Cigar wrasse

Dorsal spines (total): 9; Dorsal soft rays (total): 12-13; Anal spines: 3; Anal soft rays: 11-12. Young individuals are usually a mottled brown or green, sometimes with a broad lateral stripe (Ref. 1602). Rare individuals may be uniformly yellow (Ref. 1602). Coloration in this fish is variable: green, brown, orange-brown or yellow, often with narrow, midlateral, broken black stripe which are absent in large males (Ref. 86689). Large males may develop a bright yellow, orange, black, white, or multicolored patch on their sides behind their pectoral fins (Ref. 1602).