Sarcastic fringehead

The sarcastic fringehead (Neoclinus blanchardi) is a small but very hardy saltwater fish that has a large mouth and aggressive territorial behavior, for which it has been given its common name.[2] When two fringeheads have a territorial battle, they wrestle by pressing their distended mouths against each other, as if they were kissing. This allows them to determine which is the larger fish, which establishes dominance.[3]

They can be up to 30 centimetres (12 in) long,[4] elongate and slender,[2] and are mostly scaleless with great pectoral fins and reduced pelvic fins. They are generally brown in color. Sarcastic Fringeheads are a species of tube blenny, and therefore tend to hide inside shells or crevices, though some have been found living in man-made objects such as a soda can.[5] After the female spawns under a rock or in clam burrows, the male guards the eggs. During squid spawning season, they eat large numbers of squid eggs.

They are found in the Pacific, off the coast of North America, from San Francisco, California, to central Baja California. Their depth range is from 3 to 73 metres (10 to 240 ft).[4]

The specific name honours Dr. S. B. Blanchard of San Diego, California who collected specimens of this blenny and passed them on to Girard who described it.[6]