Labrisomid Blenny Family  – Labrisomidae

There are currently TWENTY-THREE members of the Labrisomid Blenny or Labrisomidae Family, five from the Atlantic Ocean and eighteen from the Pacific Ocean,  presented in this website:

FROM THE ATLANTIC (5):

FROM THE PACIFIC (18):

The Labrisomid Blennies, which are also known as the Scaly Blennies, are members of the Labrisomidae Family and are known in Mexico’s fishing areas as trambollos. They are found in the tropical and subtropical marine waters of the Atlantic and Eastern Pacific Oceans. The family is one of the largest of the New World reef fish and has one hundred fifty-five global members that have been placed in fourteen genera of which fifty-six are found in Mexican waters, twenty-six in the Atlantic and thirty in the Pacific Ocean.

The Labrisomid Blennies come in a wide variety of sizes and shapes but generally have robust bodies that reach a maximum length of 30 cm (12 inches). They have broad heads that have blunt snouts, large eyes, and large slightly oblique mouths equipped with an outer row of large canines or incisors. They have branched cirri over each eye and a pair of heavily branched cirri on their nape. The bone on their top jaw is exposed at the side. Most have 1 dorsal fin with a notch between the spines and the rays. Their anal and dorsal fins have long bases; their anal fin has 2 spines; and, their pelvic fins are inserted before the pectoral fins and have 1 internal spine and 2 or 3 soft rays. They have visible lateral lines and their bodies are covered with scales.

The Labrisomid Blennies are small inconspicuous fish that reside on the reef surface and among weeds. They are highly secretive bottom dwellers that stay close to shelter. In general they are poorly studies and very little is known about their behavioral patterns. They exhibit a wide variety of colors as well as spots, stripes, or bands, with some species exhibiting two or three color patterns for courting and mating. They are generally cryptically colored to blend into the background. They consume a wide variety of invertebrates including brittle stars, chitons, crabs, mollusks, polychaete worms, and urchins. The Labrisomid Blennies, in general, are poorly studied with very limited information available about their lifestyle and behavioral patterns including specific details on age, growth, longevity, movement patterns, diet, habitat use, and reproduction.

From a conservation perspective the Labrisomid Blennies either have not been formally evaluated or are currently considered to be of Least Concern with stable, widely distributed populations. They are small in stature and are of interest to most. A few Blennies are used by the aquarium trade but only on a limited basis.