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.
Schindleria is a genus of marine fish. It was the only genus of family Schindleriidae, among the Gobioidei of order Perciformes but is now classified under the Gobiidae in the Gobiiformes. The type species is S. praematura, Schindler's fish. The Schindleria species are known generically as Schindler's fishes after German zoologist Otto Schindler (1906–1959), or infantfishes. They are native to the southern Pacific Ocean, from the South China Sea to the Great Barrier Reef off eastern Australia, and Rapa Nui.
Eleotridae is a family of fish commonly known as sleeper gobies, with about 34 genera and 180 species. Most species are found in the tropical Indo-Pacific region, but there are also species in subtropical and temperate regions, warmer parts of the Americas and near the Atlantic coast in Africa. While many eleotrids pass through a planktonic stage in the sea and some spend their entire lives in the sea; as adults, the majority live in freshwater streams and brackish water. One of its genera, Caecieleotris, is troglobitic. They are especially important as predators in the freshwater stream ecosystems on oceanic islands such as New Zealand and Hawaii that otherwise lack the predatory fish families typical of nearby continents, such as catfish. Anatomically, they are similar to the gobies (Gobiidae), though unlike the majority of gobies, they do not have a pelvic sucker.
The Microdesmidae, the wormfishes and dartfishes, were a family of goby-like fishes in the order Gobiiformes, more recent workers have placed this taxon within the Gobiidae, although the researchers do not define the taxonomic status of this grouping within that family. Two subfamilies in this family were briefly treated as full families - the Ptereleotrinae (dartfishes) and Microdesminae (wormfishes). The family includes about 82 species.
Gobius is a genus of fish in the family Gobiidae native to fresh, brackish and marine waters of and around Europe, Africa and Asia. It contains the typical gobies, being the type genus of the formerly recognised subfamily Gobiinae and family and the namesake genus of its order Gobiiformes.
Padogobius bonelli, the Padanian goby, is a species of true goby from the family Gobiidae native to rivers of Croatia, Italy, Slovenia, and Switzerland, where it is usually found in areas with gravel substrates or along the edges of dense vegetation. Males of this species can reach a length of 8.6 centimetres (3.4 in) TL while females only reach 7.5 centimetres (3.0 in) TL. This species' specific name honours the Italian naturalist Franco Andrea Bonelli (1784-1830), who had originally described it as Gobius fluviatilis without realizing that this name was already being used for a different goby species, the monkey goby, which had been described by Pallas in 1814.
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".
Schindleria praematura, Schindler's fish is a species of neotenic goby which was formerly placed in the monogeneric family Schindleriidae but which is currently classified within the Gobiidae. It is associated with reefs and has an Indo-Pacific distribution from South Africa and Madagascar to Hawaii and the sea mounts of the South Pacific. The generic name and the common name honour the German zoologist Otto Schindler (1906–1959) who described the species.
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.
Couch's goby is a species of goby native to the northeastern Atlantic Ocean as far north as southern Great Britain and Ireland, the Mediterranean Sea and the Adriatic Sea where it can be found living under stones on muddy sand in inshore waters and in the intertidal zone. This species can reach a length of 7.7 centimetres (3.0 in) TL. The specific name and common name both honour Jonathan Couch (1789–1870), the Cornish ichthyologist and the author of A History of the Fishes of the British Islands published between 1862 and 1867.
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 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".
Tomiyamichthys russus, the Ocellated shrimpgoby, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Gobiidae, the typical gobies. This species is found in the Eastern Indian Ocean and Western Pacific Ocean.
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.
Butidae is a family of sleeper gobies in the order Gobiiformes. The family was formerly classified as a subfamily of the Eleotridae but the 5th Edition of Fishes of the World classifies it as a family in its own right. Molecular phylogenetic analyses have demonstrated that the Butidae are a sister clade to the clade containing the families Gobiidae and Gobionellidae and that the Eleotridae is a sister to both of these clades. This means that the Eloetridae as formerly classified was paraphyletic and that its subfamilies should be raised to the status of families.
Palatogobius grandoculus is a species of marine fish in the family Gobiidae and the order Gobiiformes. Its name comes from the Latin word palatum (palate) which pertains to palate and its teeth which form there, plus the Latin word gobius, which means goby. The species name grandoculus refers to this species' very large eyes. Specimens of P. grandoculus were collected as early as 1976, and originally described as the Mauve Goby, however it was not formally identified as a separate species and described until 2002.
Ophiogobius jenynsi is a species of ray-finned fish from the biology Gobiidae, the true gobies. It is a demersal, marine species which is found off the coast of Chile in the intertidal zone. It feeds mainly on crustaceans. This species was originally named as Gobius ophicephalus by Leonard Jenyns in 1842, subsequently misspelt as ophiocephalus, but this name was preoccupied by Pallas's 1811 Gobius ophiocephalus, Hoese renamed the species in honour of Jenyns in 1976. This is the only species in its genus.
Helen K. Larson is an ichthyologist who specialises in the fishes of the Indo-Pacific.
