The rare Splendid Toadfish, Sanopus splendidus

Marine Life » Splendid Toadfish

Photo by Anita Floyd, on Cozumel
Taken in Cozumel with a Sea and Sea DX3000, using a YS-90 slave strobe.
A diver coaxed this toadfish out from its den, and it swam approximately 100 yards before finally finding a suitable coral head to duck under.

Toadfish are found on the sand and mud bottoms of coastal waters worldwide. They usually have broad heads and drab colours, and look something like toads. The Splendid Toadfish, though, is different.

As you can see in the photo the Splendid Toadfish is attractively patterned in purple. Most of its fins are edged in yellow with the pelvic fin being entirely yellow. It also has a yellow mouth.

Also known as the Coral Toadfish, Sanopus splendidus generally lives on sand under crevices or coral heads in clear water, 10-25 m. It hunts at night, preying on small fishes, snails and polychaete worms.

The Splendid Toadfish was thought to be only found in Cozumel (Mexico) but sightings have also been reported in Belize at Glovers Reef and further north of Cozumel at Costa Occidental de Isla Mujeres. However, it is not widespread and is now classified as endangered by the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.

Acoustic communication is critical to toadfish reproductive success, but noise from cruise ships is thought to mask their vocalisations as it is in the same bandwidth.

Taxonomy

Phylum: Chordata > Class: Actinopterygii > Order: Batrachoidiformes > Family: Batrachoidinae > Genus: Sanopus > Species: Sanopus splendidus

References

By Jill Studholme, 23 August 2024

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