PORT PHILLIP BAY


Slender Snakeblenny 

Sticharium dorsale Günther, 1867

View scientific description and taxonomy

General Description

Body long, slender; dorsal fin single, arising over or behind gill cover, often joined to tail fin; anal fin joined to tail fin, or connected to base of tail fin; orbital tentacle absent; last anal-fin ray distinctly not reaching tail base; lower lip not fleshy and without a fleshy flap extending beyond upper lip. Pale greyish or brownish with darker broken stripes on sides and a pale stripe along midsides. To 10 cm.

Biology

These well-camouflaged fishes are rarely seen.

Habitat

Usually buried in sand near seagrass beds, in depths of 0-10 m.

Soft substrates

Seagrass meadows

Distribution guide

Southern Australia.

Species Group

Fishes Weedfishes and snakeblennies

Depth

Shore (0-1 m)
Shallow (1-30 m)

Water Column

On or near sea floor

Max Size

10 cm

Commercial Species

No

Global Dispersal

Native to Australia

Conservation Status

  • DSE Advisory List : Not listed
  • EPBC Act 1999 : Not listed
  • IUCN Red List : Not listed

Author

article author Bray, D.J.

Di Bray is a Senior Collection Manager of ichthyology at Museum Victoria.

Author

article author Gomon, M.F.

Dr. Martin Gomon is a Senior Curator of ichthyology at Museum Victoria.

citation

Cite this page as:
Bray, D.J. & Gomon, M.F., 2011, Slender Snakeblenny, Sticharium dorsale, in Taxonomic Toolkit for marine life of Port Phillip Bay, Museum Victoria, accessed 06 Jun 2025, http://136.154.202.208:8098/species/6468

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