Taxonomy

Rarity

Abundance rates how many are in suitable habitat. Find difficulty rates how hard it is to locate one on a daylight snorkel or freedive through 50 ft. A higher find score means a harder search. The rarity category also reflects the kind of encounter; it is not an average of the 2 scores.

Seasonality

Location

The yellowfin fringehead ranges from Monterey Bay to central Baja California. It lives along rocky coast and in bays near jetties, down to about 90 feet. FishBase says it usually lives in empty shells and holes.

Deep Dive

The name describes the 3 pairs of branching flaps above the eyes, called cirri, that give the head its fringe. The fish reaches about 4 inches. It has a blunt snout and a very large mouth. Color runs from scarlet and orange to brown or olive, with blue spots low on the body and striped fins.

Fringeheads back into their shelters tail first and leave only the head showing. Mexican Fish describes them as fearless and aggressive, with very poor eyesight, and says they will attack anything that approaches the burrow regardless of size. They are ambush predators that feed mainly on crustaceans. Rockfishes and sea basses eat them.

The species name honors Kate Stephens, curator of mollusks and marine invertebrates at the San Diego Natural History Museum, who collected the 1st specimen and was over 100 years old when it was described.

Where to Find Them

Researched habitat and range candidates

These locations have suitable habitat within the species range. An assignment is a possible encounter, not a confirmed sighting at every beach. Season, depth, and local conditions still matter. Historical habitat without present-day evidence is excluded.