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Dactyloscopus lacteus (Myers & Wade, 1946)

Source-backed taxonomic record

Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.

Open encyclopedia reference

Dactyloscopus lacteus, the milky sand stargazer, is a species of sand stargazer endemic to the Galapagos Islands where it is the only species of Dactyloscopus known to occur there, and is a common fish in its region. It can be found in tide pools and sandy shores at depths of from 2 to 9 metres (6.6 to 29.5 ft). It can grow to reach a maximum length of 5 centimetres (2.0 in) SL.

Wikipedia contributors, Dactyloscopus lacteus; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T19:29:09.943317+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.

Identity & source status

Scientific name
Dactyloscopus lacteus (Myers & Wade, 1946)
Name authority
(Myers & Wade, 1946)
Rank
species
Accepted status
accepted
Kingdom
Animalia
Phylum
Chordata
Class
Teleostei
Order
Blenniiformes
Family
Dactyloscopidae
Genus
Dactyloscopus
Extinction status
Not supplied by this source

Source habitat flags: Marine: yes · Freshwater: no · Terrestrial: no. These do not form a complete habitat description.

Classification family tree

Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.

  1. domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
  2. kingdomAnimalia
  3. phylumChordata
  4. subphylumVertebrata
  5. infraphylumGnathostomata
  6. parvphylumOsteichthyes
  7. gigaclassActinopterygii
  8. superclassActinopteri
  9. classTeleostei
  10. orderBlenniiformes
  11. familyDactyloscopidae Gill, 1859
  12. genusDactyloscopus Gill, 1859
  13. speciesDactyloscopus lacteus (Myers & Wade, 1946)

Close classified relatives

These entries share the source’s genus, Dactyloscopus. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.

SpeciesClassificationSource status
Dactyloscopus byersorum Dawson, 1969DactyloscopidaeChordataAccepted speciesExtinction status not supplied
Dactyloscopus fallax Dawson, 1975DactyloscopidaeChordataAccepted speciesExtinction status not supplied
fringed stargazerDactyloscopus fimbriatus (Reid, 1935)DactyloscopidaeChordataAccepted speciesExtinction status not supplied
Dactyloscopus poeyi Gill, 1861DactyloscopidaeChordataAccepted speciesExtinction status not supplied
Dactyloscopus zelotes Jordan & Gilbert, 1896DactyloscopidaeChordataAccepted speciesExtinction status not supplied
Dactyloscopus heraldi Dawson, 1975DactyloscopidaeChordataAccepted speciesExtinction status not supplied
moonstruck stargazerDactyloscopus lunaticus Gilbert, 1890DactyloscopidaeChordataAccepted speciesExtinction status not supplied
riverine stargazerDactyloscopus amnis Miller & Briggs, 1962DactyloscopidaeChordataAccepted speciesExtinction status not supplied
Dactyloscopus boehlkei Dawson, 1982DactyloscopidaeChordataAccepted speciesExtinction status not supplied
Dactyloscopus comptus Dawson, 1982DactyloscopidaeChordataAccepted speciesExtinction status not supplied
bigeye stargazerDactyloscopus crossotus Starks, 1913DactyloscopidaeChordataAccepted speciesExtinction status not supplied
Dactyloscopus elongatus Myers & Wade, 1946DactyloscopidaeChordataAccepted speciesExtinction status not supplied

Browse 43 records assigned to Dactyloscopidae.

Names & synonyms

Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.

Recorded nameSource status
Cokeridia lactea Myers & Wade, 1946 Myers & Wade, 1946synonym
Crockeridius lactea Myers & Wade, 1946 Myers & Wade, 1946synonym
Cockeridia lactea Myers & Wade, 1946 Myers & Wade, 1946synonym

Source literature & publication evidence

References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.

  1. https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=276400 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references

Origins, evidence & remaining research

Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.

Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.

Dataset citation & attribution

This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11

Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.

Stable key: col:33WQD. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.