McCosker's flasher

Open encyclopedia reference

McCosker's flasher wrasse, Paracheilinus mccoskeri, is a species of wrasse native to the Indian Ocean, from East Africa to Thailand and northern Sumatra. It is a reef inhabitant, at depths from 5 to 40 m (16 to 131 ft), and can grow to 8 cm (3.1 in) in total length. It can be found in the aquarium trade. The common name and specific name honours the American ichthyologist John E. McCosker who collected the type specimens and colour photographs used in the description of this species by Randall and Harmelin-Vivien.

Wikipedia contributors, McCosker's flasher wrasse; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T07:28:54.653612+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.

Identity & source status

Scientific name

Paracheilinus mccoskeri Randall & Harmelin-Vivien, 1977

Name authority

Randall & Harmelin-Vivien, 1977

Common name

McCosker's flasher

Rank

species

Accepted status

accepted

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Chordata

Class

Teleostei

Family

Labridae

Genus

Paracheilinus

Extinction status

Not supplied by this source

Source habitat flags: Marine: yes · Freshwater: no · Terrestrial: no. These do not form a complete habitat description.

Classification family tree

Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.

1. domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
2. kingdomAnimalia
3. phylumChordata
4. subphylumVertebrata
5. infraphylumGnathostomata
6. parvphylumOsteichthyes
7. gigaclassActinopterygii
8. superclassActinopteri
9. classTeleostei
10. familyLabridae Cuvier, 1816
11. subfamilyCirrhilabrinae Randall, 1999
12. genusParacheilinus Fourmanoir, 1955
13. speciesParacheilinus mccoskeri Randall & Harmelin-Vivien, 1977

Close classified relatives

These entries share the source’s genus, Paracheilinus. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.

Browse 527 records assigned to Labridae.

Source literature & publication evidence

References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.

1. Randall, J. E., & Harmelin-Vivien, M. (1977). A review of the labrid fishes of the genus Paracheilinus with description of two new species from the Western Indian Ocean. Bulletin Du Museum National d’Histoire Naturelle, Paris, 436 (Zoologie, 306): 329–342. https://doi.org/10.5962/p.282024 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references

Origins, evidence & remaining research

Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.

Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.

Dataset citation & attribution

This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11

Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.

Stable key: col:4CPDD. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.