Grayish or white with bold dark red stripes the painted greenling darts from one shadowy rock crevice to another. It’s searching for small shrimps or worms for its dinner and does so with ease thanks to its adapted head shape, its snout is long and narrow, perfect for hard-to-reach places. The painted greenling, though small is a striking fish in appearance, not only does it sport five to seven bold stripes vertically down its sides, but also has three dark marks radiating from around its glowing eyes and two sets of bushy outgrowths (cirri), one just above the eyes with another set just behind them. Some, especially juveniles, have been found seeking shelter within the stinging tentacles of different anemone species such as painted and fish-eating anemones Urticina piscivora, Urticina grebelnyi which don’t appear to harm the greenlings. During the breeding season in spring and summer months, the males go through a wardrobe change, their gray or white stripes stripes exchanged for olive green and black and can become quite territorial. Males guard up to ten egg masses, each from different females, and have even been reported to defend them from passing divers. Growing to only about 8 inches from snout to tail the painted greenling can live for approximately 9 years.