Two fish in Falmouth were spotted coming to blows at a time when they should have been caring for their eggs.
“What a battle!” says marine biologist and underwater photographer Paul Naylor when sharing footage of this "fierce fight between two mature tompot blenny males” on Instagram.
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Naylor, author of Great British Marine Animals and an expert in tompot blennies (Parablennius gattorugine) describes the situation as “very unusual”.
The idea of a skirmish between two males isn’t uncommon, he says, although this is fiercer and more prolonged than he’s used to seeing in his research into this “wonderfully charismatic species,” which can be identified by their unique markings.
But the main reason he found the fight so strange was that it took place in May. This is “the heart of the breeding season,” he says. At this time of year, “mature males are generally much too busy conscientiously guarding eggs to get involved in fights.”
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Image and video credit: Paul Naylor, author of Great British Marine Animals, marinephoto.co.uk
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