phallic blenny
Starksia spinipenis (Al-Uthman, 1960)
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 spinipenis, the phallic blenny, is a species of labrisomid blenny native to the Pacific coast of Mexico from the Gulf of California to Acapulco. It prefers shallow sandy areas with weed growth. This species can reach a length of 5 centimetres (2.0 in) TL. The specific name is a compound noun if spinis meaning "spine" and penis, a reference to the first spine in the anal fin of the males which is elongated and free of the fin membrane and is modified as a copulatory organ, a characteristic of the genus Starksia.
Wikipedia contributors, Starksia spinipenis; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T04:15:56.197220+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Starksia spinipenis (Al-Uthman, 1960)
- Name authority
- (Al-Uthman, 1960)
- Common name
- phallic 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 spinipenis (Al-Uthman, 1960)
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 spinipenis Al-Uthman, 1960 Al-Uthman, 1960 | 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=276386 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:4ZKRK. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.