Lumpsucker
The Lumpsucker has a very stocky body and its head is very large. It is protected by bony plates which form rows of bumps running along the length of it’s body, and it does not have scales. As its appearance may suggest it isn’t the best of swimmers, nor is it the prettiest fish out there!
Spotted
Females may grow up to 60cm and males up to 50cm.
They are extremely well camouflaged and there is a powerful sucker on the underside, just behind the chin, which is used for clinging onto rock surfaces.
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They spend a lot of their time in deep water, but in the Springtime they emerge from the depths to shallower waters where the female lays her eggs. She immediately returns to deeper water. The male, however, stays to take care of the eggs for one or two months until they hatch. The only thing he eats during this time are the few eggs that may become rotten.
His main priority is to keep the eggs oxygenated by fanning over them with his fins or by pushing his head into the pile.
Guarding those precious eggs!
This time of year is ideal to see one of these extraordinary fish while diving.
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