 The red gurnard's large, fan-like pectoral fins are one of two pairs with 13-14 soft rays and its pelvic fin has 5 soft rays and a single spine.The pectoral fins’ first three rays are modified and separated from the rest of the fin.They are used as sensory organs, sometimes referred to as “fingers” (Powell, 1947), permitting it to probe the sea bottom to detect prey buried in the sand or the mud (Ayling & Cox, 1982; Francis 2012).