Males are easily identified by the two large black bars edged by white and yellow behind the head, whereas females lack the bars and are more drably coloured. Juveniles have a thin body with a golden stripe down the side that ends at a black spot on the base of the tail. The species is active only during daylight; at night it sleeps buried under sand. It utilises a similar behavioural strategy, with a single large male controlling a harem of females.

• Max Size: 25 cm
• Sea Temperature Range: 14.8-24.2°C
• Depth: 5-40m
• Habitat: Coral Reef, Rocky Reef
• Habitat Generalisation Index: 15.7
  Also referred to as the SGI (Species generalisation index), this describes the habitat niche breadth of the species. Species with values less than 15 are found in a relatively narrow range of reef habitat types (specialists), while those over 25 may be found on most hard substrates within their range (generalists). Learn more here

• IUCN Threat Status: Least Concern
• Occurrence: Common (23% of sites)
  Occurrence describes how often the species is found on surveys within its distribution. It is calculated as the % of reef sites surveyed by RLS divers across all the ecoregions in which the species has been observed
• Abundance: Several (6 per transect)
  Abundance is calculated as the average number of individuals recorded per RLS transect, where present.