Sarcastic fringehead



The sarcastic fringehead (Neoclinus blanchardi) is a small but hardy saltwater tube-blenny that possesses a large mouth and aggressive territorial behavior, for which it has been given its common name. The specific name honours Dr. S. B. Blanchard of San Diego, California, who collected specimens of this blenny, and passed them on to Charles Frédéric Girard, who described it.

Appearance
Sarcastic fringeheads can be up to 30 cm long, elegant and slender, and are mostly scaleless with great pectoral fins and reduced pelvic fins. The swimming movements of these fish mainly consists of short dart-like movements. They are typically brown in color.

Male sarcastic fringeheads are distinguished by their extremely wide mouth gape, which when open may be as much as four times its size when closed. The interior of the mouth is brightly colored.

Ecology and behavior
Sarcastic fringeheads live along sandy and muddy bottoms below the low tide line. They tend to inhabit objects and cavities, such shells, burrows, and crevices; they are also found living in man-made objects, such as bottles and soda cans. The female spawns under a rock, in clam burrows, or in other containers, after which the male guards the eggs until they hatch.

Due to size of their mouths, sarcastic fringeheads cannot suction-feed. During squid spawning season, they can consume large numbers of squid eggs.

When two fringeheads have a territorial scuffle, they wrestle by pressing their distended mouths against each other, in a kissing motion. They press against each other until one is able to bite the other's head. This allows them to determine which is the larger fish, which establishes dominance. This is thought to be male-male competition for shelter.

Distribution
They are found in the Pacific, off the coast of North America, from San Francisco, California, to central Baja California. Their depth range is from 3 to 73 m.