Butcher’s Prick

About this species

Ophthalmolepis lineolata, the southern Maori wrasse, is a species of wrasse endemic to the Indian Ocean coastal waters of Australia. This species has been found at a minimum depth of 60 m (200 ft). This species grows to 40 cm (16 in) in total length. This species is the only known member of its genus.

Text from the Wikipedia article “Ophthalmolepis”, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the article

Where and when

Where it has been recorded

Worldwide

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Best months

Worldwide (open data)

January: 229 records
February: 216 records
March: 232 records
April: 223 records
May: 197 records
June: 212 records
July: 123 records
August: 121 records
September: 159 records
October: 144 records
November: 186 records
December: 198 records

Depth and water temperature

Depth

Mostly recorded at 5–40 m · Deepest record: 55 m

0–10 m: 36 records
10–20 m: 36 records
20–30 m: 1 records
30–40 m: 11 records
40–50 m: 9 records
50–60 m: 1 records

Water temperature

Recorded in surface water of 15–21 °C

14–16 °C: 7 records
16–18 °C: 6 records
18–20 °C: 1 records
20–22 °C: 12 records

Photos

(c) Tim, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
(c) neilfws, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
(c) Debra Baker, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
(c) Valentin Moser, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
(c) Tim, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
(c) Bryce Watts-Parker, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
(c) Debra Baker, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist

Names and classification

English: Butcher’s Prick, maori, Slippery Dick, Southern Maori Wrasse

Other scientific names: Julis lineolatus, Ophthalmolepis lineolatus

Similar species

Blue Groper
Achoerodus gouldii
Blue Groper
Achoerodus viridis
Hawaiian Hogfish
Bodianus albotaeniatus
Tripletail wrasse
Cheilinus trilobatus
Blunt-head Parrotfish
Chlorurus microrhinos
Spectacled Parrotfish
Chlorurus perspicillatus

Sources and credits

Names and taxonomy: WoRMS (CC BY 4.0) and the GBIF Backbone (CC BY 4.0). Photos: iNaturalist observers, each under the licence shown (CC0, CC BY or CC BY-SA).

Depth, temperature, months and maps: records from OBIS and GBIF under CC0 or CC BY.
Descriptions: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA, each linked to its article.
Conservation status as published by GBIF (IUCN Red List).
4,694 open-data records from 1889 to 2023.
Species data updated November 5, 2026.