spotted blenny
Starksia sluiteri (Metzelaar, 1919)
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
Starksia sluiteri, the chessboard blenny, is a species of labrisomid blenny native to the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean along the coast of Brazil including Atol das Rocas and St. Paul's Rocks. This species is an inhabitant of reefs where it prefers areas with rubble or crevices in which to hide. It can be found at depths of from 5 to 40 m (16 to 131 ft). This species can reach a length of 2.8 cm (1.1 in) SL. The specific name honours the Dutch biologist and anatomist Carel Philip Sluiter (1854-1933), a specialist in tunicates.
Wikipedia contributors, Starksia sluiteri; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T04:20:28.212902+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Starksia sluiteri (Metzelaar, 1919)
- Name authority
- (Metzelaar, 1919)
- Common name
- spotted blenny
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Teleostei
- Order
- Blenniiformes
- Family
- Labrisomidae
- Genus
- Starksia
- 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.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- gigaclassActinopterygii
- superclassActinopteri
- classTeleostei
- orderBlenniiformes
- familyLabrisomidae Clark Hubbs, 1952
- genusStarksia Jordan & Evermann, 1896
- speciesStarksia sluiteri (Metzelaar, 1919)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Starksia. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| smooth-eye blennyStarksia atlantica Longley, 1934 | LabrisomidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Starksia brasiliensis (Gilbert, 1900) | LabrisomidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| fugitive blennyStarksia cremnobates (Gilbert, 1890) | LabrisomidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Starksia elongata Gilbert, 1971 | LabrisomidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Starksia fulva Rosenblatt & Taylor, 1971 | LabrisomidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Starksia galapagensis Rosenblatt & Taylor, 1971 | LabrisomidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| pinstriped blennyStarksia grammilaga Rosenblatt & Taylor, 1971 | LabrisomidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Starksia greenfieldi Baldwin & Castillo, 2011 | LabrisomidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Starksia guttata (Fowler, 1931) | LabrisomidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| hose blennyStarksia hoesei Rosenblatt & Taylor, 1971 | LabrisomidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Starksia melasma Williams & Mounts, 2003 | LabrisomidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Starksia multilepis Williams & Mounts, 2003 | LabrisomidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Brannerella sluiteri Metzelaar, 1919 Metzelaar, 1919 | synonym |
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.
- https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=276384 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:4ZKRH. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.