Dactylopteridae
by C. Roux
Body almost square in cross-section, especially anteriorly. Head large, blunt and bony, with spines and keels. Pectoral fins greatly enlarged, wing-like, reaching back almost to caudal fin base; the fact that these fins are used for aerial gliding is still repeated in the literature, but most likely they are spread to confuse predators or for courtship. Body covered with almost scute-like scales.
Benthic on sandy or rocky bottoms, mainly of warm or tropical seas.
Genera 3 or 4; in Clofnam area 1.
Recent revisions: badly needed.
Note. Gasterosteus spinarella Linnaeus, 1758 has page priority over Trigla volitans Linnaeus, 1758; similarly, Cephalacanthus Lacepède, 1801 has page priority over Dactylopterus Lacepède, 1801. However, it can be argued that Canestrini (1861) acted as the 'first reviser' and chose the names Dactylopterus and volitans (caption to his Figs. 4 and 5), which in fact accords with the usage of most (but not all) modern authors .