Dactyloscopidae

masked stargazer

Gillellus healae

Burying in sand waiting for prey

• Tropical
• Regional distribution
• Marine fish
• Atlantic Ocean
• North America
• Elongated
• Small
• Tropical fish

Gillellus healae, the masked stargazer, is a species of sand stargazer native to the Atlantic and Gulf coasts of the United States from South Carolina to the Florida Keys as well as around Aruba where it can be found on sandy bottoms at depths of from 21 to 37 metres (69 to 121 ft). It is an ambush predator, burying itself nearly completely in the sand and waiting for prey to happen by.