Fine green and pink lines over the whole body; abundant on rubble and rarely still.
To about 12 cm, green with fine pink to magenta horizontal lines over the body, pink lines radiating across the head, and a black spot at the top of the caudal peduncle in the initial phase that fades in terminal males. Juveniles carry two dark eyespots on the dorsal fin. The genus contains several very similar species here and the tail spot, where present, is the practical mark.
It works rubble and coral for small crustaceans and worms, moving continuously in short darts, and buries in sand at night. It is among the most numerous small fish on the rubble margins of muck sites, which is a good reason to be able to name it rather than photograph it again. Recorded from about 1 to 20 m.
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.