The fifteen-spined stickleback is a small marine fish up to 20 centimeters long. It has from 14 to 17 sharp spines on its back, which help protect it from predators.
The fifteen-spined stickleback differs from other sticklebacks by having a large number of dorsal spines and lacking scales on the body. It is important for coastal ecosystems because it controls the population of small invertebrates and serves as food for larger fish and birds.
Immature form that undergoes metamorphosis before adulthood.
Worker
birth time
fish larvae
Dogs, dolphins, lynx hang out for 9-25 years and party on their birthday three times a year
m
Map
will celebrate their {n} birthday
g
t
When your next jubilee falls in {name} life years
Human
days
worms
How old you would be if you lived as {name}
Theoretical maximum lifespan estimated from the Dynamic Energy Budget (DEB) mathematical model. This value reflects a biological potential derived from metabolic parameters, not from direct observation — real recorded lifespans are often significantly shorter.
adult
Maturity
About health
marine coastal
When your next birthday would fall if you lived as {name}
results
Colors
Caudal fin color
Sex
Upcoming jubilees
Gremllins
mo
all seas and oceans
Trophic type
Filters
Palearctic realm
Upcoming birthdays
Truly long lives: 40-100 years. Bowhead whales, albatrosses, giant tortoises recall their birthday at most once a year
Lifespan
16 to 24 grams, 7 – 12 centimeters
Age (juvenile)
Age (from birth to death)
Age (embryo)
most of Europe and Asia, various forests, steppes and tundra
Wanderers
Age (larva)
Jubilee = every 10th birthday
Earliest developmental stage inside an egg or womb.
Business sausages
Lifespan average
water is almost always cold, there may be ice in winter, not hot in summer
young after fast growth
Juvenile stage following larval metamorphosis but not yet adult.
What do they look like?
Maturity
emergence (insects)
end of lifespan
How do they live?
fertilization / egg laying
How do they behave?
birth / hatching
metamorphosis / end of larval stage
end of acceleration
Share
Find a pet...
Mature, fully developed individual capable of reproduction.
Cold sea
water is cool or warm, cold in winter, comfortable to swim in summer
Actively hunting and capturing live prey.
where the river flows into the sea, slightly salty water, lots of fish and birds
Pets
Primary oral structure used to seize, manipulate, or ingest food.
{name} jubilee
Dorsal spines count
cm
zooplankton feeding, animal plankton — small crustaceans and larvae
Old-timers
Find an animal or breed...
mouth
turns
Rascals
Flooded grasslands
Litter size
Dorsal spines color
Map data sources: Ecosystem classification — IUCN Global Ecosystem Typology (Keith et al., 2022), indicative distribution maps Keith et al. (2020), https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3546513; Large Marine Ecosystems — NOAA LME Program; Bathymetry — GEBCO Bathymetric Compilation Group (2026), GEBCO_2026 Grid, https://doi.org/10.5285/4f68d5c7-45eb-f999-e063-7086abc036fa; Climate data — Generated using Copernicus Climate Change Service information; Species occurrence data — GBIF.org, Derived dataset "all animals", https://zveriki.com/dataset/dataset.tsv; Terrestrial ecoregions — RESOLVE Ecoregions 2017 (Dinerstein et al., 2017), CC BY 4.0
How to care for them?
Living from 25 to 40 years. Orangutans, bald eagles, African elephants celebrate their birthday twice a year
°C
Not specified
Where are they found?
all seas and oceans
Species lacks any fixed or lasting shelter structure.
all rivers and lakes
Legendary longevity: over 100 years. Galapagos tortoises, Greenland sharks, ocean quahogs celebrate with family once every 4 years
Offspring
Elders
Bro
Taxons
carnivore
if born as {name}
age
birth date
no permanent shelter
Palearctic realm
Close
was
Career from 7 to 15 months. Dwarf hamsters, voles, field crickets celebrate their birthday twice a month
Marine world
The basics
My weight?
Non-stop carnival: they only live a few days. Mayflies, rotifers, midges celebrate their birthday more than twice a day
primary food sources
Temperate sea
Potential Habitat
d
In husbandry
On the go from 1.3 to 3.5 years. Forest mice, anoles, rainbow fish party on their birthday once a month
Mass
cold winter, lots of coniferous trees: spruce, pine
Mosquitoes, fruit flies, small crustaceans hustle for up to 7 months and throw a birthday party every week
{name} birthday
live annelid worms
No results found
On the map
lunge
small crustaceans
all life stages
Female ♀
Body color
Map data sources: Ecosystem classification — IUCN Global Ecosystem Typology (Keith et al., 2022), indicative distribution maps Keith et al. (2020), https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3546513; Large Marine Ecosystems — NOAA LME Program; Bathymetry — GEBCO Bathymetric Compilation Group (2026), GEBCO_2026 Grid, https://doi.org/10.5285/4f68d5c7-45eb-f999-e063-7086abc036fa; Climate data — Generated using Copernicus Climate Change Service information; Species occurrence data — GBIF.org, Derived dataset "all animals", https://zveriki.com/dataset/dataset.tsv; Terrestrial ecoregions — RESOLVE Ecoregions 2017 (Dinerstein et al., 2017), CC BY 4.0
Potential habitat modelled from GBIF occurrence data. Map © Zveriki.com, licensed under CC BY 4.0.
birth year
Maturity
sq mm
yr
Dorsal spines size
How similar?
Male ♂
until the celebration
age as {name}
How do they breed?
On the go from 3.5 to 6 years. Hedgehogs, crows, lizards treat themselves to birthday snacks 6 times a year
What if eaten?
Neither
from birth to adulthood
zoo-plankton
What do they eat?
Where do they live?
Immature individual that has not yet reached reproductive maturity.
from birth to death
Marine world
early young
water often floods the land, lots of grass
River estuary into the sea
Freshwater
Temperate mixed forest
larvae and fry of fish at early stages
Duration
Pectoral fins color
saline marine habitat
This is me
most of Europe and Asia, various forests, steppes and tundra
freshwater
Gamers
How are they built?
marine
shallow near the shore, water rises and falls, crabs live here
mm
Theoretical lifespan
ml
Stars
Link copied
coastal marine zone — shelf, neritic zone
My age?
wk
My size?
Taiga
Asexual
swap
freshwater environment — rivers, lakes, ponds, swamps
active predation
Rabbits, falcons, red-eared turtles hang out for 6-9 years and party on their birthday four times a year
Where do they take shelter?
celebrated their {n} birthday
When you would have been born if you lived as {name}
Littoral Zone
Daddies
small crabs, amphipods and other crustaceans
Lifespan maximum
Hermaphrodite ⚥
Mandarin
embryo
summer warm, many oaks, birches, maples
Length
kg
Rapid forward strike to seize prey.
Observations
◉{N} more on tap