[4] The adults are more variable in colour, as they can either be dark green or reddish brown but are marked all over with numerous white spots.

[2] The thick lips and sharp front teeth of the ballan wrasse are an adaptation for extracting shellfish from rocks.

These are supplemented by powerful pharyngeal teeth which are placed further back in the throat and which can break up shells to access flesh inside.

They will swim into shallower water so that they can prey on the shellfish which cling to underwater cliff faces and inshore rocks.

[9] This species is popular as a food fish in the Orkney Islands off the north-eastern coast of Scotland, and in Galway, a county in the west of Ireland.

[8] In recent years, it has become a popular catch-and-release target for sport fishermen using light fishing tackle, particularly those employing soft plastic lures.

[16] As with many farmed marine species, commercial larval rearing utilises live prey before transitioning to dry feeds after metamorphosis is complete.