Family : Callionymidae (Dragonets)
Order : Perciformes  (perch-likes)
Class : Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes)
Fishbase Name : Flap-gilled dragonet
Fish Name : Eleutherochir opercularis
Max size : 11.0 cm TL (male/unsexed; Ref. 48636)
Environment : demersal
Climate : tropical
Global Importance : fisheries: of no interest
Resilience: High, minimum population doubling time less than 15 months (Preliminary K or Fecundity.)Distribution : Indo-West Pacific: Sri Lanka, east coast of India, Andaman and Nicobar islands to western Malaysia (Penang) and Indonesia, east to the Philippines and the Ryukyu Islands, Japan.
Diagnosis : Dorsal spines (total): 4-4; Dorsal soft rays (total): 9-9; Anal soft rays: 9-9. Head and body brown or yellow, belly lighter. Back with small light spots and dark blotches. First dorsal fin black. Anal fin whitish. Pelvic fins dark and brown or black. Second dorsal, caudal, and pectoral fins spotted with dark brown. Body without lateral fold of skin below lateral line. Interorbital distance more than eye diameter (Ref 42832).
Biology : Inhabits shallow sandy and muddy bottoms in the sea, but also enters mouths of rivers and may live even in freshwater
Threatened : Dangerous:  
Dangerous : harmless
Coordinator : Fricke, Ronald
Main Ref : Talwar, P.K. and A.G. Jhingran. 1991. (Ref. 4833)

India country information
Common Names : Indian dragonet
Status : native
Salinity : brackish, marine
Uses : no uses