Molly Miller, Scartella cristata

Molly Miller, Scartella cristata. Fish caught from the Packery Channel Jetty, Corpus Christi, Texas, August 2018. Length: 6.2 cm (2.4 inches). Catch, photograph and identification courtesy of Luke Ovgard, Klamath Falls, Oregon.

Molly Miller, Scartella cristata. Fish caught from coastal waters off Corpus Cristi, Texas, November 2019. Length: 10.2 cm (4.0 inches). Catch, photograph and identification courtesy of Eli (obsessiveangling.wordpress.com).

Molly Miller, Scartella cristata. Fish caught within the Indian River Lagoon, Micco, Florida, November 2021. Length: 12.1 cm (4.8 inches). Catch, photograph and identification courtesy of George Brinkman, Guelph, Ontario, Canada.

Molly Miller, Scartella cristata. Fish caught from within the harbor in Tenerife, Canary Islands, March 2018. Length: 12.7 cm (5.0 inches). Catch, photograph, and identification courtesy of Kenneth Tse, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Molly Miller, Scartella cristata. Fish caught within the Indian River Lagoon, Micco, Florida, May 2021. Length: 12.7 cm (5.0 inches). Catch, photograph and identification courtesy of Ben Cantrell, Sebastian, Florida.

The Molly Miller, Scartella cristata, is a member of the Combtooth Blenny or Blennidae Family, and is known in Mexico as borracho peineta. Globally, there are seven species in the genus Scartella, of which one is found in Mexican waters, this species from the Atlantic Ocean.

The Molly Miller has an elongated body. They are a dull green to olive color with two dark brown double-bars that extend into the dorsal fin, a dark spot at the front of the dorsal fin, and a dark brown stripe along the mid-line. Their head has a dark blotch between the eyes, two dark bars under the eyes, red and white nape cirri. Some fish have pearly spots along the upper back and upper head. Fish found within Sargassum rafts are a uniform yellow color. Their head is short and robust with a very steep forehead profile with cirrus over the front nostril with a small mouth that opens at the front with many movable teeth on each jaw and a stout canine at the rear of the lower jaw. Their anal fin has 2 spines and 16 to 17 rays; their caudal fin is rounded; their dorsal fin has 12 spines and 14 or 15 rays with a slight notch in between; and, the pelvic fins have 1 spine and 3 rays. They do not have scales. Their lateral line has a short arch over the pectoral fin base and ends under the spiny dorsal.

The Molly Miller is found in coastal tidal pools and shallow rocky areas in holes or troughs of rocks or between algae and often in empty barnacle shells, with their heads protruding, and on occasion within Sargassum rafts at depths up to 20 m (66 feet). They reach a maximum of 10.0 cm (3.9 inches) in length. They are morning predators that consume algae, detritus, crustaceans and small invertebrates. Reproduction is oviparous in distinct pairs with the females depositing eggs in protected areas that are adhesive and adhere to the walls of the shelter. The larvae are planktonic and are found in shallow, coastal waters. The Molly Miller is poorly studied with very limited information available about their lifestyle and behavioral patterns including specific details on age, growth, longevity, movement patterns, diet, habitat use, and reproduction.

The Molly Miller is a resident of all Mexican waters of the Atlantic Ocean including the Gulf of Mexico and the east coast of the Yucatán Peninsula in the Caribbean.

The Molly Miller can be confused with the Featherduster Blenny, Hypleurochilus multifilis, the Pearl Blenny, Entomacrodus nigricans, and the Seaweed Blenny, Parablennius marmoreus, all of which are brown and white in color (not green).

From a conservation perspective the Molly Miller is currently considered to be of Least Concern with stable, widely distributed populations. They are too small in stature to be of interest to most. They are utilized by the aquarium trade at a nominal level.