Stichaeus grigorjewi | Long Shanny or Northern Blenny

This is a Stichaeus grigorjewi, sometimes called a long shanny or northern blenny. It is a deepwater species that resides down to depths of around 300 meters in the Sea of Japan and Sea of Okhotsk. Females come up to shallower water to lay eggs. This fish is edible, but the eggs contain a toxin called dinogunellin, which can cause vomiting, nausea, abdominal pain, diarrhea and other unpleasant symptoms if ingested. There are no recorded cases of deaths from consumption of eggs. As pictured here, the fish repeatedly extended and retracted a long, twisted, multi-pronged tongue-like appendage reminiscent of the lure used by stargazers (Uranoscopidae) to attract prey.

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Filename: stichaeus-grigorjewi-long-shanny-northern-blenny-deep-ocean-fish-japan-201803-0621.tif
Copyright: Copyright Tony Wu. All rights reserved. No duplication, reproduction or usage without prior written permission.
Image Size: 6632x4421 / 83.9MB; https://www.photoshelter.com/support/license#rm; https://www.tony-wu.com/contact-tony-wu; Bony Fish Prickleback Animalia Chordata Osteichthyes Actinopterygii Perciformes Stichaeidae Stichaeus grigorjewi Long Shanny Northern Blenny Deep Ocean Deepwater Poisonous Pacific Japan Sea of Japan Toyama Prefecture
Contained in galleries: Say Ahhhhh!, Fish Photos, Marine Life | Japan

This is a Stichaeus grigorjewi, sometimes called a long shanny or northern blenny. It is a deepwater species that resides down to depths of around 300 meters in the Sea of Japan and Sea of Okhotsk. Females come up to shallower water to lay eggs. This fish is edible, but the eggs contain a toxin called dinogunellin, which can cause vomiting, nausea, abdominal pain, diarrhea and other unpleasant symptoms if ingested. There are no recorded cases of deaths from consumption of eggs. As pictured here, the fish repeatedly extended and retracted a long, twisted, multi-pronged tongue-like appendage reminiscent of the lure used by stargazers (Uranoscopidae) to attract prey.