''Lepadogaster candolii'', common name Connemarra clingfish, is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of ...

of fish in the genus ''

Lepadogaster ''Lepadogaster'' is a genus of clingfishes native to the eastern Atlantic Ocean extending into the Mediterranean Sea. ''Lepadogaster'' belongs to class Actinopterygii. This means that they share many of the same characteristics as eels, ray-finne ...

''. It occurs in the Eastern Atlantic from the British Isles (off the coast of Western Scotland and South-West England and Ireland) south to Madeira and the Canary Islands and into the western Mediterranean and the Black Sea. The

specific name Specific name may refer to: * in Database management systems, a system-assigned name that is unique within a particular database In taxonomy, either of these two meanings, each with its own set of rules: * Specific name (botany), the two-part (bino ...

''candolii'' honours the

Swiss Swiss may refer to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Places * Swiss, Missouri *Swiss, North Carolina * Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses * Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports *Swiss Internati ...

botanist Augustin Pyramus de Candolle (1778-1841) and has various spellings: ''candolii'', ''candolei'', ''candollei'', and ''decandollii'', but only the first one is correct. Some workers have found that ''L. candolii'' is not closely related to the other two species in the genus ''

'' and have proposed the placing of this species in the revived

monotypic 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 "unispec ...

genus ''Mirbelia'' Canestrini, 1864, at least until more definitive taxonomic studies can be undertaken. ''L. candolii'' is considered a euryecious species, meaning that it has a broad variety of living conditions and habitats that it prefers. ''L. candolii'' most often inhabit small cavities in the underwater rock face, boulder fields, and

seagrass meadow A seagrass meadow or seagrass bed is an underwater ecosystem formed by seagrasses. Seagrasses are marine (saltwater) plants found in shallow coastal waters and in the brackish waters of estuaries. Seagrasses are flowering plants with stems and ...

s. ''L. candolii'' can reach up to 7.5 cm in length and shares many similarities with '' L. lepadogaster''. Like the ''Lepadogaster'' other species, ''L. candolii'' has a flattened body and bilateral symmetry. Unlike ''L. lepadogaster'' that has a triangular shaped head, ''L. candolii'' has a more rounded head and rounded fins. ''L. candolii'' has been photographed cleaning dusky grouper ('' Epinephelus marginatus''), even entering the grouper's mouth.

References

External links

* {{Taxonbar, from=Q1126276 candolii Fish of the Atlantic Ocean Fish of the Mediterranean Sea Fish of the Black Sea Fish described in 1810 Taxobox binomials not recognized by IUCN