''Acanthemblemaria'' is a genus of

chaenopsid The blennioid family Chaenopsidae includes the pike-blennies, tube-blennies, and flagblennies, all percomorph marine fish in the order Blenniiformes. The family is strictly tropical, ranging from North to South America. Members are also present ...

blennies native to the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.

Etymology

Acanthemblemaria : Greek, akantha = thorn + Greek, emblema, -atos, anything that is nailed, knocked in; also anything with bass or high relief

Description

Body elongated; head short and blunt; pointed or blunt spines on snout, below eye, sometimes on top of head; 2 rows of very well developed teeth on the roof of the mouth; 1 pair of branched or unbranche
cirri
over eyes
cirri
over nostrils; usually with a notch between the spiny and soft parts of the dorsal fin

Species

The 21 recognized species in this genus are: * ''

Acanthemblemaria aspera ''Acanthemblemaria aspera'', the roughhead blenny is a species of blenny native to the tropical western Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20 ...

'' ( Longley, 1927) (roughhead blenny) * ''

Acanthemblemaria atrata The Cocos barnacle blenny (''Acanthemblemaria strata'') is a species of chaenopsid blenny native to the Pacific Ocean waters around Cocos Island, Costa Rica. This species reaches a standard length Fish measurement is the measuring of individual ...

'' Hastings & D. R. Robertson, 1999 (Cocos barnacle blenny) * ''

Acanthemblemaria balanorum The clubhead blenny (''Acanthemblemaria balanorum'') or clubhead barnacle blenny, is native to the eastern Pacific Ocean, where it occurs from the Gulf of California along the coast of Mexico south to Colombia and Ecuador. This fish lives in roc ...

'' Brock, 1940 (clubhead blenny) * ''

Acanthemblemaria betinensis The speckled blenny (''Acanthemblemaria betinensis'') is a species of chaenopsid blenny found in coral reefs in the western Caribbean, from Puerto Limón to Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in S ...

'' Smith-Vaniz &

Palacio Palacio (''palace'') is a Spanish habitational name. It may have originated from many places in Spain, especially in Galicia and Asturies. Notable people with the surname include: * Agustina Palacio de Libarona (1825-1880), Argentine writer, sto ...

, 1974 (speckled blenny) * ''

Acanthemblemaria castroi The Galapagos barnacle blenny (''Acanthemblemaria castor'') is a species of chaenopsid blenny endemic to coral reefs in the Galapagos Islands, in the southeast Pacific ocean. It can reach a maximum length of TL. The specific name Specific nam ...

'' J. S. Stephens & Hobson, 1966 (Galapagos barnacle blenny) * ''

Acanthemblemaria chaplini The papillose blenny (''Acanthemblemaria chaplain'') is a species of chaenopsid blenny found in the western Atlantic ocean. It can reach a maximum length of TL. The specific name honours the ichthyologist Ichthyology is the branch of zoolog ...

'' J. E. Böhlke, 1957 (papillose blenny) * ''

Acanthemblemaria crockeri The browncheek blenny (''Acanthemblemaria crockeri'') is a species of chaenopsid blenny found in coral reefs in the Gulf of California, in the eastern central Pacific ocean. It can reach a maximum length of TL. This species feeds primarily on ...

'' Beebe & Tee-Van, 1938 (browncheek blenny) * ''

Acanthemblemaria exilispinus The bluntspine blenny (''Acanthemblemaria exilispinus'') is a species of chaenopsid blenny found in coral reefs from Costa Rica to Ecuador, in the eastern central Pacific ocean. It can reach a maximum length of TL. This species feeds primarily ...

'' J. S. Stephens, 1963 (bluntspine blenny) * ''

Acanthemblemaria greenfieldi The false papillose blenny (''Acanthemblemaria greenfieldi'') is a species of chaenopsid blenny found in coral reefs in the western Atlantic ocean. The specific name honours the American ichthyologist David W. Greenfield who identified this spe ...

