Fun Flame Wrasse Facts For Kids

Flame wrasse (Cirrhilabrus jordani) are dimorphic fish with an orangish-yellow body. The scientific name for flame wrasse is Cirrhilabrus jordani, which honors the American ichthyologist David Starr Jordan. The wrasses make for a great aquarium pet as they don't bother corals or invertebrates and are very easy to maintain. The male vs female flame wrasse comparison is not very dominant as they both are almost similar. This particular species of fish is mostly found in the Hawaiian Islands and is therefore also called Hawaiian wrasse.

Here, we have many amazing and interesting facts about flame wrasse that you will enjoy. Let's take a look at these facts and information, and if you enjoy these then, do read our exquisite wrasse and humphead wrasse facts.

What type of animal is a flame wrasse?

The flame wrasse (Cirrhilabrus jordani), also referred to as Jordan's fairy wrasse or Jordan's wrasse, is a species of marine fish with a bright golden body and red dorsal, caudal fins, and yellow anal and pelvic fins. This particular species of fish is mostly found in Hawaii and the Pacific region. They make a very good aquarium pet and are kept in the reef aquarium and domestic fish tanks.

What class of animal does a flame wrasse belong to?

The flame wrasse (Cirrhilabrus jordani) or Jordan's fairy wrasse is a species of fish, and like all the other fishes, it belongs to the class of Actinopterygii. The Hawaiian flame wrasse is the most commonly found species of this fish.

How many flame wrasses are there in the world?

There is actually no exact estimate of the total population of Jordan's fairy wrasse in the world.

Where does a flame wrasse live?

The flame fairy wrasse or Jordan's fairy wrasse is usually found in deep-sea waters or oceans near the Pacific region. However, the Hawaiian flame wrasse is commonly found in the deep waters of the Hawaii Islands. Flame wrasses are also found in domestic and reef aquariums.

What is a flame wrasse's habitat?

The habitat of a flame fairy wrasse or Jordan's wrasse mainly comprises of Eastern and Central Pacific. In contrast, the habitat of a Hawaiian flame wrasse mainly comprises the Hawaiian Islands and seaward reefs. Flame fairy wrasse makes for a good aquarium pet and is therefore found in domestic aquariums too.

Who do flame wrasses live with?

The flame fairy wrasse (Cirrhilabrus jordani) is a non-territorial fish and can be kept with other species of fishes like Boxfish, Damselfish, and Large Angelfish in a fish tank or aquarium without any problem. However, they are not compatible with sharks, rays, and batfish. But the minimum tank size to keep a wrasse is 30 gal (113.5 l).

How long does a flame wrasse live?

The average lifespan of a flame fairy wrasse is somewhere around five to seven years, but with proper feeding and a good environment inside an aquarium, they can live even longer.

How do they reproduce?

Not much has been researched about the breeding or reproduction process of the flame fairy wrasse, but it is estimated that they also reproduce like the other dimorphic species of wrasse.

What is their conservation status?

The conservation status of flame fairy wrasse is Not Evaluated.

What does a flame wrasse look like?

A flame fairy wrasse or a Hawaiian flame wrasse is a dimorphic fish, with the upper third part being that of a male, having a red color, whereas the rest of the body is yellow. They also have two stripes just above and below their eyes, with the dorsal and caudal fin possess red color and the anal fins possess yellow. The female flame wrasse is entirely pinkish-red.

*Please note that this is an image of a tripletail wrasse, not a flame wrasse. If you have an image of a flame wrasse, do let us know at [email protected].

How cute are they?

With their rich and vibrant colors, Jordan's wrasse and Hawaiian flame wrasse are very cute in appearance. Both female and male flame wrasse look alike and are equally cute in appearance.

How do they communicate?

The Jordani flame wrasse pair's communication process is still unknown, but like the other fish, they are also believed to communicate via vibrations.

How big is a flame wrasse?

The flame wrasse pair is alike in size, falling in the range of 3.9-5.1 in (10-13 cm). They are almost similar in size to the other species of wrasses.

How fast can a flame wrasse swim?

Researchers have not yet found the exact swimming speed of a wrasse male or female, but it would be roughly equal to the speed of other species of the wrasse fish.

How much does a flame wrasse weigh?

The weight of a Hawaiian flame wrasse or flame fairy wrasse is still not known. But as per the size of a wrasse male or female, their weight would be roughly similar to the other small species of fish.

What are the male and female names of the species?

There is no such specific name given to the male or female of this species of fish.

What would you call a baby flame wrasse?

A baby Hawaiian flame wrasse does not bear any special name, just like the adult flame wrasse pair.

What do they eat?

The Hawaiian flame wrasse pair has a similar diet consisting of flake, shrimp, pellet, copepods, and mysids. But when kept in an aquarium, the Hawaiian flame wrasse pair can diet on protein-rich fish food. How they eat is with their protractile teeth, which come out when they have to eat.

Are they dangerous?

No, they are not much dangerous.

Would they make a good pet?

Yes, the wrasses make an excellent aquarium pet. They don't bother corals or invertebrates and are very easy to maintain and compatible with most other fish species. In addition, they can be kept with other wrasses that are not bright red or yellow.

Did you know...

Wrasses normally cannot live together as they get aggressive with similar-looking fishes, but they can be kept with other wrasses that are not bright red or yellow and do not have flowing fins.

Wrasse is considered reef safe and is commonly found in the fishing trade.

As wrasses are carnivores, they mostly eat fresh shrimps, pellets, and flakes.

The average flame wrasse price is $100 in the U.S.

Are wrasses aggressive?

Wrasses are aggressive with other wrasses and some other species of fish that look similar to them. However, they are not aggressive with the species like angelfish or damselfish, or other wrasses that are not bright red or yellow and do not have flowing fins.

Having your own flame wrasse

The flame wrasse makes for an amazing aquarium pet as it doesn't bother corals or invertebrates and is very pretty in appearance, and the flame wrasse care is also very easy. The requirements to keep a flame wrasse include having an aquarium with a minimum tank size of 30 gal (113.5 l), a dim or strong light, and slow water movement. In addition, these wrasses are often referred to as flame wrasse jumpers because of their jumping nature, so they also require a tight-fitting canopy. As far as feeding is involved, it would help if you fed diced shrimps, flakes, pellets, and fish food to the Hawaiian flame wrasse or, as a matter of fact, to every flame wrasse.

Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly animal facts for everyone to discover! For more relatable content, check out these skate fish facts and codfish facts for kids.

You can even occupy yourself at home by coloring in one of our free printable flame wrasse coloring pages.