Common Name
Bartail Goby
Year Described
Bohlke & Robins, 1960
Identification
Dorsal Fin: VI; I, 8-9
Anal Fin: I, 9
Pectoral Fin: 17-19
Pelvic Fin: I, 5
Caudal Fin: 17 segmented rays
Lateral Line Scales: 25-26
Vertebrae: 9+17=26
Body elongate. Snout profile straight. Eyes large and placed dorsally. A very low fleshy ridge present on nape from between eyes to dorsal fin origin. Anterior nostril tubular. Posterior nostril not tubular. Mouth small. Tongue truncated. No teeth on vomer or palatine. Teeth in jaws present in several irregular rows. Gill membranes joined to isthmus. Pectoral, soft dorsal, and anal fins with all rays branched and bound by membranes (first element simple). Second dorsal base longer than caudal peduncle length. Ventral fins fused into disk with frenum present and rays branched. Body covered in ctenoid scales, becoming cycloid on chest. Head and nape naked. Head pores present (one between eyes and one pair between rear nostrils). No lateral line.
Color
Body translucent with opaque white markings and spots scattered over body. Many rows of small golden spots and speckles on head and body. Golden blotches run along dorsal midline. Golden lines run from eye: one from rear of eye, one from anterior margin, and another from rear of upper jaw. A large black blotch on the upper base of pectoral fin. A faint vertical bar on the base of the caudal fin. Dorsal fins with yellow lines and spots. Caudal fin with yellow spots. Anal and pelvic fins dusky and heavily sprinkled with dark melanophores. Black spots on upper eye margin.
Size
Maximum size to 50mm SL.
Habitat
Sandy bottoms in patch reefs from 2-54m.
Range
S. Florida to SE Brazil, including the Caribbean Sea.
References
Baldwin, C.C., Weigt, L.A., Smith, D.G., & J.H. Mounts. 2009. Reconciling genetic lineages with species in western Atlantic Coryphopterus (Teleostei: Gobiidae). Smithsonian Contributions to the Marine Sciences, 38: 111-138.
Baldwin C.C. & D.R. Robertson. 2015. A new, mesophotic Coryphopterus goby (Teleostei, Gobiidae) from the southern Caribbean, with comments on relationships and depth distributions within the genus. ZooKeys 513: 123-142.
Böhlke, J.E. & C.R. Robins. 1960. A revision of the gobioid fish genus Coryphopterus. Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, 112, 103-128.