An eastern Pacific wrasse of rock and rubble, the adult male with a pale band across the body.
To about 25 cm. The initial phase is dark green above and light green below with five or six alternating yellow and black patches along the upper back. Terminal males carry seven or eight blackish bars on the upper half separated by narrow yellow ones, a dark patch behind the pectoral fin and a red tail. Very small juveniles can be almost black with a clear tail.
The fish to rule out is the chameleon wrasse, which shares the same islands. It has a single black, blue-ringed blotch above the pectoral fin on a pink or green body, and this one never has that; it has the repeated bars instead.
Shallow rocky shore, one to ten metres, and it is commonest where there is brown algae and surge. It eats crustaceans, urchins, molluscs and brittle stars. Loses its colour and goes dull brown in a tank, which is the usual fate of a green wrasse in captivity.
Ratings are per location: 1 means found on most dives that look for it, 5 means a handful of records. Where enough dives have been logged the figure is calculated from them; otherwise it is an editorial estimate, and says so. We publish habitat and destination, not the dive site.