Among the sites we snorkeled at there was a specific species that I found very interesting. Halichoeres bivittatus (Slippery dick wrasse) is a small carnivorous fish never getting much larger than 6-7 inches. They are found mainly in the Western Atlantic and Caribbean Sea spread out across reefs, grassy flats and sandbars. They feed on many shelled invertebrates, mollusks and worms. They drastically change there color appearance as well as the shapes of their bodies from juvenile fish to adult fish and are also known to undergo sex change throughout their lives.
Halichoeres bivittatus mainly inhabit relatively shallow waters rarely seen below 10 meters. I was able to view them in their natural environment at Cheeca Rocks on the patch reef system. They move through the water column very gracefully peeking their head in small cracks and holes looking for any easy meal. These fish are truly beautiful to obsereve in their element. I have always found wrasse to be very interesting. Some species also form symbiotic relationships with crabs for protection and feeding methods.
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