Shanny
Lipophrys pholis · Small fish and rockpool species
Also called common blenny, blenny
A common little rockpool fish found around all UK coasts. It hides under stones and weed and often turns up on piers.[1]
How to recognise it
- No tentacles on the head, which separates it from the tompot blenny.[1]
- Smooth, slimy, scaleless body, usually brown or beige with darker blotches; colour varies.[2]
- Eyes set high on the head and one long dorsal fin split by a notch.[2]
- Breeding males turn almost black with bright white lips, roughly April to August.[1]
When and where
- Season
- all year[1]
- Found over
- rockpools, under stones and weed, piers[2]
- Tide
- Mostly active in daytime at high tide, when it forages over the shore.[3]
- Light
- Mostly active in daytime.[3]
Listed as present all year round; breeding colours show from April to August.[1]
Sources
These notes are a draft: we gathered them from the sources above and are still checking them. We don't work out best times for this fish yet. The size rules come from the same checked byelaws as every other fish.