Females are usually reddish in color and tinged with yellow with two dark stripes. Dominant males are identified by the fleshy lumps on their heads, their coloration is grayish tinged with red and with a yellow bar near the mid section. The tips of all fins except the pectoral are long and filamentous. The Mexican hogfish's range includes Isla Guadalupe and the Gulf of California to Chile. Natural History Like other wrasses, the Mexican hogfish is diurnal and inactive during the night.
Some individuals secrete a mucous cocoon that envelops the fish as it sleeps.
They tend to be solitary but can form small aggregations. Hogfish feed on crustaceans, mollusks, sea urchins, and small fishes. Some juveniles act as parasite cleaners. A scene from the film, Ocean Oasis , shows an adult turning over a sea urchin, crushing it with its pharyngeal teeth, and then feeding on it.