Common Name
Pygmy Goby
Year Described
Garzón-Ferreira & Acero P., 1988
Identification
Dorsal Fin: VI, 9-10
Anal Fin: 8-9
Pectoral Fin: 14-16 (15)
Caudal Fin: 17
Lateral Line Scales: 24
Gill Rakers: 6 (first arch)
Vertebrae: 10+16 = 26 (total)
Body elongate and tapering to the rear. No lateral pores on head. Jaws with bands of teeth (conical teeth inward and sharp canines outside) but vomer and palatine without teeth. Anterior nostril tubular. Posterior nostril slightly raised and separated from anterior nostril. No frenum on upper lip. Tongue rounded at tip. Gill opening extends to ventral part of opercular flap. Head, chest, nape, and pectoral base naked. Naked area extends to beyond posterior spine of spiny dorsal fin. Belly scaled. Two separate dorsal fins. Anterior dorsal fin spines elongate in males, shorter in females. Pectoral rays unbranched.
Color
Body with alternating pale and dark reddish brown bands. The dark bands are much wider than interspaces. The whole head and body is densely speckled in dark melanophores. There are sometimes bright white spots that may be expressed on the pale bands. Head with transverse reddish bands. Eye red. Pectoral base with a diffuse black blotch. Dorsal fins with spots basally and red spots distally. Tiny melanophores on all median fins. Paired fins clear.
Size
One of the smallest fish in the western Atlantic; to 15mm SL
Habitat
Found on shallow coral reefs in rubble and coral from 1-20m
Range
Scattered records from the Bahamas to Colombia.
References
Garzón, J. and A. Acero P. 1988. A new species of Lythrypnus (Pisces: Gobiidae) from the tropical western Atlantic. Bulletin of Marine Science v. 43 (2): 308-314.