page_title: Bluefin gurnard
section_title: Diet and foraging
hierarchical_section_title: Bluefin gurnard / Diet and foraging
caption_attribution_description: North Inlet - Winyah Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve. Polychaete worms like this bloodworm, Glycera sp., abound in salt marsh sediments. Some of these segmented worms are free living while others are tube builders. Image ID: nerr0328, NOAA National Estuarine Research Reserve Collection Location: Vicinity of Georgetown, South Carolina
context_page_description: The bluefin gurnard or Pacific red gurnard is a species of fish in the family Triglidae, the sea robins and gurnards. Its Maori names are Kumukumu and Pūwahaiau. It is found in the western Indian Ocean and the western Pacific Ocean, being common around Australia and New Zealand at depths down to 200 metres.
  This fish is edible for humans.
context_section_description: The red gurnard is an opportunistic feeder, preying principally on crustaceans but pretty much any small macrofauna such as shrimp/prawns, crabs, crayfish, lobster, amphipods, small fish, and polychaete worms (Eichelsheim, 2010; Furukawa & Ikeda, 1953; Rainer & Reyes, 2019; Lang, 2000; Roberts, et al., 2015). It uses modified fin rays under its pectorals to probe the sand for prey and may also use the large fan-like pectoral fins to offer prey mock shelter. They can be found in shallow water with soft ground after being stirred by winter storms and around the seasonal migrations of small shoreline fish like whitebait, anchovy, and pilchard. (Eichelcheim, 2010).
  Along the Australian shores, the red gurnard seems to be one of the apex predators with dogfishes, dories, lings and other flatheads (Bulman, et al., 2001).  
  A possible use for its large pectoral fins may be to make it appear larger to scare off potential predators (Eichelsheim, 2010).
caption: Polychaete Worm
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