Species: Malacoctenus zacae, Zaca blenny
flank - central stripe
LL 50-55
no scales before D or on pectoral base
Malacoctenus zacae Springer, 1959
Zaca blenny
Head slender, snout pointed; a close-set pair of heavily branched nape cirri, a branched cirrus over eye; 4-8 (3-15) pores behind chin, between bases of operculae; upper part of rear end of top jaw covered by bone under eye; no small teeth behind outer row of large teeth on upper jaw; no teeth on sides of roof of mouth; gill rakers 9-11; dorsal fin XX, 10, (XX-XXI, 9-11), notch between spines and rays; anal II, 19 (18-20); pectoral 14; 3 pelvic soft rays; 50-55 lateral line scales; belly scales smaller than flank scales; no scales on midline in front of dorsal fin or on prepectoral area, sometimes a few scales on breast.
Pale olive; ~ 5 faint dark saddles on back; usually a dark greenish to brownish stripe from eye to tail fin base, with dark spots where that stripe is crossed by the dark bars; ~ 6 greenish-brown lines along lower side; belly and pectoral fins often yellowish; rarely with a dark spot at pelvic-fin base; dorsal fin sometimes spotted; anal fin clear or with dark bars; tail fin clear or with elongate spots on rays.
Size: attains a length of 6.5 cm.
Habitat: rocky bottoms.
Depth: 1-10 m?
The southern Gulf of California to central Mexico; Guadalupe Island.
High Resolution Map Download
- Salinity
-
- Marine Only
- Marine
- Inshore/Offshore
-
- Inshore Only
- Inshore
- Water Column Position
-
- Bottom
- Bottom only
- Habitat
-
- Reef associated (reef + edges-water column & soft bottom)
- Rocks
- Reef (rock/coral/oyster)
- Reef only
- Submerged vegetation
- FishBase Habitat
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- Demersal
- Feeding Group
-
- No Data
- Carnivore
- Diet
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- Mobile benthic crustacea (shrimps/crabs)
- Mobile benthic worms
- Data
- Egg Type
-
- No data
- Pelagic larva
- Benthic
- Global Endemism
-
- East Pacific endemic
- Tropical Eastern Pacific (TEP) endemic
- All species
- Regional Endemism
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- Continental TEP endemic
- Continent + Island (s)
- Continent
- Cortez + Mexican provinces endemic
- Island (s)
- All species
- TEP endemic
- Residency
-
- Resident
- Climate Zone
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- Northern Subtropical (Cortez Province + Sinaloan Gap)
- Northern Tropical (Mexican Province to Nicaragua + Revillagigedos)
- North Temperate (Californian Province &/or Northern Gulf of California)
- IUCN Red List
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- Listed
- Least concern
- CITES
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- Not listed
- Length Max
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- 6.5
- Depth Range Min
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- 1
- Depth Range Max
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- 10
