Flying gurnardsDactylopteridae

Flying gurnards are benthic fish, growing up to 30 cm (12 in) long, with robust, elongated bodies. They possess large heads, blunt snouts, and prominent eyes. Their colouration is typically mottled brown, grey, or green, providing effective camouflage on the seabed. The most distinctive feature is a pair of greatly enlarged, wing-like pectoral fins, which often display bright blue spots or bands along their outer margins. These fins are usually held folded against the body but are rapidly spread to propel the fish in short glides just above the substrate when disturbed, a behaviour that inspired their common name.

These solitary fish inhabit sandy and rubble bottoms, and seagrass beds, at depths ranging from 1 to 100 m (3 to 330 ft). They are occasionally encountered by divers in these habitats. Flying gurnards forage for small benthic crustaceans, molluscs, and worms, rhythmically moving across the seafloor using modified pelvic fin rays that act as 'legs' in search of prey.