the.com/dragonet
a tiny seafloor dragon that walks on its fins and outdresses every fish around.
means A small, often brilliantly colored bottom-dwelling marine fish of the family Callionymidae, found resting and creeping along sandy or rocky seabeds.
from From 'dragon' plus the diminutive '-et' — literally a 'little dragon.' 'Dragon' descends from Latin 'draco' (serpent, dragon), itself borrowed from Greek 'drakōn,' tied to a root meaning 'to see' or 'to watch' — the dragon as the sharp-eyed, glittering watcher. The '-et' suffix came into English via French, where it shrinks things down affectionately. So the name simply christens these vivid little seafloor fish as miniature dragons, scaled to fit a tide pool.
- size
- most stay under six inches long
- no scales
- toxic slimy skin replaces armor entirely
- the mandarin
- one of few animals with true blue pigment
- courtship
- males flare fins like peacock display battles
- name roots
- latin for little dragon, fully earned
dragonet callionymus lyra — common dragonet species found in northeast atlantic waters, males display ornate fins during mating
dragonet pegasus volitans — spotted dragonfish, indo-pacific species with wing-like pectoral fins, reaches 6 inches