Rainbow
Fish
Cirrhilabrus
finifenmaa
Introduction
There are different types of rainbow
fish that have been discovered in
various parts of the world. The most
recent one is the rose-veiled fairy
wrasse that was found in the
Maldives in 2022.
It lives in the ocean’s ‘twilight
zone’, which is a deep and dimly lit
region of coral reefs that lies
between 40 and 70 meters below the
surface.
It has stunning pink hues that
resemble the pink rose, the national
flower of the Maldives. Its scientific
name, Cirrhilabrus finifenmaa,
means ‘rose’ in the local Dhivehi
language.
It is one of the few fish that can
change their sex as they grow. They
start life as females and mature into
males, becoming more colorful and
flashy.
Food,
Habitat and
Threats
It lives in the ocean’s ‘twilight zone’,
which is a deep and dimly lit region of
coral reefs that lies between 40 and 70
meters below the surface.
It is native to the reefs of the Maldives,
and has not been found anywhere else.
It feeds mostly on small crustaceans,
but can also capture fish.
The aquarium hobbyist trade is a threat
which may exploit the fish for their
beautiful colors and rarity.
Climate change can affect the
temperature, acidity and oxygen levels
of the ocean and damage the coral
reefs.
Overfishing, pollution and habitat
destruction reduce the biodiversity and
health of the mesophotic zone.
sDiscovery
The discovery of the rose-veiled fairy wrasse
was a collaborative effort by scientists from
different countries and institutions. Here are
some details about the discovery process:
The fish was first collected by
researchers in the 1990s, but it was
mistaken for the adult version of another
species of wrasse,
In 2022, a team of scientists from the
California Academy of Sciences, the
University of Sydney, the Maldives
Marine Research Institute and the Field
Museum revisited the specimens and
compared them with the C. rubrisquamis
specimen.
They used various methods to measure
and count the features of the fish, such
as the color, the fin spines and the scales.
They also analyzed their genetic data to
confirm that they were different species.
They named the new species Cirrhilabrus
finifenmaa, which means ‘rose’ in the
local Dhivehi language. They chose this
name to honor the pink hues of the fish
and the national flower of the Maldives.
They published their findings in a paper
in the journal ZooKeys on March 10,
2022.
Its name is credited to Mr. Ahmed
Najeeb,
a Maldivian researcher.
Taxonomy
It belongs to the kingdom Animalia, the
phylum Chordata, the class
Actinopterygii, the order Labriformes,
the family Labridae and the genus
Cirrhilabrus12.
It is closely related to other species of
fairy wrasses, such as C. rubrisquamis
and C. wakanda12.
It has a binomial name of Cirrhilabrus
finifenmaa, which means ‘rose’ in the
local Dhivehi language123.
It was first described in 2022 by a team
of researchers from the University of
Sydney, the Maldives Marine Research
Institute, the Field Museum and the
California Academy of Sciences123.
It is the first-ever fish to be described
by a Maldivian researcher, Ahmed
Najeeb
