a little fish with a big name

In 2011, our deep diving team of Jeff Godfrey and Michael Lombardi descended along the margins of the abyss in the Bahamas, and in just minutes of focused scientific inquiry, collected a single specimen of cryptic mesophotic clingfish for further study. The specimen, later named Derilissus lombardii (Sparks & Gruber 2012), has gone the distance in boosting ocean literacy with our education partner, Anne Krauss from Cobbles Elementary School. The original specimen used for taxonomy is archived in repository at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City.

The discovery is insignificant in the broader scope of marine science, but it represents just how important it is to keep exploring – there are literally thousands (or more!) of unknown life forms right here on Earth. 

The following are some useful resource links related to D. lombardii:

paper in Copeia
paper & resource guide in NMEA Current
IUCN Red List profile
Fishbase.org profile
DL on the tree of life!
Wikispecies citation
Fishes of the Western Atlantic
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