Located 570 kilometers off the West African coast, Cape Verde consists of ten volcanic islands. The island of Santiago, with an area of 991 square kilometers and a population of 240,000, is the largest in both size and population; it hosts the capital city. Cape Verde gained its independence from Portugal in 1975.
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Dactylopterus volitans - The flying gurnard is found along the warmer coastal waters of the Eastern and Western Atlantic Ocean. It hovers along the muddy bottoms of shallow waters feeding on benthic crustaceans and small fish. The flying fish of the Exocoetidae family can leap out of the water for extended “flights”, but the flying gurnard is too heavy to perform this feat. The name “flying” is in reference to its huge pectoral fins; the gurnard opens these pectoral fin to maximum extensions when excited or to ward off potential predat.
