Species: Omobranchus sewalli, Muzzled Blenny

Omobranchus sewalli (Fowler, 1931)

Muzzled Blenny

Very elongate; head slightly rounded snout overhanging, nape slightly swollen; no fleshy crest on top of head; almost always 3 (2-4) pores between eyes; no cirri on nostrils, nape or eyes; upper jaw teeth fixed, fewer than 50; an enlarged canine on each side at rear of lower jaw; a flap of skin at lower rear of bottom jaw; gill opening not extending below top of pectoral base; dorsal fin XII (XII-XIV), 19-24, no notch between spines and rays; anal fin II, 20-26, 1 or both spines imbedded and not visible externally; tail fin with 13 (11-14) segmented rays, none filamentous; all fin rays unbranched; pelvic fin I, 2, longest rays shorter than longest pectoral ray; lateral line a short arch over pectoral, 2-8 double-pored tubes; no scales.

Greenish grey; 3 dark bars on head - under eye to mouth, behind eye, across operculum; a dark redbrown bar across nape, a little before dorsal fin origin; back with 11 dark saddles; flank with faint vertical bars at rear; 4-5 slender dusky stripes on upper side of front half of body.

Reaches 11.3 cm.

Lives in coastal areas around rocks and mangroves; in brackish water.

Depth range: 0-2 m.

Natural range is E Africa to Fiji; introduced to the Atlantic; Panama to Brazil.