# Choerodon

Choerodon is a genus of wrasses native to the Indian Ocean and the western Pacific Ocean. They are commonly referred to as tuskfish, because most species have sharp tusk-like teeth.

## Taxonomy

The genus Choerodon is most closely related to the odacine wrasses. Both groups are part of the wrasse tribe Hypsigenyini. Choerodon is split into 6 subgenera. Molecular phylogenetic analysis has so far demonstrated the monophyly of the subgenera, although not all species in the genus have been evaluated.
Choerodon typus was traditionally placed within its own genus Xiphocheilus, but both morphological and molecular analyses now place it within Choerodon, with Xiphocheilus becoming its subgenus name instead.

## Potential tool use in tuskfishes

Orange-dotted, blue, graphic, and blackspot tuskfish have been recorded using large rocks or hard coral as "anvils", upon which they smash open hard-shelled prey items. All four species belong to the subgenus Choerodon, and can remember to use a particular rock or coral repeatedly for this purpose. This behaviour usually involves invertebrate prey such as clams and sea urchins, but on one occasion, a blue tuskfish was filmed smashing a young green sea turtle on an anvil. Anvil use is also documented in several other wrasse genera.

## Species

The 27 currently recognized species in this genus are:
| Subgenus | Species | Common name |
| Aspiurochilus | Choerodon azurio (D. S. Jordan & Snyder, 1901) | Azurio tuskfish |
| Aspiurochilus | Choerodon cypselurus Gomon, 2017 | swallowtail tuskfish |
| Aspiurochilus | Choerodon monostigma J. D. Ogilby, 1910 | dark-spot tuskfish |
| Aspiurochilus | Choerodon robustus (Günther, 1862) | robust tuskfish |
| Aspiurochilus | Choerodon zamboangae (Seale & B. A. Bean, 1907) | purple eyebrowed tuskfish |
| Choerodon | Choerodon anchorago (Bloch, 1791) | orange-dotted tuskfish |
| Choerodon | Choerodon cauteroma M. F. Gomon & G. R. Allen, 1987 | bluespotted tuskfish |
| Choerodon | Choerodon cephalotes (Castelnau, 1875) | purple tuskfish |
| Choerodon | Choerodon cyanodus (J. Richardson, 1843) | blue tuskfish |
| Choerodon | Choerodon graphicus (de Vis, 1885) | graphic tuskfish |
| Choerodon | Choerodon oligacanthus (Bleeker, 1851) | white-patch tuskfish |
| Choerodon | Choerodon rubescens (Günther, 1862) | baldchin groper |
| Choerodon | Choerodon schoenleinii (Valenciennes, 1839) | blackspot tuskfish |
| Choerodon | Choerodon venustus (de Vis, 1884) | Venus tuskfish |
| Lienardella | Choerodon fasciatus (Günther, 1867) | harlequin tuskfish |
| Lutjanilabrus | Choerodon vitta J. D. Ogilby, 1910 | redstripe tuskfish |
| Peaolopseia | Choerodon albofasciatus Gomon, 2017 | |
| Peaolopseia | Choerodon aurulentus Gomon, 2017 | gilded tuskfish |
| Peaolopseia | Choerodon frenatus J. D. Ogilby, 1910 | bridled tuskfish |
| Peaolopseia | Choerodon gomoni G. R. Allen & J. E. Randall, 2002 | Gomon's tuskfish |
| Peaolopseia | Choerodon gymnogenys (Günther, 1867) | |
| Peaolopseia | Choerodon jordani (Snyder, 1908) | Jordan's tuskfish |
| Peaolopseia | Choerodon margaritiferus Fowler & B. A. Bean, 1928 | pearly tuskfish |
| Peaolopseia | Choerodon skaiopygmaeus Gomon, 2017 | |
| Peaolopseia | Choerodon sugillatum M. F. Gomon, 1987 | wedge-tailed tuskfish |
| Peaolopseia | Choerodon zosterophorus (Bleeker, 1868) | Zoster wrasse |
| Xiphocheilus | Choerodon typus Bleeker, 1856 | blue-banded wrasse |