Pholis gunnellus, Rock gunnel : aquarium

Pholis gunnellus (Linnaeus, 1758)

Rock gunnel
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Pholis gunnellus   AquaMaps   Data sources: GBIF OBIS
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Image of Pholis gunnellus (Rock gunnel)
Pholis gunnellus
Picture by Noren, M.

Classification / Names Common names | Synonyms | Catalog of Fishes(genus, species) | ITIS | CoL | WoRMS | Cloffa

Teleostei (teleosts) > Perciformes/Zoarcoidei (Eelpouts and pricklebacks) > Pholidae (Gunnels) > Pholinae
Etymology: Pholis: Greek, pholis, -idos = scale (Ref. 45335).
More on author: Linnaeus.

Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range Ecology

Marine; brackish; demersal; non-migratory; depth range 0 - 100 m (Ref. 48978), usually 0 - 30 m (Ref. 35388). Polar; 72°N - 43°N, 76°W - 45°E

Distribution Territories | FAO areas | Ecosystems | Occurrences | Point map | Introductions | Faunafri

North Atlantic: Kanin Peninsula southward to La Rochelle (including White Sea, North Sea and Baltic), also Iceland, but not eastern Greenland, Spitzbergen or Novaya Zemlya. Western Atlantic: Labrador, Canada to Delaware Bay, USA (Ref. 7251).

Size / Weight / Age

Maturity: Lm ?  range ? - ? cm
Max length : 25.0 cm SL male/unsexed; (Ref. 4693); max. reported age: 5 years (Ref. 72462)

Short description Identification keys | Morphology | Morphometrics

Ribbon - shaped body with 9 - 13 eye spots along the base of the dorsal fin (Ref. 35388).
Body shape (shape guide): eel-like.

Biology     Glossary (e.g. epibenthic)

Facultative air-breathing (Ref. 126274); Occurs in shallow waters (seashore, tide pools), but descends (especially in winter) to 100 m or more. May remain out of water under rocks or seaweeds (Ref. 31184). Feeds on small crustaceans, polychaetes, mollusks and fish eggs. The eggs are laid on the sea bed in a large clump, which is closely guarded until hatched (Ref. 9900). Breathes air when out of water (Ref. 31184). Spawning occur in November - January . Female lays 80-200 eggs in a large ball under a stone or in an empty bivalve shell (Ref. 35388).

Life cycle and mating behavior Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae

Male and female coil around the egg ball (Ref. 58332).

Main reference Upload your references | References | Coordinator | Collaborators

Makushok, V.M., 1986. Pholididae. p. 1124-1125. In P.J.P. Whitehead, M.-L. Bauchot, J.-C. Hureau, J. Nielsen and E. Tortonese (eds.) Fishes of the North-eastern Atlantic and the Mediterranean. UNESCO, Paris. Vol. 3. (Ref. 4693)

IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435: Version 2025-2)

Not Evaluated 

CITES

Not Evaluated

CMS (Ref. 116361)

Not Evaluated

Threat to humans

  Harmless





Human uses

Fisheries: of no interest; aquarium: commercial
FAO - Publication: search | FishSource |

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Internet sources

AFORO (otoliths) | Aquatic Commons | BHL | Cloffa | Websites from users | Check FishWatcher | CISTI | Catalog of Fishes: genus, species | DiscoverLife | DORIS | ECOTOX | FAO - Publication: search | Faunafri | Fishipedia | Fishtrace | GloBI | Google Books | Google Scholar | Google | IGFA World Record | National databases | OneZoom | Open Tree of Life | Otolith Atlas of Taiwan Fishes | Public aquariums | PubMed | Reef Life Survey | Socotra Atlas | TreeBase | Tree of Life | Wikipedia: Go, Search |