#2243 · 🐟 fish

Small Triplefin Blenny

🇳🇱 Kleine drievinnige slijmvis ·Tripterygion melanurus

LCleast concern 🐟 Fish 📍 in Europe, not in NL

8 photos from iNaturalist (Creative Commons) · credits & licences

1. © sandra_bracun · CC BY-NC 4.0
2. © keithbroomfield · CC BY-NC 4.0
3. © sandra_bracun · CC BY-NC 4.0
4. © Thomas Menut · CC BY-NC 4.0
5. © Julien Renoult · CC BY 4.0
6. © Falk Viczian Solarboot-Projekte gGmbH · CC BY-NC 4.0
7. © Philippe Geniez · CC BY-NC 4.0
8. © Daniela Kupschus · CC BY-NC 4.0

what is it?

Tripterygion melanurum is a species of fish in the family Tripterygiidae, the threefin blennies. It is widespread in the Mediterranean Sea, where it occurs around the Balearic Islands and off the coasts of southern Sardinia, Algeria, Tunisia, Israel, Lebanon, Greece, Cyprus, and southern Turkey. 1 in) in length.

base stats

NL sightings 0iNaturalist, research grade
worldwide 1,243iNaturalist observations
threat LCleast concern

Bars compare against all animals on log scales: up to 300,000 Dutch and 600,000 worldwide sightings (the most-seen species), 150 t (blue whale), 30 m and 400 years (Greenland shark).

fun facts

No confirmed wild sightings in the Netherlands on iNaturalist: you'd have to travel for this one.
1,243 observations worldwide on iNaturalist.
Scientifically named in 1850 (176 years ago).

fact sheet

English: Small Triplefin Blenny
Nederlands: Kleine drievinnige slijmvis
scientific name: Tripterygion melanurus
class: Actinopterygii
order: Blenniiformes
family: Tripterygiidae
IUCN Red List: LC · least concern
sightings in NL: 0
sightings in Europe: 1,156
sightings worldwide: 1,243
GBIF records in NL: 0
weight: —
length: —
lifespan: —
named: 1850

IUCN in Dutch: niet bedreigd. Blank means the sources don't say.

relatives· Tripterygiidae

Sources: iNaturalist taxon 114453, Wikidata Q1836988, GBIF 2393087, Wikipedia (EN), Wikipedia (NL). Intro text from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-24.