leaping blenny
Alticus kirkii (Günther, 1868)
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
The Kirk's blenny (Alticus kirkii) is a species of combtooth blenny (family Blenniidae) in the genus Alticus. It was described by A. Günther in 1964, originally as a member of the genus Salarias. It is a tropical blenny which is known from the Red Sea, Mozambique, Réunion, the Persian Gulf, and India, in the Indian Ocean. Kirk's blennies inhabit waters near the shore, and often spend time out of the water. They are able to breathe air when on land. They are oviparous, and form distinct pairs when mating; they also guard their eggs.
Wikipedia contributors, Kirk's blenny; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T04:12:44.346739+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Alticus kirkii (Günther, 1868)
- Name authority
- (Günther, 1868)
- Common name
- leaping blenny
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Teleostei
- Order
- Blenniiformes
- Family
- Blenniidae
- Genus
- Alticus
- 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
- familyBlenniidae Rafinesque, 1810
- subfamilySalariinae Gill, 1859
- genusAlticus Lacepède, 1800
- speciesAlticus kirkii (Günther, 1868)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Alticus. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Alticus montanoi (Sauvage, 1880) | BlenniidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Alticus arnoldorum (Curtiss, 1938) | BlenniidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Alticus magnusi (Klausewitz, 1964) | BlenniidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Alticus sertatus (Garman, 1903) | BlenniidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Alticus simplicirrus Smith-Vaniz & Springer, 1971 | BlenniidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Alticus orientalis Tomiyama, 1955 | BlenniidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Alticus aldabrensis (Regan, 1912) | BlenniidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Alticus andersonii (Day, 1876) | BlenniidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Alticus anjouanae (Fourmanoir, 1955) | BlenniidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Alticus saliens (Forster, 1788) | BlenniidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Alticus monochrus Bleeker, 1869 | BlenniidaeChordata | 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 |
|---|---|
| Lophalticus kirki (Günther, 1868) (Günther, 1868) | synonym |
| Alticus kirki (Günther, 1868) (Günther, 1868) | synonym |
| Salarias kirkii Günther, 1868 Günther, 1868 | synonym |
| Lophalticus kirkii (Günther, 1868) (Günther, 1868) | 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=219233 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:5TXSC. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.