Common Name
Jarocho Goby
Year Described
Taylor & Akins, 2007
Identification
Dorsal Fin: VII, I, 11-12 (usually 11)
Anal Fin: I, 9-11 (usually 11)
Pectoral Fin: 15-17 (usually 16)
Caudal Fin:
Gill Rakers:
Vertebrae: 28
Mouth subterminal. Pelvic fins fully united into circular disk. Body scaleless.
Color
Body with a conspicuous broad black stripe on the snout and midbody. Back and belly is a pale to bright electric blue. A short yellow stripe runs from the upper orbit onto the back of the head. Another elongate yellow spot is on the tail. A large black blotch is under the yellow spot, and is sometimes separated from the black lateral stripe. The snout spot is elliptical and bright yellow. Fins are translucent with fine melanophores.
Size
Maximum size to 27.2mm SL.
Habitat
Coral reefs from 3-25mm SL. Forms aggregations that feed in the water column. Not a cleaner fish.
Range
Known only from reefs off Veracruz, Mexico.
References
Taylor, M. S. & L. Akins. 2007. Two new species of Elacatinus (Teleosei: Gobiidae) from the Mexican coast of the Gulf of Mexico. Zootaxa No. 1425: 45-51.
Other Notes
This species and Elacatinus atronasus are the only shoaling, plankton picking gobies in the genus. The only other species with short eye-stripes are E. tenox and E. chancei, but these species lack a yellow spot on the tail.