Penpoint gunnel, pen-point blenny • Apodichthys flavidus
{Apodos = without feet; ichthys = fish}
The three different colour phases of the penpoint gunnel (brown, green, and red) are at least partially derived from pigments in amphipod prey. Photos by Angeleen Olson (bottom left) and Kaia Bryce.
Identification
The penpoint gunnel, an elongated fish with long and low dorsal and anal fins, can be wine red, emerald green, or golden brown. All colours have a dark bar running through each eye: this line is usually vertical though may occasionally be horizontal. Some individuals also have a silvery line running horizontally back from each eye. There is sometimes a line of dark spots running along each side of the body; these dark spots may be complimented with light spots as well. This species reaches 46 cm long.
Habitat & Range
Penpoint gunnels are found in the intertidal and subtidal to 18 m deep. They tend to camouflage themselves amid matching seaweed: green fish with sea lettuce or eelgrass, red with red seaweeds, and brown with similarly golden-brown kelp. They also hide under rocks — including rocks out of water at low tide, as they are capable of breathing air when out of water — and are commonly found in tidepools. This species' range extends from Kodiak Island in Alaska to southern California.
Intriguing Info
The different colour phases of this species are at least partially derived from pigments in their amphipod prey. Green fish are coloured by pigments in their skin, red fish by pigments in special pigment cells, and brown by a combination of both colour systems. Larvae are initially transparent, and begin to gain colour once they settle to the bottom and begin to feed.
iNaturalist
https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/67408-Apodichthys-flavidus
The penpoint gunnel, an elongated fish with long and low dorsal and anal fins, can be wine red, emerald green, or golden brown. All colours have a dark bar running through each eye: this line is usually vertical though may occasionally be horizontal. Some individuals also have a silvery line running horizontally back from each eye. There is sometimes a line of dark spots running along each side of the body; these dark spots may be complimented with light spots as well. This species reaches 46 cm long.
Habitat & Range
Penpoint gunnels are found in the intertidal and subtidal to 18 m deep. They tend to camouflage themselves amid matching seaweed: green fish with sea lettuce or eelgrass, red with red seaweeds, and brown with similarly golden-brown kelp. They also hide under rocks — including rocks out of water at low tide, as they are capable of breathing air when out of water — and are commonly found in tidepools. This species' range extends from Kodiak Island in Alaska to southern California.
Intriguing Info
The different colour phases of this species are at least partially derived from pigments in their amphipod prey. Green fish are coloured by pigments in their skin, red fish by pigments in special pigment cells, and brown by a combination of both colour systems. Larvae are initially transparent, and begin to gain colour once they settle to the bottom and begin to feed.
iNaturalist
https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/67408-Apodichthys-flavidus
References
Froese, R. and Valdestamon, R. R. Apodichthys flavidus Girard, 1854. FishBase. Accessed 21/09/2015.
Lamb, A. and Edgell, P. Coastal Fishes of the Pacific Northwest. Revised. (2010). Madeira Park, BC: Harbour Publishing. Pp. 126-127.
Lamb, A., and Hanby, B. (2005). Marine Life of the Pacific Northwest [electronic version]. Madeira Park, BC: Harbour Publishing.
Wilkie, D. W. (1966). Colour pigments in the penpoint gunnel Apodichthys flavidus and their ecological significance (Master's thesis). University of British Columbia.
Authors and editors of page
Kelly Fretwell and Brian Starzomski (2015).
Froese, R. and Valdestamon, R. R. Apodichthys flavidus Girard, 1854. FishBase. Accessed 21/09/2015.
Lamb, A. and Edgell, P. Coastal Fishes of the Pacific Northwest. Revised. (2010). Madeira Park, BC: Harbour Publishing. Pp. 126-127.
Lamb, A., and Hanby, B. (2005). Marine Life of the Pacific Northwest [electronic version]. Madeira Park, BC: Harbour Publishing.
Wilkie, D. W. (1966). Colour pigments in the penpoint gunnel Apodichthys flavidus and their ecological significance (Master's thesis). University of British Columbia.
Authors and editors of page
Kelly Fretwell and Brian Starzomski (2015).