The blue dot triplefin (''Notoclinops caerulepunctus'') is a fish in the genus ''
Notoclinops'', found around offshore islands and exposed headlands of the eastern side of
Northland, and the
Bay of Plenty
The Bay of Plenty () is a large bight (geography), bight along the northern coast of New Zealand's North Island. It stretches from the Coromandel Peninsula in the west to Cape Runaway in the east. Called ''Te Moana-a-Toitehuatahi'' (the Ocean ...
, on the
North Island
The North Island ( , 'the fish of Māui', historically New Ulster) is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, islands of New Zealand, separated from the larger but less populous South Island by Cook Strait. With an area of , it is the List ...
of
New Zealand
New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...
from depths of a metre or so to about 30 m, and is most commonly found in
reef
A reef is a ridge or shoal of rock, coral, or similar relatively stable material lying beneath the surface of a natural body of water. Many reefs result from natural, abiotic component, abiotic (non-living) processes such as deposition (geol ...
areas with broken rock. with a length of only up to about 5 cm and it is the smallest of the
triplefin
Threefin or triplefin blennies are blenny, blenniiforms, small Percomorpha, percomorph marine fish of the family Tripterygiidae. Found in tropical and temperate waters of the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pacific and Indian Oceans, the ...
s in New Zealand.
The blue dot triplefin's head is yellow-orange covered with large bright red spots back as far as the first
dorsal fin
A dorsal fin is a fin on the back of most marine and freshwater vertebrates. Dorsal fins have evolved independently several times through convergent evolution adapting to marine environments, so the fins are not all homologous. They are found ...
. On the upper half of the rest of the body are a series of dark blue-black square areas, with an
iridescent
Iridescence (also known as goniochromism) is the phenomenon of certain surfaces that appear gradually to change colour as the angle of view or the angle of illumination changes. Iridescence is caused by wave interference of light in microstruc ...
blue spot joining each pair of squares. These dots are often the only thing seen when the fish is resting on rocks covered in colourful encrusting life. It is known to remove
parasite
Parasitism is a Symbiosis, close relationship between species, where one organism, the parasite, lives (at least some of the time) on or inside another organism, the Host (biology), host, causing it some harm, and is Adaptation, adapted str ...
s from large fishes.
References
*
* Tony Ayling & Geoffrey Cox, ''Collins Guide to the Sea Fishes of New Zealand'', (William Collins Publishers Ltd, Auckland, New Zealand 1982)
{{Taxonbar, from=Q2237133
Blue dot triplefin
The blue dot triplefin (''Notoclinops caerulepunctus'') is a fish in the genus ''Notoclinops'', found around offshore islands and exposed headlands of the eastern side of Northland Region, Northland, and the Bay of Plenty, on the North Island of ...
Endemic marine fish of New Zealand
Fish described in 1989