Bluestreak cleaner wrasse
Labroides dimidiatus
Valid name (FishBase; confirmed in Eschmeyer's Catalog of Fishes and WoRMS, October 2026).
- English
- Bluestreak cleaner wrasse
- Scientific
- Labroides dimidiatus
- Dhivehi
- ތެޔޮފުޅިމަސްTheyofulhi mas
- Group
- Reef fish
- Family
- Labridae (wrasses)
- Maximum size
- Up to about 14 cm (total length)
- Depth and habitat
- Coral reefs and reef-associated habitats, recorded from 0 to 100 m (usually 1 to 30 m)
- IUCN status
- LC · Least ConcernLeast Concern (LC), assessed 2008
Description
A small, slender wrasse with a blue to white body and a black stripe that widens from the snout to the tail. It runs cleaning stations where larger fish, even predators, queue up and hold still while it removes parasites and dead skin, signalling its role with a bobbing dance. Juveniles are black with a bright blue stripe.
In the Maldives
Dhivehi name theyofulhi mas (MRS 1997). Cleaning stations are a highlight of Maldivian dives, where mantas and sharks visit to be cleaned.
Sources
- fishbase.se /summary/Labroides-dimidiatus.html
- fishbase.se /comnames/CommonNamesList.php?ID=5459&GenusName=Labroides&SpeciesName=
- dv.wikipedia.org /wiki/ތެޔޮފުޅިމަސް
- commons.wikimedia.org /wiki/File:Lábrido_limpiador_común_(Labroides_dimidiatus),_mar_Rojo,_E
Dhivehi name source: FishBase common names (country: Maldives) give 'Theyofulhi mas' (Latin script). Thaana from the Dhivehi Wikipedia article 'ތެޔޮފުޅިމަސް' (derived from the MRS 1997 Dhivehi edition); it matches the Latin form. FishBase also lists 'Haremkali' under India (Minicoy/Lakshadweep Mahl dialect); not used.