|Moon wrasse, Thalassoma lunare, a typical wrasse| The wrasses
are a family, Labridae, of marine fish, many of which are
brightly colored. The family is large and diverse, with over 600
species in 82 genera, which are divided into nine subgroups or
tribes. They are typically small fish, most of them less than 20
centimetres (7.9 in) long, although the largest, the Humphead
wrasse, can measure up to 2.5 metres (8.2 ft). They are
efficient carnivores, feeding on a wide range of small
invertebrates. Many smaller wrasses follow the feeding trails of
larger fish, picking up invertebrates disturbed by their
passing. Juveniles of some representatives of the genera
Bodianus, Cirrhilabrus, and Oxycheilinus hide among the
tentacles of the free-living mushroom coral Heliofungia
actiniformis. Wrasses inhabit the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific
Oceans, usually in shallow water habitats such as coral reefs
and rocky shores where they live close to the substrate. Wrasses
have protractile mouths, usually with separate jaw teet