesi.

Males have a reddish line on side that curves just above pectoral-fin base; it is not seen in lanceolatus or roseafascia. The species gows to 12cm at maximum as far as I know. It loves deeper waters and usually commands a high price in market.

It is very similar in appearance to lunatus from northwestern Pacific but the latter has a deeply lunate caudal fin; they mix well in nature and reproduce hybrid cross on rare occasion.

The species will be named by a Japanese ichthyologist and his colleague, perhaps this year.

The fish on page 40 (in Rudie Kuiter's wrasse book, 2002) illustrates roseafascia in Palau (bottom photo; I). He is now revising the book for the new edition.