Husbandry
Very special thanks for the first photos of Halichoeres burekae to Joyce & Frank Burek from the United States of America.
Joyce & Frank Burek are very famous marine photographer, they have taken these photo of the rare and endangered wrasse in the Gulf of Mexico.
Halichoeres burekae is named for Joyce Burek, who first photographed the terminal phase male of this species!
Converning IUCN, the Red List of threatened Species, is only known from three widely spaced coral reef localities in the Gulf of Mexico.
The endemic Mardi Gras wrasse can be locally common in at least one locality, but uncommon in the other two.
This wrasse lives in the Alacranes Reef, in Flower Gardens and in Veracruz.
The beautiful Halichoeres burekae inhabits coral reefs to depths of 24 meters, but may occur as deep as 50 meters. The wrasse is a planktivore species.
Unfortunately Halichoeres burekae is a prey species of the invasive Lionfish (Pterois volitans), as Dr. Luiz A. Rocha, a famous ichthyologist from the California Academy of Sciences reported!
Source: IUCN Red List
Informations to the photos:
Male wrasse: Stetson Bank of the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary, depth of 85 feet, August 24, 2000
Female wrasses: Stetson Bank of the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary, depth of 81 feet June 26, 2001 and depth of 96 feet, September 17, 2006, 96 feet
Classification: Biota > Animalia (Kingdom) > Chordata (Phylum) > Vertebrata (Subphylum) > Gnathostomata (Superclass) > Pisces (Superclass) > Actinopterygii (Class) > Perciformes (Order) > Labroidei (Suborder) > Labridae (Family) > Halichoeres (Genus) > Halichoeres burekae (Species)