The flying gurnard (''Dactylopterus volitans''), also known as the helmet gurnard, is a
bottom-dwelling
The benthic zone is the ecological region at the lowest level of a body of water such as an ocean, lake, or stream, including the sediment surface and some sub-surface layers. The name comes from the Ancient Greek word (), meaning "the depths". ...
fish of
tropical
The tropics are the regions of Earth surrounding the equator, where the sun may shine directly overhead. This contrasts with the temperate or polar regions of Earth, where the Sun can never be directly overhead. This is because of Earth's ax ...
to warm temperate waters on both sides of the Atlantic. On the American side, it is found as far north as
Massachusetts
Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...
(exceptionally as far as Canada) and as far south as Argentina, including the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico.
On the European and African side, it ranges from the
English Channel
The English Channel, also known as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates Southern England from northern France. It links to the southern part of the North Sea by the Strait of Dover at its northeastern end. It is the busi ...
to
Angola
Angola, officially the Republic of Angola, is a country on the west-Central Africa, central coast of Southern Africa. It is the second-largest Portuguese-speaking world, Portuguese-speaking (Lusophone) country in both total area and List of c ...
, including the Mediterranean.
[ This is the only species in the ]monotypic genus
In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispe ...
''Dactylopterus''. Similar and related species from the genus ''Dactyloptena
''Dactyloptena'' is a genus of flying gurnards native to the Indian and Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north ...
'' are found in the Indian and Pacific Oceans.
This fish is variable in coloration, being brownish or greenish with reddish or yellowish patches. When excited, the fish spreads its "wings", which are semitransparent, with a phosphorescent, bright-blue coloration at their tips. The fish also has large eyes. It reaches up to in length and in weight.[
The fish's main diet consists of small fish, bivalves, and crustaceans.]
References
External links
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flying gurnard
Fish of the Atlantic Ocean
flying gurnard
Fish of Cuba
Fish of the Dominican Republic
flying gurnard
Fish of Aruba
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