The Sarcastic fringehead, Neoclinus blanchardi, is a
ferocious fish which has a large mouth and aggressive territorial behavior from
which it has been given its common name. When two fringeheads have a
territorial battle, they wrestle by pressing their distended mouths against
each other, as if they were kissing. This allows them to determine which is the
larger fish, which establishes dominance.
They can be up to 30 centimeters (12 in) long, elongate and
slender and are mostly scale less with great pectoral fins and reduced pelvic
fins. They tend to hide inside shells or crevices. After the female spawns
under a rock or in clam burrows the male guards the eggs.
They are found in the Pacific, off the coast of North
America, from San Francisco, California, to central Baja California and their
depth range is from 3 to 73 meters (9.8 to 240 ft).
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