Gobiidae or gobies is a family of bony fish in the order Gobiiformes, one of the largest fish families comprising more than 2,000 species in more than 200 genera. Most of gobiid fish are relatively small, typically less than 10 cm (3.9 in) in length, and the family includes some of the smallest vertebrates in the world, such as Trimmatom nanus and Pandaka pygmaea, Trimmatom nanus are under 1 cm long when fully grown, then Pandaka pygmaea standard length are 9 mm (0.35 in), maximum known standard length are 11 mm (0.43 in). Some large gobies can reach over 30 cm (0.98 ft) in length, but that is exceptional. Generally, they are benthic or bottom-dwellers. Although few are important as food fish for humans, they are of great significance as prey species for other commercially important fish such as cod, haddock, sea bass and flatfish. Several gobiids are also of interest as aquarium fish, such as the dartfish of the genus Ptereleotris. Phylogenetic relationships of gobiids have been studied using molecular data.
Knipowitschia is a genus of marine, fresh and brackish water gobies native to Eurasia. The genus name almost certainly honours Nikolai Mikhailovich Knipovich (1862-1938), a biologist who led a number of expeditions to the Caspian Sea.
Pomatoschistus is a genus of gobies native to fresh, brackish and marine waters of Europe, the eastern Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea.
The Gobiiformes are an order of fish that includes the gobies and their relatives. The order, which was previously considered a suborder of Perciformes, is made up of about 2,211 species that are divided between seven families. Phylogenetic relationships of the Gobiiformes have been elucidated using molecular data. Gobiiforms are primarily small species that live in marine water, but roughly 10% of these species inhabit fresh water. This order is composed chiefly of benthic or burrowing species; like many other benthic fishes, most gobiiforms do not have a gas bladder or any other means of controlling their buoyancy in water, so they must spend most of their time on or near the bottom. Gobiiformes means "goby-like".
Pinchuk's goby is a species of goby native to the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov.
The golden goby is a species of goby from the family Gobiidae endemic to the Mediterranean Sea. It prefers areas with rocky substrates at depths of from 5 to 80 metres with plentiful growth of algae and gorgonians. This species can reach a length of 10 centimetres (3.9 in) TL. It can also be found in the aquarium trade. Gobius xanthocephalus is the name that is applied to the populations of similar gobies in the eastern Atlantic and western Mediterranean which were previously considered to be G. auratus.
Bucchich's goby is a species of goby native to the Eastern Mediterranean Sea and perhaps the Black Sea. It has traditionally been considered to be more widespread, but in 2016 the similar incognito goby was described. It had been confused with the Bucchich's goby and much information formerly published for this species is now considered to actually be for the incognito goby.
Gobius kolombatovici is a species of goby native to the northern Adriatic Sea where it occurs at depths of from 15 to 38 metres in areas with patches of rock and softer sediments. This species can reach a length of 9.2 centimetres (3.6 in) SL. The specific name honours the Croatian mathematician, naturalist and taxonomist Juraj Kolombatovic (1843-1908), who carried out extensive work on the small inshore fishes of the Adriatic Sea.
Gobius roulei, Roule's goby, is a species of goby native to the eastern Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea where it can be found at depths of from 320 to 385 metres. This species can reach a length of 8 centimetres (3.1 in) TL. The specific name honours the French zoologist Louis Roule (1861-1942) who was the collector of the type.
Gobius gasteveni, Steven's goby, is a species of goby native to the eastern Atlantic Ocean where it is known to occur in the Irish sea as far north as the Isle of Man, the western part of the English Channel south as far as Madeira and the Canary Islands. It can be found in areas with substrates of muddy sand with coarser deposits at depths of from 35 to 270 metres. This species can reach a length of 12 centimetres (4.7 in) TL. The common name and the specific name both honour the British ichthyologist G. A. Steven BSc FRSE (1901-1958), of the Plymouth Marine Laboratory, who worked extensively on the fish fauna of the English Channel and who identified this species as being new to that area.
Gobius ateriformis is a species of marine fish from the family Gobiidae, the true gobies. It is endemic to Cape Verde, where it occurs in tide pools to a depth of 11 metres (36 ft). The species was first described by Alberto Brito and Peter J. Miller in 2001.
Gobius tetrophthalmus is a species of marine fish from the family Gobiidae, the true gobies. It occurs in the Atlantic Ocean around Cape Verde, western Africa, where it is found at depths from 7 to 25 metres. It prefers areas with coralline algae though it will also inhabit areas with substrates of sand and rock. This species can reach a length of 7.8 centimetres (3.1 in) TL. It is harmless to humans.
Gobius senegambiensis is a species of marine fish from the family Gobiidae, the true gobies. It is native to the Atlantic Ocean from Morocco to Angola as well as the islands in the Gulf of Guinea. It is found in inshore waters on sandy bottoms. This species can reach a length of 7.3 centimetres (2.9 in) SL.
Didogobius is a genus of small marine fish in the family Gobiidae, the true gobies. They are native to the eastern Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea. The name of the genus is a compound noun made up of Dido, the mythical founder and first queen of Carthage, and the Latin gobius meaning "goby".
Corcyrogobius is a genus of gobies native to the eastern Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea.
Crystallogobius linearis, the crystal goby, is a species of goby native to the Atlantic coasts of Europe and the Mediterranean Sea where it can be found at depths of from 1 to 400 metres. Males of this species grow to a length of 4.7 centimetres (1.9 in) SL while females only reach 3.9 centimetres (1.5 in) SL. This species is the only known member of its genus. The name Crystallogobius comes from the Latin words cristallum, meaning "crystal", and gobius, meaning gudgeon.
Gobius incognitus, the incognito goby or anemone goby, is a species of goby native to the Mediterranean Sea and perhaps the Black Sea. The name incognitus means "unknown" in Latin and refers to the long period of time that passed before this common and widespread species was recognized and described. Prior to its description, it was confused with Bucchich's goby, a species that now appears to be restricted to the Eastern Mediterranean Sea and perhaps the Black Sea. Much previously published information for Bucchich's goby is now considered to actually be for the incognito goby.
The Salamansa goby is a species of marine fish from the family Gobiidae, the true gobies. It is only known from the Bay of Salamansa in the north of the island of São Vicente, Cape Verde, where it occurs to a depth of about 1 metre (3.3 ft). The species was named and described by Samuel P. Iglésias and Lou Frotté in 2015. The species name salamansa refers to the type location.
Goby is a common name for many species of small to medium sized ray-finned fish, normally with large heads and tapered bodies, which are found in marine, brackish and freshwater environments. Traditionally most of the species called gobies have been classified in the order Perciformes as the suborder Gobioidei but in the 5th Edition of Fishes of the World this suborder is elevated to an order Gobiiformes within the clade Percomorpha. Not all the species in the Gobiiformes are referred to as gobies and the "true gobies" are placed in the family Gobiidae, while other species referred to as gobies have been placed in the Oxudercidae. Goby is also used to describe some species which are not classified within the order Gobiiformes, such as the engineer goby or convict blenny Pholidichthys leucotaenia. The word goby derives from the Latin gobius meaning "gudgeon", and some species of goby, especially the sleeper gobies in the family Eleotridae and some of the dartfishes are called "gudgeons", especially in Australia.
Awaous commersoni, or Commerson's freshwater goby, is a species of goby found on islands in the Southwest Indian Ocean.
