Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes) > Perciformes
(Perch-likes) > Blenniidae
(Combtooth blennies) > Salariinae
Etymology: Istiblennius: Greek, istios = sail + Greek, blennios = mucus (Ref. 45335).
Environment / Climate / Range
Marine; brackish; reef-associated; depth range 0 - 5 m (Ref. 9710), usually 0 - 1 m (Ref. 9710). Tropical; 32°N - 32°S
Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm ?  range ? - ? cm
Max length : 16.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 48636); 13.2 cm SL (female)
(total): 12 - 13;
soft rays: 21 - 23. Males darkly dusky with 5-6 pairs of bands on body and pale stripes on dorsal fin; develop a crest. Females paler in color, bands broken into spots posteriorly, dorsal fin spotted (Ref. 4404).
Indo-Pacific: Red Sea and East Africa to the Line, Marquesan, and Tuamoto islands, north to southern Japan, south to Lord Howe and Rapa.
Intertidal (Ref. 31184, 48636). Adults are common in areas with large rubble pieces which are often used to built breakwaters or to support jetty-pylons (Ref. 48636). They hide in cracks or holes when not feeding. They jump out of the water in energetic skippings to another pool when pursued (Ref. 2158, 48636). May remain out of water under rocks or seaweeds (Ref. 31184). They breathe air when out of water (Ref. 31184). Oviparous. Eggs are demersal and adhesive (Ref. 205), and are attached to the substrate via a filamentous, adhesive pad or pedestal (Ref. 94114). Larvae are planktonic, often found in shallow, coastal waters (Ref. 94114).
Springer, V.G. and J.T. Williams, 1994. The Indo-West Pacific blenniid fish genus Istiblennius reappraised: a revision of Istiblennius, Blenniella, and Paralticus, new genus. Smithson. Contrib. Zool. 565:193 p. (Ref. 9962)
IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 90363)
CITES (Ref. 94142)
Threat to humans
Fisheries: of no interest; aquarium: commercial
ReferencesAquacultureAquaculture profileStrainsGeneticsAllele frequenciesHeritabilityDiseasesProcessingMass conversion
Estimates of some properties based on models
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref. 82805
= 0.5001 [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Trophic Level (Ref. 69278
): 2.0 ±0.00 se; Based on food items.
Resilience (Ref. 69278
Vulnerability (Ref. 59153
): Low to moderate vulnerability (27 of 100) .