''Sicyases sanguineus'' is a species of amphibious marine

clingfish Clingfishes are ray-finned fishes of the family Gobiesocidae, the only family in the suborder Gobiesocoidei of the order Blenniiformes. These fairly small to very small fishes are widespread in tropical and temperate regions, mostly near the coa ...

in the family

Gobiesocidae Clingfishes are ray-finned fishes of the family Gobiesocidae, the only family in the suborder Gobiesocoidei of the order Blenniiformes. These fairly small to very small fishes are widespread in tropical and temperate regions, mostly near the coa ...

. It lives in the Southeast Pacific along the entire coast of Chile and southern Peru. Locally, it is known as ' (literally, toad-fish). It inhabits shallow waters, including the

intertidal zone The intertidal zone or foreshore is the area above water level at low tide and underwater at high tide; in other words, it is the part of the littoral zone within the tidal range. This area can include several types of habitats with various ...

. It can often be seen on exposed rocks above water, where it is able to breathe via the branchial surfaces and the skin. As long as it is kept moist by the splash of the wave action, it can survive for up to three days on land. Together with '' Chorisochismus dentex'' of southern Africa, it is the largest species of clingfish at up to long.

Habitat

The fish is characteristic of vertical rock walls in the middle and upper rocky intertidal community along the exposed coasts of Pacific coast of South America, ranging from southern Peru to southern Chile. Its niche is unique, with no known parallel development in other rocky intertidal communities. The most likely determinants of the distribution of ''Sicyases sanguineus'' are areas where vertical rocky shorelines encounter ocean swells and ample

benthic 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". ...

prey. ''Sicyases sanguineus'' attaches by means of a large disc formed of the fused and highly modified

pelvic fin Pelvic fins or ventral fins are paired fins located on the ventral (belly) surface of fish, and are the lower of the only two sets of paired fins (the other being the laterally positioned pectoral fins). The pelvic fins are homologous to the hi ...

s, bearing small and flattened

dermal papillae The dermis or corium is a layer of skin between the epidermis (with which it makes up the cutis) and subcutaneous tissues, that primarily consists of dense irregular connective tissue and cushions the body from stress and strain. It is divided ...

. The combination of suction by disc and adhesion by papillae secure the clingfish to the rock.

Behavior

When young, ''S. sanguineus'' is gregarious and often congregates on walls. They are alert and can detect moving objects over distances from . However, adults are quiescent and cluster on exposed rocks often well above water level. Among the many places where they can be seen are the boulder fields in Pozo Toyo and

Antofagasta Antofagasta () is a port city in northern Chile, about north of Santiago. It is the capital of Antofagasta Province and Antofagasta Region. According to the 2015 census, the city has a population of 402,669. Once claimed by Bolivia follo ...

Bay, Chile.

Feeding

''Sicyases sanguineus'' is

omnivorous An omnivore () is an animal that regularly consumes significant quantities of both plant and animal matter. Obtaining energy and nutrients from plant and animal matter, omnivores digest carbohydrates, protein, fat, and fiber, and metabolize ...

, feeding on a wide range of algae (

brown Brown is a color. It can be considered a composite color, but it is mainly a darker shade of orange. In the CMYK color model used in printing and painting, brown is usually made by combining the colors Orange (colour), orange and black. In the ...

green Green is the color between cyan and yellow on the visible spectrum. It is evoked by light which has a dominant wavelength of roughly 495570 nm. In subtractive color systems, used in painting and color printing, it is created by a com ...

and

red Red is the color at the long wavelength end of the visible spectrum of light, next to orange and opposite violet. It has a dominant wavelength of approximately 625–750 nanometres. It is a primary color in the RGB color model and a seconda ...

) and many types of invertebrates (especially

mollusc Mollusca is a phylum of protostome, protostomic invertebrate animals, whose members are known as molluscs or mollusks (). Around 76,000 extant taxon, extant species of molluscs are recognized, making it the second-largest animal phylum ...

s such as

chiton Chitons () are marine molluscs of varying size in the class Polyplacophora ( ), formerly known as Amphineura. About 940 extant and 430 fossil species are recognized. They are also sometimes known as sea cradles or coat-of-mail shells or suck ...

s, marine snails,

limpet Limpets are a group of aquatic snails with a conical gastropod shell, shell shape (patelliform) and a strong, muscular foot. This general category of conical shell is known as "patelliform" (dish-shaped). Existing within the class Gastropoda, ...

s and

mussel Mussel () is the common name used for members of several families of bivalve molluscs, from saltwater and Freshwater bivalve, freshwater habitats. These groups have in common a shell whose outline is elongated and asymmetrical compared with other ...

s, and

barnacle Barnacles are arthropods of the subclass (taxonomy), subclass Cirripedia in the subphylum Crustacean, Crustacea. They are related to crabs and lobsters, with similar Nauplius (larva), nauplius larvae. Barnacles are exclusively marine invertebra ...

s, but also crabs,

isopod Isopoda is an Order (biology), order of crustaceans. Members of this group are called isopods and include both Aquatic animal, aquatic species and Terrestrial animal, terrestrial species such as woodlice. All have rigid, segmented exoskeletons ...

amphipod Amphipoda () is an order of malacostracan crustaceans with no carapace and generally with laterally compressed bodies. Amphipods () range in size from and are mostly detritivores or scavengers. There are more than 10,700 amphipod species cur ...

s, insect larvae and

sea urchin Sea urchins or urchins () are echinoderms in the class (biology), class Echinoidea. About 950 species live on the seabed, inhabiting all oceans and depth zones from the intertidal zone to deep seas of . They typically have a globular body cove ...

s). They only take relatively small animals. For example, they have been observed living in apparent peace with large chitons and limpets, whereas the small individuals are eaten by this clingfish. As known from some other clingfish, ''Sicyases sanguineus'' has relatively large, protruding front teeth on the upper jaw. The front teeth on the lower jaw are shorter and more chisel-like. When feeding on algae, they scrape the teeth along the rock surface, leaving distinctive marks. Other methods are used when feeding on molluscs like limpets. The most common way for the fish to connect itself to a flat smooth surface with its ventral sucker. It then repeatedly swings its head in a small arc, raking its teeth downward in strokes. A second mode in which ''Sicyases sanguineus'' feed on them is to insert its teeth on the limpet's shell and then twist. This produces a characteristic break into the shell posteriorly and anteriorly.

References

External links

Cephalic bone structure of Sicyases sanguineus

Three Ways: Pejesapo in Lima, Peru
{{Taxonbar, from=Q142099 sanguineus Fish described in 1843