Earl’s Fairy Wrasse
Cirrhilabrus earlei
The Earl’s Fairy Wrasse is one of the rarest and most coveted fairy wrasses in the marine aquarium hobby. It lives on deep twilight reefs in the Western Central Pacific, and males have a warm pink-to-red body marked with bold horizontal stripes in deep red, orange and purple, set off by an elegant sword-shaped tail. During courtship displays, males “flash,” and their colors intensify into a vivid show few other wrasses can match. Growing to about 6 inches, the Earl’s Fairy Wrasse is a peaceful, reef-safe fish that does best in a mature aquarium with open swimming room and plenty of rockwork for cover.
This graceful wrasse is calm and fairly reserved. It spends its days cruising the water column to pick plankton from the current, then retreats into the rockwork at night. It accepts a varied diet of frozen meaty foods and quality marine pellets, and it does best when added last to a community of peaceful tankmates. Like all fairy wrasses it is a skilled jumper, so a tightly covered tank is essential. Because it comes from such deep water and so few are ever collected, the Earl’s Fairy Wrasse is a true “holy grail” fish for serious wrasse collectors and discerning reef keepers.
Care Level: Moderate
Temperament: Peaceful
Reef Safe: Yes
Maximum Size: 6 inches
Diet: Carnivore (Planktivore)
Origin: Western Central Pacific
Minimum Tank Size: 50 gallons
