Classification / Names Common names | Synonyms | Catalog of Fishes (gen., sp.) | ITIS | CoL | WoRMS | Cloffa

Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes) > Syngnathiformes (Pipefishes and seahorses) > Syngnathidae (Pipefishes and seahorses) > Syngnathinae
Etymology: Nerophis: Greek, neros, nearos = youhtfull appearance + Greek,ophis = serpent (Ref. 45335).

Environment / Climate / Range Ecology

Marine; demersal; depth range 0 - 30 m (Ref. 6733). Temperate, preferred ?; 63°N - 21°N, 18°W - 13°E

Distribution Countries | FAO areas | Ecosystems | Occurrences | Point map | Introductions | Faunafri

Eastern Atlantic: southern Norway, Kattegat and British Isles to Rio de Oro in Western Sahara.

Size / Weight / Age

Maturity: L_m ? range ? - ? cm
Max length : 15.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 6733); 17.0 cm TL (female)

Short description Morphology | Morphometrics

Pectoral and caudal fins absent. Anal opening below front end of the dorsal fin. With 17-19 body rings. The snout is short and bent upwards (Ref. 35388).

Intertidal to about 30 m (Ref. 6733), among rocks or holdfasts and lower branches of algae (Ref. 4509). Spawn in the summer months. Become sexually mature at an age of 2 years. Feed on small crustaceans and fish fry (Ref. 35388). Larvae are attached to the ventral surface of the males (Ref. 42359). Ovoviviparous (Ref. 205). Parental care is exclusively paternal (Ref. 42359). The male carries the eggs in a brood pouch which is found under the tail (Ref. 205).

Life cycle and mating behavior Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae

Males brood their offspring attached to their flattened ventral surface. All throughout the gestation period, parental care is strictly paternal. No further care is needed once the newborn juveniles become free-swimming (Ref. 42359). Sex roles are reversed in this species. The females are the courting sex and change color more intensely than the males (Ref. 42363). Unlike in other pipefishes, the courtship ritual takes place in close contact with the substratum which may characterise adaptation to typical intertidal conditions (Ref. 42363).

Main reference Upload your references | References | Coordinator | Collaborators

Dawson, C.E., 1990. Syngnathidae. p. 658-664. In J.C. Quero, J.C. Hureau, C. Karrer, A. Post and L. Saldanha (eds.) Check-list of the fishes of the eastern tropical Atlantic (CLOFETA). JNICT, Lisbon; SEI, Paris; and UNESCO, Paris. Vol. 2. (Ref. 4509)

IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 115185)

Least Concern (LC)

CITES (Ref. 94142)

Not Evaluated

Threat to humans

Harmless

Human uses

FAO(Publication : search) | FisheriesWiki | Sea Around Us

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Internet sources

Nerophis lumbriciformis (Jenyns, 1835)