Snubnose sculpin

Snubnose sculpin
In La Jolla, California
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Actinopterygii
Order:	Scorpaeniformes
Family:	Cottidae
Genus:	Orthonopias
Species:	O. triacis
Binomial name
Orthonopias triacis Starks & Mann, 1911

The snubnose sculpin, Orthonopias triacis, is a fish of the sculpin family native to the eastern Pacific Ocean.

Description

The snubnose sculpin reaches a maximum size of 10 cm. It has a blunt snout and visible scales from the top of the head to the first dorsal fin. It is spotted with colors in different shades of earthtone. It can change colors as camouflage, and the colors can vary substantially. Some of the scales along the lateral line have thread-like extensions.

Biology

The snubnose sculpin occurs in intertidal rocky areas in depths less than 30 meters. It reproduces moderately fast, with a doubling time between 1.4 and 4.4 years. Its range is from Monterey Bay, California to northern Baja California, Mexico. ^[1]

References

• "Orthonopias triacis". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. http://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=167388. Retrieved 18 April 2006. 

1. ^ Froese, Rainer, and Daniel Pauly, eds. (2006). "Orthonopias triacis" in FishBase. February 2006 version.