Roche's snake blenny (''Ophidion rochei'') is a fish

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 ...

in the

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial n ...

'' Ophidion'' and the

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

Ophidiidae The cusk-eel family, Ophidiidae, is a group of marine bony fishes in the Ophidiiformes order. The scientific name is from the Greek ''ophis'' meaning "snake", and refers to their eel-like appearance. True eels, however, diverged from other ray ...

. Widespread in the

Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the ...

in western and northern regions, also in the

Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal mediterranean sea of the Atlantic Ocean lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bounded by Bulgaria, Georgia, ...

Sea of Marmara The Sea of Marmara,; grc, Προποντίς, Προποντίδα, Propontís, Propontída also known as the Marmara Sea, is an inland sea located entirely within the borders of Turkey. It connects the Black Sea to the Aegean Sea via the ...

and it has been recorded in the Atlantic. Marine subtropical

demersal fish Demersal fish, also known as groundfish, live and feed on or near the bottom of seas or lakes (the demersal zone).Walrond Carl . "Coastal fish - Fish of the open sea floor"Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand. Updated 2 March 2009 They o ...

, up to long. This fish species has distinctive sonic capabilities, produced by the dorsal, intermediate, and ventral sonic muscles''.'' Additionally, females tend to produce sounds having short duration and pulsation, while male sounds are longer and show a unique pattern of pulsation, resulting in characteristic distinctions between the ''Ophidion rochei'' and the ''Ophidion barbatum,'' its twin species. The specific name honors 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 ...

physician and naturalist François-Etienne Delaroche (1780–1813), who wrote about the distinctive

swim-bladder The swim bladder, gas bladder, fish maw, or air bladder is an internal gas-filled organ that contributes to the ability of many bony fish (but not cartilaginous fish) to control their buoyancy, and thus to stay at their current water depth wi ...

anatomy of ''

Ophidion barbatum Snake blenny (''Ophidion barbatum'') is a fish species in the family Ophidiidae. It is widespread in the eastern Atlantic from southern England to Senegal in West Africa, and the northern Mediterranean. It is a marine subtropical demersal fish, ...

'' in 1809.

Sources

Roche's snake blenny Fish of the Adriatic Sea Fish of the Black Sea Fish of the Mediterranean Sea Marine fish of North Africa Roche's snake blenny {{Ophidiidae-stub