Scartella cristata
Molly Miller
Taxonomic Hierarchy
Actinopterygii (Ray-finned Fishes)
Perciformes (Perciformes, Also Called the Acanthopteri)
Blenniidae (Combtooth Blennies)
Scartella
Scartella cristata (Molly Miller)
Description
This species account was compiled from
Composite (multiple sources) (McEachran, J.D. and J.D. Fechhelm. Fishes of the Gulf of Mexico. University of Texas Press, Austin.)
and processed using AI-assisted text extraction.
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Characters
Cirri on eye and nape, gill openings continuous across isthmus, snout blunt, dorsal profile of head steep and rounded, lips not conspicuous, dorsal lip lacks free margin across symphysis, ventral lip has poorly developed lip fold, anterior naris terminates as short tube with branched cirrus, posterior naris a large pore with slightly raised margin, supraorbital cirrus with several slender branches, nape with dense patch of slender cirri, jaw teeth bluntly pointed with stout canine medial to last incisor of lower jaw, gill membranes free of isthmus, gill rakers on first arch 17-21, head length 22.9%-28.8% SL, snout length 7.6%-11.2% SL, eye diameter 4.6%-6% SL, upper jaw length 7.5%-9.4% SL, body depth at pelvic fin insertion 25%-30.3% SL, caudal peduncle depth 8.8%-10.1% SL, pectoral fin with 14 rays, dorsal fin with 12 spines and 14 or 15 rays, pelvic fin with 1 spine and 3 rays, anal fin with 2 spines and 16 or 17 rays, caudal fin broadly rounded to truncate with 13 segmented rays, lateral line continuous
Dull green to olive with dark bars on body extending onto lower part of dorsal fin, pale spots often on dorsal fin; brilliant yellow in color when occurring in Sargassum rafts
Distribution
Florida and Bermuda to Brazil, including northern and southern Gulf of Mexico and Greater and Lesser Antilles
Northern Gulf of Mexico
Habitat Associations
Tide pools and shallow water to 10 m along rocky shores, Sargassum rafts
Rocky shores
Biology
Maximum known size about 100 mm TL
Adults inhabit shallow rocky areas and tide pools. They hide in empty Strombus gigas shells (Ref. 13628), holes or troughs of rocks, or between algae (Ref. 5981). Herbivorous (Ref. 13442). Feed on invertebrates as juveniles and shift to diet of algae as adults (Ref. 94105). Unusual erectile nuchal crest (Ref. 41019). Oviparous. Eggs are demersal and adhesive (Ref. 205), and are attached to the substrate via a filamentous, adhesive pad or pedestal (Ref. 94114). Larvae are planktonic, often found in shallow, coastal waters (Ref. 94114).
Reproductive mode: dioecism; fertilization: external; guarders (nesters). Oviparous, distinct pairing (Ref. 205).
IUCN Red List Status: Least Concern (LC), assessed 2007-10-18. Resilience: High (Preliminary K or Fecundity.).
Commercial or Environmental Importance
Fisheries: of no interest; aquarium: commercial.
References
Longley and Hildebrand 1941 (as Blennius cristatus)
Randall 1968a
Randall 1996
Hoese and Moore 1977
Hoese and Moore 1998
Castro-Aguirre 1978 (as B. cristatus)
Castro-Aguirre and Márquez-Espinoza 1981
Robins and Ray 1986
Boschung 1992
Schaldach et al. 1997
Smith 1997
Smith-Vaniz et al. 1999
Williams 2002e
Randall, J.E. (1967) Food habits of reef fishes of the West Indies. Stud. Trop. Oceanogr. Miami 5:665-847.
Breder, C.M. and D.E. Rosen (1966) Modes of reproduction in fishes. T.F.H. Publications, Neptune City, New Jersey. 941 p.
Masuda, H., K. Amaoka, C. Araga, T. Uyeno and T. Yoshino (1984) The fishes of the Japanese Archipelago. Vol. 1. Tokai University Press, Tokyo, Japan. 437 p. (text).
Robins, C.R. and G.C. Ray (1986) A field guide to Atlantic coast fishes of North America. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, U.S.A. 354 p.
Lieske, E. and R. Myers (1994) Collins Pocket Guide. Coral reef fishes. Indo-Pacific & Caribbean including the Red Sea. Haper Collins Publishers, 400 p.
Randall, J.E. (1996) Caribbean reef fishes. Third Edition - revised and enlarged. T.F.H. Publications, Inc. Ltd., Hong Kong. 3nd ed. 368 p.
Cervigón, F. (1994) Los peces marinos de Venezuela. Volume 3. Fundación Científica Los Roques, Caracas,Venezuela. 295 p.
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