Blue moki (Latridopsis ciliaris) is a species of marine ray finned fish belonging to the family Latridae, the trumpeters. It is native to the southwestern Pacific Ocean around New Zealand and occasionally off southeastern Australia at depths of and greater. Juveniles inhabit inshore waters, preferring rocky reefs while adults mostly occur in offshore waters forming schools over open bottoms. Some solitary adults can be found on reefs. This species can reach a length of FL, though most do not exceed TL. This species is commercially important and is also popular as a game fish. Despite the similarities in their common names, the blue moki are not closely related to the red moki, (Cheilodactylus spectabilis), a species in the genus Cheilodactylus, which is also known by the alternative common name of "banded morwong". Blue moki in New Zealand occur throughout mainland waters from the Three Kings Islands to the southern edge of the Snares Shelf, and at the Chatham Islands. A single record of blue moki from the southern end of the Kermadec Island chain was reported, but this requires verification; it is not known if the species occurs elsewhere in the Kermadecs. Blue moki are also found in small numbers at the Auckland Islands. Taxonomy The blue moki was first formally described as Anthias ciliaris in 1801 by the German naturalist Johann Reinhold Forster with the type locality given as New Zealand. In 1862 the American ichthyologist Theodore Nicholas Gill described a new genus, Latridopsis and designated Forster's Anthias ciliaris as its type species. The specific name ciliaris means "with long lashes" , a name Forster did not explain. Identification Blue moki are very similar to the copper moki in shape and size, but they differ in colour throughout the adult stage of their lives. Blue moki are known for their piercing colours, which is an array of pink and olive. A blue moki's phenotype is true to its name - they are dark blue/grey. They have a black edge to the caudal and soft dorsal fin. Blue moki belongs to the family Latridae commonly known as trumpeter, which has 4 subspecies of abundance in New Zealand waters. The copper moki which is another member of the genus is located in New South Wales and Tasmania but is rarely seen in New Zealand waters. The colouration of blue moki changes throughout its life time from juvenile to adolescences, their body