Frogfish and Dragonets Codexery

Common dragonet

A demersal dragonet of the eastern North Atlantic, known for sexual dimorphism.

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Common dragonet

Hans Hillewaert · via Wikipedia: Common dragonet · CC BY-SA 4.0

Its body is flattened and lacks scales.[1] Mature males have elongate rays in their dorsal and caudal fins, while females are normally smaller, averaging 20 cm total length.[2][3] The head of the common dragonet is broad, triangular, and flattened, featuring an elongated snout and a lower jaw that extends outward.[2]

Scientific classification

  1. KingdomAnimalia
  2. PhylumChordata
  3. ClassActinopterygii
  4. DivisionTeleostei
  5. OrderSyngnathiformes
  6. FamilyCallionymidae
  7. GenusCallionymus
  8. SpeciesCallionymus lyra

Named by Linnaeus, 1758

Close relatives

Other species of Callionymus with a Codexery entry.

Sources: Wikipedia taxobox: Common dragonet (CC BY-SA 4.0) · differs from this box at order: WoRMS AphiaID 126792 (CC BY 4.0)

Conservation status

Least Concern (LC)

  1. LC▲ this species
  2. NT
  3. VU
  4. EN
  5. CR
  6. EW
  7. EX
Population trend
Not held in our sources — see the assessment
Assessment published
2015

Source: IUCN Red List assessment · GBIF copy of the Red List category

Where the common dragonet has been recorded

Where the common dragonet has been recorded227 mapped locations from 254,800 GBIF occurrence records; marked places: Faroe Islands, Irish SeaFaroe IslandsIrish Sea

Each dot is a place where the species has been observed and reported (254,800 records, half-degree grid) — not a modelled range. 20 inland records left out (institution coordinates).

Map: drawn by Codexery. Data: GBIF occurrence search (records CC0 / CC BY) · Natural Earth basemap (public domain) · place coordinates: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Biology and range

It occurs in the eastern North Atlantic from Iceland and Norway to Mauritania, including the Faroes, British Isles, Canary Islands, Madeira, and the Azores.[4] It feeds opportunistically on small invertebrates such as worms and crustaceans; in one study crustaceans made up over 85% of the identifiable diet.[5] The British Marine Life Study Society notes that adults eat small crustaceans and worms.[6] Spawning occurs as a pair, with an elaborate courtship where the male spreads his pectoral fins and erects both dorsal fins while repeatedly raising his head and opening his mouth.[7][6]

The fish typically remains on the seabed, often half-hidden in sand or shell gravel, leaving only its head and eyes visible.[5][6] In the Irish Sea, Atlantic cod and pouting rely heavily on common dragonets as a food source.[5] Territorial behavior is exhibited by males, who vigorously protect their areas from other males.[7] Once fertilization occurs, the resulting eggs are carried away by currents; the eggs, larvae, and postlarvae all exist in the pelagic zone.[8]

What the specialist sources record

The Marine Life Information Network account states that the common dragonet has a flattened body without scales.[1] The British Marine Life Study Society describes that when moving slowly, the fish swims barely clear of the bottom, settling every few inches and using its huge splayed pectoral fins for propulsion.[6] That account also reports that the big dorsal and ventral fins are not erected during everyday movement, unlike in breeding displays.[6] The World Register of Marine Species records the accepted taxonomic status of Callionymus lyra Linnaeus, 1758, in the family Callionymidae.[9]

GBIF holds 256,031 occurrence records for this taxon as of 7 October 2026.[10]

References

  1. Oakley, J.A., "Callionymus lyra Common dragonet", Marine Life Information Network: Biology and Sensitivity Key Information Reviews, 2008. facts only, no text reused. marlin.ac.uk
  2. Wikipedia, "Common dragonet" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Callionymus lyra (Linnaeus, 1758)", Museums of Northern Ireland, 2016; Alwyne Wheeler, "The Pocket Guide to Salt Water Fishes of Britain and Europe", Parkgate Books, 1992, p. 138; Jane Lilley, "Dragonet", British marine Life Study Society; Alwyne Wheeler, "The Pocket Guide to Salt Water Fishes of Britain and Europe", Parkgate Books, 1992, p. 138 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  3. Wikipedia, "Common dragonet" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Oakley, J.A., "Callionymus lyra Common dragonet", Marine Life Information Network: Biology and Sensitivity Key Information Reviews, 2008 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  4. Wikipedia, "Common dragonet" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Smith-Vaniz, W.F., "Callionymus lyra", The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, 2015, p. e.T198634A21910105 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  5. Wikipedia, "Common dragonet" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Oakley, J.A., "Callionymus lyra Common dragonet", Marine Life Information Network: Biology and Sensitivity Key Information Reviews, 2008; Jane Lilley, "Dragonet", British marine Life Study Society; "Dietary preference and feeding selectivity of common dragonet Callionymus lyra in U.K.", Journal of Fish Biology, 2012, p. 1019–1031; ; "Dietary preference and feeding selectivity of common dragonet Callionymus lyra in U.K.", Journal of Fish Biology, 2012, p. 1019–1031; Oakley, J.A., "Callionymus lyra Common dragonet", Marine Life Informatio en.wikipedia.org
  6. Jane Lilley, "Dragonet", British marine Life Study Society. facts only, no text reused. glaucus.org.uk
  7. Wikipedia, "Common dragonet" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Fishes of the NE Atlantic and Mediterranean", Marine Species Identification Portal, p. Dragonet (Callionymus lyra); "Fishes of the NE Atlantic and Mediterranean", Marine Species Identification Portal, p. Dragonet (Callionymus lyra); Erenest W.L. Holt, "On the Breeding of the Dragonet (Callionymus lyra) in the Marine Biological Association's Aquarium at Plymouth; with a preliminary account of the Elements, and some remarks on the significance of the (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  8. Wikipedia, "Common dragonet" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Erenest W.L. Holt, "On the Breeding of the Dragonet (Callionymus lyra) in the Marine Biological Association's Aquarium at Plymouth; with a preliminary account of the Elements, and some remarks on the significance of the ; Jane Lilley, "Dragonet", British marine Life Study Society; Smith-Vaniz, W.F., "Callionymus lyra", The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, 2015, p. e.T198634A21910105; Jane Lilley, "Dragonet", British marine Life Study Society (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  9. World Register of Marine Species, Callionymus lyra (AphiaID 126792). CC BY 4.0. marinespecies.org
  10. GBIF Backbone Taxonomy and occurrence index, Callionymus lyra (taxon key 2386906). CC BY 4.0 (backbone); counts are facts. gbif.org

Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Common dragonet (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.

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Sources

Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.

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