Species: Malacoctenus sudensis, Southern blenny
throat & belly spotted
border front D: dark blotch
LL 54-58
Malacoctenus sudensis Springer, 1959
Southern blenny
Head slender, snout pointed; a close-set pair of heavily branched nape cirri, a branched cirrus over eye; 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 11-12 (10-13); in adult 7-11 (5-20) pores on underside of head between front ends of gill flaps; dorsal fin XX, 11, (XIX-XXI, 10-12), notch between spines and rays; anal II, 22 (18-21); pectoral 14 (13-14); 3 pelvic soft rays, length of shortest ray at least 57% of length of longest ray; 54-58 (52-60) lateral line scales; scales on belly smaller than those on flanks; midline in front of dorsal fin with at least one scale; scales absent on prepectoral region, sometimes present on breast.
Back olive with series of 5 dark saddles; an irregular dark brown to blackish mid-lateral stripe; throat and lower side whitish with brown to blackish blotches and spots; a prominent double dark spot on head just behind eye; underside of head spotted; two large spots on the lower opercle; dorsal, tail, anal and pectoral fins spotted; upper part of membranes between first III-IV dorsal spines heavily pigmented; males similar to females
Size: attains 8 cm.
Habitat: rocky and rubble bottoms.
Depth: 1-10 m.
El Salvador to Ecuador.
High Resolution Map Download
- Salinity
-
- Marine
- Marine Only
- Inshore/Offshore
-
- Inshore
- Inshore Only
- Water Column Position
-
- Bottom only
- Bottom
- Habitat
-
- Reef (rock/coral/oyster)
- Reef associated (reef + edges-water column & soft bottom)
- Rocks
- Reef only
- FishBase Habitat
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- Reef Associated
- Feeding Group
-
- No Data
- Carnivore
- Diet
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- Mobile benthic crustacea (shrimps/crabs)
- Mobile benthic worms
- No Data
- Egg Type
-
- Benthic
- No data
- Pelagic larva
- Global Endemism
-
- East Pacific endemic
- Tropical Eastern Pacific (TEP) endemic
- Regional Endemism
-
- Panamic province endemic
- TEP endemic
- Continent
- Continent only
- Continental TEP endemic
- Residency
-
- Resident
- Climate Zone
-
- Northern Tropical (Mexican Province to Nicaragua + Revillagigedos)
- Equatorial (Costa Rica to Ecuador + Galapagos, Clipperton, Cocos, Malpelo)
- IUCN Red List
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- Least concern
- Listed
- CITES
-
- Not listed
- Depth Range Max
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- 10
- Depth Range Min
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- 1
- Length Max
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- 8
