Dwarf sea scorpion
| Dwarf sea scorpion | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Little Scorpion ( Micrenophrys lilljeborgii ) |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name of the genus | ||||||||||||
| Micrenophrys | ||||||||||||
| Andriashev , 1954 | ||||||||||||
| Scientific name of the species | ||||||||||||
| Micrenophrys lilljeborgii | ||||||||||||
| ( Collett , 1875) |
The dwarf sea scorpion ( Micrenophrys lilljeborgii ) is a species of fish from the family of the thick-headed bullheads (Psychrolutidae) living in the European North Atlantic . Its distribution area extends from the White Sea and Iceland to the English Channel , the North Sea and the Skagerrak and Kattegat on the Danish coast.
features
The dwarf sea scorpion has a beefy, club-shaped and high-backed body with a large and armored head. It reaches a maximum body length of only 7.4 centimeters and is therefore significantly smaller than, for example, the sea scorpion ( Myoxocephalus scorpius ) with an average of 30 centimeters and a maximum of 60 centimeters. The head has a large, very wide and terminal mouth. As with related species, it is armored while the front gill covers each end in a long spine. The back and the flanks are brown to olive in color and have 4 dark crossbars, the head is gray to yellow. During the mating season, the males have red spots on their flanks.
The pectoral fins are large and flat. The pelvic fins are on the chest and the dorsal fin is clearly in two parts. The front dorsal fin consists of 8 to 9 hard rays, the second from 11 to 12 soft rays. The anal fin has 6 to 9 soft rays and the pectoral fin 15 to 16 soft rays.
distribution
The range of the dwarf sea scorpion extends from the White Sea and Iceland and Norway to the English Channel , the North Sea and the Skagerrak and Kattegat on the Danish coast.
Way of life
The fish lives mainly on sandy and scree bottoms and between algae at a depth of 20 to 100, where it mainly feeds on small crustaceans. Occasionally it penetrates into brackish water in estuaries.
The spawning season falls from March to April on the sea floor. The eggs, about 2 millimeters in size, have an oil ball and are deposited in lumps. The larvae are pelagic .
supporting documents
- ↑ a b c d e Andreas Vilcinskas : Fish - Central European freshwater species and marine fish of the North and Baltic Seas . BLV Verlagsgesellschaft, Munich 2000; 162. ISBN 3-405-15848-6 .
- ↑ a b c dwarf sea scorpion on Fishbase.org (English)
literature
- Andreas Vilcinskas : Fish - Central European freshwater species and marine fish of the North and Baltic Seas. BLV Verlagsgesellschaft, Munich 2000; 162. ISBN 3-405-15848-6 .
Web links
- Little Scorpion at Fishbase.org (English)