Cirrhilabrus finifenmaa, or the Rose-Veiled Fairy Wrasse, a new species.
While they might be literary famous, rainbow fish do in fact exist.
Yellow, red, orange, and violet give these little fish a flame-like appearance.
Cirrhilabrus finifenmaa, or the Rose-Veiled Fairy Wrasse, a new species. (Photo:Yi-Kai Tea/California Academy of Sciences)
It has a different appearance and different DNA.
This exemplifies why describing new species, and taxonomy in general, is important for conservation and biodiversity management.
The rose-veiled fairy wrasse is also the first fish to be formally described by a Maldivian scientist.
Cirrhilabrus finifenmaa, or the Rose-Veiled Fairy Wrasse, a new species. (Photo:Yi-Kai Tea/California Academy of Sciences)
The description process establishes a new species.
This research is part of a collaboration with the California Academy of Sciences and thierHope for Reefs Initiative.
The fish is the first to be formally described by a Maldivian scientist.
Maldives Marine Research Institute biologist Ahmed Najeeb (left) and Academy Curator of Ichthyology Luiz Rocha, PhD, inspect a fish specimen in the Maldives. (Photo:Claudia Rocha © California Academy of Sciences)
