This species was described as Lepadogaster pinnulatus by Johann Reinhold Forster in 1801 with a type locality of Queen Charlotte Sound, Marlborough Sounds off the South Island of New Zealand.
In 1801, Johann Reinhold Forster described this species as Lepadogaster pinnulatus, designating its type location as Queen Charlotte Sound, within the Marlborough Sounds region of New Zealand's South Island.