Dimorphic Fluorescence in the Pacific Spiny Lumpsucker

Abstract

Joining the ranks of vertebrates that glow is the Pacific Spiny Lumpsucker, Eumicrotremus orbis, a subtidal species widely distributed across the North Pacific Ocean. Aside from their charismatic appearance, the Pacific Spiny Lumpsucker is known for its ventral suction disc that is used to stick to substrates amid changing currents and tides. Here we show that red lumpsuckers, which are usually male and a deep red color under broad-spectrum light, fluoresce bright red under ultraviolet (UV) light and blue light (360–460 nm), while green color morphs (usually female) do not. In all color morphs, the suctorial disc glows green-yellow. The red glow of the males matches the red glow of encrusting algae in their nesting areas, while the suctorial disc may be a signaling system. The green and red fluorescence observed in red lumpsuckers is the rarest fluorescent pattern and is only seen in 17 families of marine fishes. Pacific Spiny Lumpsuckers are cryptically colored under broad-spectrum light; our observed fluorescence suggests a potential avenue of communication and camouflage in an environment where red light is absent or rare.