Name: Grunt sculpin, grunt-fish
Scientific Name: Rhamphocottus richardsoni (Günther, 1874)
Family: Rhamphocottidae
Group: Bony fish
Class: Fish
Size: 0-10 cm.
The grunt sculpin owes its name to the grunt-like sounds that it makes when it is taken from the water. It lives on sandy or rocky bottoms from the tidal zones to up to 165 m deep. Here, it moves along in a truly peculiar way on stones and algae, with the help of its pectoral fins. During the breeding season, each female pursues a male until it is cornered in a hole. Then, the female deposits the eggs on the sea floor or inside empty shells and the male fertilises them. Only then does the female move away, leaving the male the job of guarding the eggs.
