Species: Hypleurochilus pseudoaequipinnis, Atlantic Oyster Blenny, Oyster Blenny

Hypleurochilus pseudoaequipinnis Bath, 1994

Oyster Blenny, Atlantic Oyster Blenny

Head large, blunt; body elongate, compressed; nostril with a simple cirrus; a single cirrus with 4-15 branches over eye; mouth opens at front, top margin of top lip free, that margin discontinuous at front; teeth like incisors, with a large curved canine at rear of each jaw; lower jaw with 5 pores on each side; gill membranes broadly fused on throat, gill opening ends at level of lower base of pectoral fin; dorsal fin with a deep notch between spiny and soft parts, spiny part distinctly lower than soft part, XI-XII, 13-14; pelvics I, 4; pectorals 14 rays; anal fin II, 14-15; fin rays unbranched, except on tail fin; lateral line in 2 parts, 1st curved down behind end of pectoral, ends under last dorsal spines, 2nd from mid-flank to above ~middle of anal fin; no scales.

Males greenish grey with small orange spots on upper body;with 5-6 square blotches on upper side, each composed of 4 dark spots overlain by orange dots; iris red with 8 red spoke-like bars radiating from pupil that are thinner than the pale spaces between them ; a dark spot at front of dorsal fin; a dark spot on the base of the pectoral; a dark spot at the base of the tail fin; a row of dark spots along the anal base.

Size: reaches 7.5 cm.

Habitat: mangroves and shallow rock outcrops; in turbid water and enters freshwater.

Depth: 0-24 m.

Bermuda to Brazil.