Latin name

Anisarchus medius

Other name

Lumpenus lumpenus

Identification

Body: A stout, elongated body that tapers to the tail with fine scales. Its large eyes extend beyond the upper edge of the head, and its snub-nosed snout has a terminal mouth and thick lips. It has a snub nose with a terminal mouth and thick lips.

Features of fish fins

Dorsal soft rays (total): 0.

The dorsal and anal fins of these fish have rays that extend beyond the base of the caudal fin. Barbed rays may be present at the beginning of the anal fin and in the pelvic fin. The caudal fin is rounded.

Fish colouring

The Stout Eelblenny has a yellowish or brown body, which is usually covered in faint dark spots. Its abdomen is silvery.

Distribution

This species is found in the northern Pacific Ocean, from the Bering Sea to Japan and southeastern Alaska. In the northwest Atlantic, it is found from the Arctic to western Greenland and Labrador, Canada. The northeast Atlantic: Norway, Russia, and Svalbard.

Habitat

This is a marine bottom fish. It likes muddy bottoms and lives at depths of 10 to 300 meters, but more often at 30 to 100 meters in waters with low temperatures.

Size

Males of this species reach a maximum length of 30.0 cm, with a total length of 12.0 cm.

Behavior

Stout eelblennys inhabit muddy bottoms and usually prefer water temperatures below 0°C and salinities above 30%. They are not found in desalinated areas of the sea.

Food and feeding habits

They feed on small benthic invertebrates.

Reproduction

The breeding biology of the stout eelblenny has not yet been studied.

Fishing

This species is not commercially important.

Relationship with a person

Harmless.