Common goby

Common goby
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN 3.1)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Actinopterygii
Order:	Perciformes
Family:	Gobiidae
Subfamily:	Gobiinae
Genus:	Pomatoschistus
Species:	Common goby
Binomial name
Pomatoschistus microps (Krøyer, 1838)
Synonyms
Gobius laticeps Moreau, 1881 Gobius microps Krøyer, 1838 Gobius microps microps Krøyer, 1838 Gobius microps puckensis Lawacz, 1965 Gobius minutus minor Heincke, 1880 Gobius parnelli Day, 1881 Gobius pusillus Lowe, 1874 Pomatoschistus microps microps (Krøyer, 1838)

The Common goby (Pomatoschistus microps) is a small coastal fish of Western European waters from Norway to Portugal

it is of a sandy colour and reaches a length of 64mm. In the breeding season coloration the male has a dark blotch at the rear of the first dorsal fin. There is a fairly distinct row of black dots along its side.

Habits

The common goby breeds from March to June, laying its eggs under a shell, which the male then guards until they hatch 11–14 days later. Common gobies typically live for 12–15 months. They inhabit sandy-bottomed shallow areas, and in summer may enter estuaries; despite this usual habitat, they can often be found among dense vegetation and in brackish lagoons. Their diet is mostly small crustaceans, skeleton shrimp and worms.

External links

• MarLIN information on the common goby

References

• Katja U. Heubel, Kai Lindström, Hanna Kokko: Females increase current reproductive effort when future access to males is uncertain. Biol. Lett. (2008) 4, 224–227 Helsinki University