'' Smith-Vaniz & Palacio, 1974 (false papillose blenny) * ''

Acanthemblemaria hancocki Hancock's blenny (''Acanthemblemaria hancocki'') is a species of chaenopsid blenny found in coral reefs around Costa Rica and Panama, in the eastern central Pacific ocean. and can reach a maximum length of TL. This species feeds primarily on ...

'' G. S. Myers &

Reid Reid is a surname of Scottish origin. It means "red". People with the surname * Alan Reid (disambiguation) * Alex Reid (disambiguation), includes Alexander Reid * Amanda Reid, Australian Paralympic athlete * Amanda Reid (taxonomist), Australia ...

, 1936 (Hancock's blenny) * ''

Acanthemblemaria harpeza ''Acanthemblemaria harpeza'' is a species of chaenopsid blenny found around Navassa Island, in the western central Atlantic ocean. Etymology The species name "''harpeza''" is Greek for "thorn hedge", referring to the thornbush-like nasal an ...

J. T. Williams J. T. Williams was an American football coach. He was the fifth head football coach at Kentucky State University in Frankfort, Kentucky Frankfort is the capital city of the Commonwealth of Kentucky, United States, and the seat of Frank ...

, 2002 * '' Acanthemblemaria hastingsi'' H. C. Lin &

Galland Galland is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Adolf Galland (1912–1996), German air general during World War II * Antoine Galland (1646–1715), French orientalist and archeologist; first European translator of The Arabian Nigh ...

, 2010 (Cortez barnacle blenny) * '' Acanthemblemaria johnsoni'' Almany &

C. C. Baldwin Christopher Columbus Baldwin (May 18, 1830 – May 12, 1897) was the Naval Officer of the Port of New York from 1894 to 1897 who was prominent in New York Society during the Gilded Age. Early life Baldwin was born in 1834 at his family's estate, ...

, 1996 * ''

Acanthemblemaria macrospilus ''Acanthemblemaria macrospilus'', the barnacle blenny, is a species of chaenopsid blenny found in coral reefs in the eastern central Pacific ocean. It can reach a maximum length of TL. This species feeds primarily on zooplankton Zooplankton ...

'' Brock, 1940 (barnacle blenny) * '' Acanthemblemaria mangognatha'' Hastings & D. R. Robertson, 1999 (Revillagigedo barnacle blenny) * ''

Acanthemblemaria maria ''Acanthemblemaria maria'', the secretary blenny, is a species of chaenopsid blenny found in shallow seas in the western central Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea. It can reach a maximum length of TL. Description ''Acanthemblemaria maria'' ...

'' J. E. Böhlke] 1961 (secretary blenny) * '' Acanthemblemaria medusa'' Smith-Vaniz & Palacio, 1974 (Medusa blenny) * ''

Acanthemblemaria paula The dwarf spinyhead blenny (''Acanthemblemaria paula'') is a species of chaenopsid blenny found in coral reefs around Belize, in the western central Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an are ...

'' G. D. Johnson & Brothers, 1989 (dwarf spinyhead blenny) * '' Acanthemblemaria rivasi'' J. S. Stephens, 1970 (spotjaw blenny) * '' Acanthemblemaria spinosa'' Metzelaar, 1919 (spinyhead blenny) * ''

Acanthemblemaria stephensi ''Acanthemblemaria stephensi'', the Malpelo barnacle blenny, is a species of chaenopsid blenny found in coral reefs around Malpelo Island, in the eastern Pacific ocean. It can reach a maximum total length of . This species feeds primarily on zo ...

Rosenblatt Rosenblatt is a surname of German and Jewish origin, meaning "rose leaf". People with this surname include: * Albert Rosenblatt (born 1936), New York Court of Appeals judge * Dana Rosenblatt, known as "Dangerous" (born 1972), American boxer * Elie ...

& McCosker, 1988 (Malpelo barnacle blenny)

Behavior and diet

Acanthemblemaria are mostly filter feeding fishes, they inhabit coral reefs, rocky reefs and abandoned worm and mollusc tubes. They feed mostly on passing

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 ancient Greek, βένθος (bénthos), meaning "t ...

crustaceans, zooplankton, benthic worms,

References

Chaenopsidae Marine fish genera {{Chaenopsidae-stub