Pseudojuloides sp.
Large pencil wrasse 5in

🐠 Royal Pencil Wrasse
Scientific name: Pseudocheilinus

Adult size: About 5 inches
Temperament: Semi-aggressive
Reef safe: Yes, with some caution
Recommended tank: 30 gallons minimum; 40–55+ gallons is preferable
Temperature: 72–78°F
Salinity: 1.023–1.025
pH: 8.1–8.4
🪸 Aquarium setup
Royal Pencil Wrasses are small but very active. Provide plenty of live rock, caves, crevices, and hiding places.
They can spend much of their day darting around rockwork looking for small prey.

A sand bed isn't absolutely required, but having some substrate and plenty of rockwork makes the fish more comfortable.

🍤 Feeding
They're natural hunters that pick small organisms from rocks and crevices.
Good foods include:

Mysis shrimp
Brine shrimp
Frozen copepods
Finely chopped seafood
Small marine pellets
Quality marine flakes
Feed 1–2 times daily, with additional small feedings being beneficial in a busy reef aquarium.
🐠 Tankmates
This is where they differ considerably from a typical peaceful flasher wrasse.
Royal Pencil Wrasses can become territorial and aggressive toward other wrasses, especially fish with similar body shapes or coloration.

Avoid keeping multiple Royal Pencil Wrasses together unless you have a very large, carefully planned aquarium.

They're generally fine with:

Clownfish
Gobies
Blennies
Cardinalfish
Tangs in appropriately sized tanks
Peaceful reef fish
🦐 Invertebrates
They're generally considered reef compatible, but they may eat small ornamental crustaceans, especially tiny shrimp.
If you have expensive ornamental shrimp, I'd be cautious.

⚠️ Jumping
Like many wrasses, they can jump when startled.
A secure lid or mesh screen is strongly recommended.

⭐ Overall
The Royal Pencil Wrasse is a beautiful, active, useful reef fish, but its personality can be much more assertive than its small size suggests.
Best for: A mature reef with plenty of rockwork and compatible tankmates.

Biggest concern: Aggression toward other wrasses and small ornamental invertebrates.