Enophrys is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Cottidae, the typical sculpins. These fishes are found in the northern and eastern Pacific Ocean.
Enophrys was first proposed as a monospecific genus in 1839 by the English zoologist William John Swainson with its only and type species being Cottus claviger.[1] This species had been described in 1839 by the French zoologist Georges Cuvier from Kamchatka but it was later determined to be a synonym of Cottus diceraus, originally described by Peter Simon Pallas in 1787, also from Kamchatka.[2] The 5th edition of Fishes of the World classifies this genus within the subfamily Cottinae of the family Cottidae,[3] however, other authors classify the genus within the subfamily Myoxocephalinae of the family Psychrolutidae,[1] although others place the subfamily Myoxocephalinae within the Cottidae.[4]
Enophrys prefixes phrys, meaning "brow", with en, ning "very", presumed to be a reference to the thick orbital ridge of the type species.[5]
Enophrys contains 4 recognized species within it:[6]
Enophrys sculpins share the possession of plates along their lateral lines and some species have prickly scales underneath the lateral line. They also have a very long, sharp spine on the upper preoperculum and sharp spines on the nose.[7] The bull sculpin is the smallest species with a maximum recorded total length of 17 cm (6.7 in) while the largest species is the buffalo sculpin which reaches a maximum publsihed total length of 37 cm (15 in).[6]
Enophrys sculpins are only found in the northern and Eastern Pacific Oceans from the Sea of Japan to California.[6]
Enophrys is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Cottidae, the typical sculpins. These fishes are found in the northern and eastern Pacific Ocean.
