Biology:Sarcastic fringehead
| Sarcastic fringehead | |
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Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Blenniiformes |
| Family: | Chaenopsidae |
| Genus: | Neoclinus |
| Species: | N. blanchardi
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| Binomial name | |
| Neoclinus blanchardi Girard, 1858
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The sarcastic fringehead (Neoclinus blanchardi) is a small but hardy saltwater fish that possesses a large mouth and aggressive territorial behavior, for which it has been given its common name.[2]
They can be up to 30 centimetres (12 in) long,[3] elegant and slender,[2] and are mostly scaleless with great pectoral fins and reduced pelvic fins. The swimming movements of these fish are complicated. Their swimming mainly consists of short dart-like movements.[4]
They are typically brown in color. Sarcastic fringeheads are a species of tube blenny and tend to hide inside shells or crevices, though some have been found living in man-made objects, such as soda cans.[5] After the female spawns under a rock or in clam burrows, the male guards the eggs. During squid spawning season, they can consume large numbers of squid eggs.
The specific name honours Dr. S. B. Blanchard of San Diego, California, who collected specimens of this blenny, and passed them on to Charles Frédéric Girard, who described it.[6]
Distribution
They are found in the Pacific, off the coast of North America, from San Francisco , California , to central Baja California. Their depth range is from 3 to 73 metres (10 to 240 ft).[3]
Behaviors
When two fringeheads have a territorial scuffle, they wrestle by pressing their distended mouths against each other, in a kissing motion. They press against each other until one is able to bite the other's head.[7] This allows them to determine which is the larger fish, which establishes dominance.[8] This is thought to be male-male competition for shelter.
References
- ↑ Williams, J.T.; Craig, M.T. (2014). "Neoclinus blanchardi". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2014: e.T185133A1770082. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2014-3.RLTS.T185133A1770082.en. https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/185133/1770082. Retrieved 19 November 2021.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Sarcastic Fringehead: Neoclinus blanchardi". Aquarium of the Pacific. http://www.aquariumofpacific.org/onlinelearningcenter/species/sarcastic_fringehead.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Froese, Rainer and Pauly, Daniel, eds. (2013). "Neoclinus blanchardi" in FishBase. February 2013 version.
- ↑ Hongjamrassilp, W. (2018). Heterochrony in fringeheads (neoclinus) and amplification of an extraordinary aggressive display in the sarcastic fringehead (teleostei: Blenniiformes). Journal of Morphology (1931), 279(5) Retrieved from https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/jmor.20798
- ↑ "Sarcastic Fringehead". Oceana. https://oceana.org/marine-life/ocean-fishes/sarcastic-fringehead.
- ↑ "Order BLENNIIFORMES: Families CLINIDAE, LABRISOMIDAE and CHAENOPSIDAE". ETYFish Fish Name Etymology Database. Christopher Scharpf and Kenneth J. Lazara. 10 November 2018. http://www.etyfish.org/blenniiformes3/.
- ↑ Hongjamrassilp, Watcharapong; Skelton, Zachary; Hastings, Philip (2023-05-09). "Function of an extraordinary display in sarcastic fringeheads (Neoclinus blanchardi) with comments on its evolution". Ecology: Ecological Society of America 104 (1). https://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ecy.3878.
- ↑ Denny, Mark; Steven Gaines (2002). Chance in Biology. Princeton: Princeton University Press. p. 13. ISBN 0691094942. https://books.google.com/books?id=rHYuA7VQn4EC&pg=PA13.
External links
Wikidata ☰ Q1133845 entry
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