Common Name: Tripletail Wrasse
Species Name: Cheilinus trilobatus Lacepéde, 1801
Range: Indo-Pacific Ocean: East Africa to Tuamotu and Austral Islands, Ryukyu Islands, New Caledonia
Size: Up to 18 in (45 cm)
Natural Environment: Inhabit lagoon areas and seaward reefs
General Husbandry: Has a temperature range of 75 - 83°F (24 - 28°C) and has a natural diet of benthic invertebrate, mainly hard-shelled invertebrate. Requires a meaty diet consisting of various enriched fish and invertebrate flesh with two or three feedings per week. They do not burro, yet like to sleep in caves and crevices. All eat snails, worms (feather dusters) shrimp, crabs, brittle stars, sea stars, and small fish, therefore they are not recommended for the reef aquarium. Most are also big eaters, and after a big meal can go days without feeding again.
Aquarium Suitability: * * & * * * *
Anemonefishes - Angelfishes - Anthias - Assessors - Bannerfish - Basslets (Dottybacks and Grammas) - Batfishes - Blennies - Boxfishes - Brotulas - Butterflyfishes - Cardinalfishes - Catfishes - Cuttlefish - Damselfishes - Dartfishes - Dragonets - Drums - Eels - Filefishes - Flashlight fishes - Flatheads - Frogfishes - Goatfishes - Gobies - Groupers - Hamlets - Hawkfishes - Helmut Gurnards - Jacks - Jawfishes - Lion fishes - Livebearing Brotula - Lizardfishes - Mollies - Moorish Idol - Parrotfishes - Pinecone fishes - Pipefishes - Porcupine fishes - Pufferfishes - Rabbitfishes - Rays - Sand Perches - Scats - Scorpionfishes - Seabasses - Seahorses - Sea Moths - Sharks - Shrimpfishes - Snappers - Soldierfishes - Spinecheeks - Squirrelfishes - Surgeonfishes (Tangs) - Sweetlips - Tilefishes - Triggerfishes - Trumpetfishes - Wrasses
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* - Suited for the reef aquarium;
** - Better suited for the fish-only aquarium;
*** - Better left in nature;
**** - Needing an aquarium larger than 125 gallons; and,
***** - Needing their own private environment/special tankmates.