Blackspot Wrasse, Decodon melasma
Blackspot Wrasse, Decodon melasma, Initial Phase (IP) Female, Transitioning To A Terminal Phase (TP) Male. Fish caught from coastal waters off Point Palmilla, Baja California Sur, March 2016. Length: 12.7 cm (5.0 inches). Note the subtle spotting along the center of the body.
Blackspot Wrasse, Decodon melasma, Initial Phase (IP) Female, Transitioning To A Terminal Phase (TP) Male. Fish caught from coastal waters off Point Palmilla, Baja California Sur, March 2016. Length: 17.3 cm (6.8 inches).
Blackspot Wrasse, Decodon melasma, Terminal Phase (TP) Male. Fish caught from coastal waters off Point Palmilla, Baja California Sur, January 2014. Length: 18 cm (7.1 inches).
The Blackspot Wrasse, Decodon melasma, is a member of the Wrasse or Labridae Family, that is also known as the Blotched Hogback and in Mexico as viejita manchada. Globally, there are four species in the genus Decodon, two of which are found in Mexican waters, one in the Atlantic and one in the Pacific Ocean.
The Blackspot Wrasses has a moderately elongated compressed body with a depth that is 26% to 28% of standard length; more mature fish have wider bodies. They have a pinkish-red coloration with a white belly, three wide curved bright yellow stripes on their head, and an oblong black blotch on their sides located around the tip of their pectoral fin. They have a large bluntly pointed head with a large mouth that ends under their eyes. Juveniles are reported to have six dusky bars on their sides (I catch several of these fish every year but have never seen a juvenile). Their fins are pinkish with the exception of their anal and pelvic fins which are transparent with a yellow stripe near the base. They have a pair of canine teeth at the front of their upper and lower jaws. Their anal fin has 3 spines and 10 rays; their caudal fin is slightly lunate; their dorsal fin has 11 spines and 10 rays; and, their pectoral fins have 17 or 18 rays. They are covered with scales. Their lateral line is smoothly arched.
The Blackspot Wrasse is a deep water species found on the bottom over rubble and isolated rocky reefs adjacent to sandy areas at depths between 40 m (130 feet) and 220 m (720 feet). They reach a maximum of 32 cm (13 inches) in length. They feed diurnally on small crustaceans, sea urchins, mollusks, and brittle stars. The Blackspot Wrasse is poorly studied with very limited information available about their lifestyle and behavioral patterns including specific details on age, growth, longevity, movement patterns, diet, habitat use, and reproduction.
The Blackspot Wrasse is a resident is a resident of Mexican waters of the Pacific Ocean but has a limited distribution being found along the west coast of Baja, in the southern two-thirds of the Sea of Cortez, and along the coast of the mainland south to Guatemala. Their populations are concentrated to only a very few areas however.
The Blackspot Wrasse is an easy fish to identify due to its unique markings, and cannot be confused with any other species.
From a conservation perspective the Blackspot Wrasses is currently considered to be of Least Concern with stable, widely distributed populations. They are small in stature and of limited interest to most. I can normally catch a dozen of these fish every year on a Sabiki rig tipped with squid out of water than is in excess of 100 m (330 feet). They are a “catch-and-release” to all but subsistence fishermen.