rockling
Gaidropsarus vulgaris (Cloquet, 1824)
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.

Gaidropsarus vulgaris
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Open encyclopedia reference
The three-bearded rockling (Gaidropsarus vulgaris) is found in European waters from the central Norwegian coast and the Faroe Islands, through the North Sea, and around the British Isles to the region around the western Mediterranean. They can grow to a maximum length of 60 cm (2 ft). Their coloration varies from dusky to pale, with large chocolate-brown spots on the head and body, and fin coloration varies with location. They also may have xanthochromism, which is colour condition characterized by overt of yellow-orange-red pigmentation, because of high levels of xanthophores in the skin. Three barbels, one on the bottom jaw and two on the snout, provide the fish with its common name.
Wikipedia contributors, Three-bearded rockling; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T02:33:49.908426+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Gaidropsarus vulgaris (Cloquet, 1824)
- Name authority
- (Cloquet, 1824)
- Common name
- rockling
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Teleostei
- Order
- Gadiformes
- Family
- Gaidropsaridae
- Genus
- Gaidropsarus
- 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
- orderGadiformes
- familyGaidropsaridae Jordan & Evermann, 1898
- genusGaidropsarus Rafinesque, 1810
- speciesGaidropsarus vulgaris (Cloquet, 1824)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Gaidropsarus. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Gaidropsarus granti (Regan, 1903) | GaidropsaridaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Arctic rocklingGaidropsarus argentatus (Reinhardt, 1837) | GaidropsaridaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Gaidropsarus insularum Sivertsen, 1945 | GaidropsaridaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| threadfin rocklingGaidropsarus ensis (Reinhardt, 1837) | GaidropsaridaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Gaidropsarus capensis (Kaup, 1858) | GaidropsaridaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Gaidropsarus novaezealandiae (Hector, 1874) | GaidropsaridaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| shore rocklingGaidropsarus mediterraneus (Linnaeus, 1758) | GaidropsaridaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Gaidropsarus mauli Biscoito & Saldanha, 2018 | GaidropsaridaeChordata | 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 |
|---|---|
| Onos vulgaris (Cloquet, 1824) (Cloquet, 1824) | synonym |
| Mustela vulgaris Cloquet, 1824 Cloquet, 1824 | synonym |
| Onos maculata Risso, 1827 Risso, 1827 | synonym |
| Gaidropsarus vulagris (Cloquet, 1824) (Cloquet, 1824) | synonym |
| Motella vulgaris (Cloquet, 1824) (Cloquet, 1824) | 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=126458 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.
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:6JVNH. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.