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Animal profile

Sarcastic Fringehead

Neoclinus blanchardi

ActinopterygiiRocky reefs, kelp forests and soft-bottom seafloors, sheltering in abandoned burrows, snail shells, cans and pipes from the intertidal zone to roughly 73 metres depth

Field profile

The sarcastic fringehead is a small, blenny-like fish of the temperate eastern Pacific known for its oversized mouth and pugnacious territorial disputes. It shelters in empty burrows, snail shells and other cavities on rocky and soft-bottom seafloors, defending these refuges fiercely against rivals and predators alike.

Scope note

This is an editorial profile, not a diagnostic field-identification guide or a substitute for current conservation assessments. Follow the cited sources on each fact for the evidence trail.

Published field notes

2026-09-19

Sarcastic Fringehead

Rival fringeheads wrestle by locking open mouths

Male sarcastic fringeheads settle disputes over shelters not by biting but by pressing their wide-open mouths together in a shoving match, a contest where mouth size, not body size, often decides who retreats.

Read with evidence →

Sarcastic Fringehead | Daily Animal Facts