Species: Dactyloscopus fallax, False whitesaddle stargazer
mouth unpigmented
D ~XII, 25: A ~29
Dactyloscopus fallax
False whitesaddle stargazer
Body compressed, tapering to tail; head large, flattened above, rounded and narrow at front; eyes protrusible, on stalks, without papillae; both lips with skin flaps (usually branched), 11 (10-13) above, 16 (14-21) below; edge of operculum with 12 (7-17) skin flaps; tubular nostrils; rear nostril near base of front nostril; dorsal fin origin on nape, before level of upper corner of operculum, front III-IV spines separate from fin and without membranes, XII (XI-XIII), 25 (23-27); anal II, 29 (28-32); pectoral usually 13 rays; notch under end of tail base; tail fin long (~17.8% SL), rays unbranched; lateral line continuous, bends down under last dorsal spine; scales smooth, head and belly scaleless; lateral line scales 43 (41-44); no scales above upper front part of lateral line, usually a single row above arch of that line.
Upper head pale brown, a broad white T shape blotch across top of rear part of head with forward extension to nearly between eyes; an oblique double bar (front bar dark, rear bar white) down and back from eye; usually a white blotch on upper rear part of operculum; inside mouth unpigmented: upper back grey-brown, with a series of ~7-10 white, dark-edged saddles along midline of back, sides paler, flecked with dark marks; often 2 dark stripes along straight rear part of lateral line and above anal fin.
Size: attains 5.1 cm.
Inhabits sand bottoms, including in tide pools.
Depth: 0.2-31 m.
The southeast Gulf of Calfornia to Ecuador, and Cocos Is.
High Resolution Map Download
- Salinity
-
- Marine
- Marine Only
- Inshore/Offshore
-
- Inshore Only
- Inshore
- Water Column Position
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- Bottom only
- Bottom
- Habitat
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- Sand & gravel
- Soft bottom (mud/sand/gravel/beach/estuary/mangrove/seagrass)
- Soft bottom only
- FishBase Habitat
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- Demersal
- Feeding Group
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- Carnivore
- No Data
- Diet
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- Mobile benthic worms
- Mobile benthic gastropods/bivalves
- Bony fishes
- No Data
- Mobile benthic crustacea (shrimps/crabs)
- Egg Type
-
- Benthic
- Pelagic larva
- No data
- Global Endemism
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- East Pacific endemic
- All species
- Tropical Eastern Pacific (TEP) endemic
- Regional Endemism
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- Island (s)
- TEP endemic
- Continent + Island (s)
- Continent
- Residency
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- Resident
- Climate Zone
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- Northern Subtropical (Cortez Province + Sinaloan Gap)
- Equatorial (Costa Rica to Ecuador + Galapagos, Clipperton, Cocos, Malpelo)
- Northern Tropical (Mexican Province to Nicaragua + Revillagigedos)
- IUCN Red List
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- Least concern
- Listed
- CITES
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- Not listed
- Length Max
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- 5.1
- Depth Range Min
-
- 0
- Depth Range Max
-
- 31
