Wrasse and rockling I.D pics

Here are a few pics of the smaller species of wrasse.

corkwing male (blue-green lines)


corkwing female

Small ballans can be distinguished by the lack of the black tail spot, or the lack of a serrated gill cover which can be felt with a fingernail on the corkwing.

cuckoo male


cuckoo female


rock cook  ( purple lines)


goldsinney

And some rockling.

The most common one from North Wales beaches is the 5 bearded, the 2 small beards on the top lip are not as prominent as the other 3.






The shore rockling is more often found from rocky areas and is darker with white dashes down the lateral line



3 bearded are much larger and usually pink

Good info

That's great info Terry thanks

Thanks Terry

A few more Rockling pics from my personal collection.

5 Bearded Rockling.
2 pairs of beards above the mouth. Usually pale brown in colour as live over sand.





Shore Rockling.
Only 1 pair of beards above the mouth. Darker borwn in colour. Found in rocky areas.




3 Bearded Rockling.
Pink rather than brown with blotches of brown on the back and as the name suggests, only 3 beards.