BIOTIC Species Information for Osilinus lineatus
Researched byNova Mieszkowska Data supplied byMarLIN
Refereed byThis information is not refereed.
Distribution and Habitat
Distribution in Britain & IrelandAbundant on rocky shores in Britain reaching its northern limits on Anglesey & eastern limits at Osmington Mills, Dorset (pers. obs.). Absent from Scotland & the east coast of England. Range from Churchtown to Malin Head in Ireland.
Global distributionFound in the north eastern Atlantic from Morocco to Cap de la Hague, France on mainland Europe (Crisp & Southward, 1958; Fretter & Graham 1977). Northern limits reached in North Wales and North Ireland.
Biogeographic rangeNot researched Depth rangeMHWS to MLWS
MigratorySeasonal (reproduction)   
Distribution Additional InformationOsilinus lineatus is widely distributed on rocky shores between the 20 °C summer isotherm off Africa and the 6.5 °C winter isotherm off Anglesey. Northern limits are primarily set by reproductive failure (Lewis et al., 1982; Lewis 1986; Kendall, 1986) but may also be determined by hydrography or unsuitable habitat (Crisp & Knight-Jones, 1953)

Juvenile Osilinus lineatus are found in nursery areas underneath boulders or in fissures. Adults crawl out of these damp areas onto the sides of boulders during warm, dry periods but tend to retreat to the lower surfaces of rocks when the weather is colder.

In early summer Osilinus lineatusadults migrate up shore to the high eulittoral prior to spawning. Once spawning has occurred the animals migrate back down shore to the mid to lower eulittoral zone to over-winter.


Substratum preferencesBedrock
Large to very large boulders
Rockpools
Under boulders
Physiographic preferencesOpen coast
Strait / sound
Enclosed coast / Embayment
Sealoch
Estuary
Biological zoneUpper Eulittoral
Mid Eulittoral
Lower Eulittoral
Wave exposureExposed
Moderately Exposed
Tidal stream strength/Water flowStrong (3-6 kn)
Moderately Strong (1-3 kn)
SalinityVariable (18-40 psu)
Full (30-40 psu)
Habitat Preferences Additional Information
Distribution References Hawkins & Jones, 1992, Hayward & Ryland, 1995b, Fish & Fish, 1996, Hayward et al., 1996, JNCC, 1999, NBN, 2002, Picton & Costello, 1998, Desai, 1966, Fretter & Graham, 1977, Kendall, 1987, Crisp & Southward, 1958, Crisp & Knight-Jones, 1953, Lewis et al., 1982, Lewis, 1986, Boaden et al., 1964,
About MarLIN | Contact, Enquiries & Feedback | Terms & Conditions | Funding | Glossary | Accessibility | Privacy | Sponsorship

Creative Commons License BIOTIC (Biological Traits Information Catalogue) by MarLIN (Marine Life Information Network) is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non-Commercial-Share Alike 2.0 UK: England & Wales License. Permissions beyond the scope of this license are available at http://www.marlin.ac.uk/termsandconditions. Note that images and other media featured on this page are each governed by their own terms and conditions and they may or may not be available for reuse. Based on a work at www.marlin.ac.uk.