PORT PHILLIP BAY


Girdled Goby 

Nesogobius maccullochi Hoese & Larson, 2006

View scientific description and taxonomy

Scientific Details

Meristics.
Dorsal fin spines/rays: VI-VIII; I, 8-9
Anal fin spines/rays: I, 7-9
Caudal fin rays: (segmented) 13 (no branched)
Pectoral fin rays: 17-21
Ventral fin spines/rays: I, 5
Lateral line: -
Gill rakers: 0-1 + 3-5 = 4-6

Interpreting fin count meristics.
Spines are in Roman numerals and soft rays are in Arabic numerals. Spines and rays that are continuous in one fin are separated by a comma. Fin sections are separated by semicolons.

Detailed descriptions of fin count and other meristics are in:
Gomon. M.F., Bray, D.J. & Kuiter, R.H. (eds) (2008) Fishes of Australia's Southern Coast. Sydney : Reed New Holland 928 pp.

Genus level detail.
A genus of small well-camouflaged sand-dwelling gobies with many species in Port Phillip Bay, some of which are difficult to identify. They are distinguished on the basis of the number and kind of fin elements, the position and number of scales, head pore patterns, and other features such as colour pattern. And, males and females of the same species are sometimes very different in colour and fin shape.

Order level detail.
A large and highly diverse group of modern bony fishes many of which have a generalized perch like body form. Most have pelvic fins with one spine and 5 rays and the maxillary bone is excluded from the gape of the mouth. Interrelationships of the group are poorly understood and continue to be studied. They inhabit almost all aquatic habitats from high-altitude strams to the deep sea, although most are marine.

Family level detail.
Very large family representing almost 10% percent of all fish species. More than 230 genera and 1500 species are recognised worldwide, and there are more than 90 genera and 330 described species known from Australian waters.

Taxonomy

Phylum:
Chordata
Subphylum:
Craniata
Superclass:
Gnathostomata
Class:
Actinopterygii
Order:
Perciformes
Family:
Gobiidae
Genus:
Nesogobius
Species:
maccullochi

General Description

Body robust anteriorly, slender posteriorly; head broader than deep, eyes almost touching; gill openings broad; several large sensory pores on head; top of head scaled to behind eyes. Pale grey to brown, with scattered white and brown flecks; a black bar from eye across middle of jaws; a black vertical bar from eye to just behind rear end of jaw; vertical bar on gill cover; midside with 4-6 horizontally elongate dark brown spots; a round black spot at rear end of caudal peduncle, followed by and often connected to black vertical mark at tail base; mature males with vertical bars on body onto belly; pale below. To 9 cm.

Biology

This species is abundant in Port Phillip Bay, Victoria

Habitat

On sandy bottoms in bays and estuaries, in depths of 0-5 m.

Soft substrates

Distribution guide

Mostly south-eastern Australia.

Species Group

Fishes › Gobies

Depth

Shore (0-1 m)
Shallow (1-30 m)

Water Column

On or near sea floor

Max Size

9 cm

Commercial Species

No

Global Dispersal

Native to Australia

Identify

Conservation Status

  • DSE Advisory List : Not listed
  • EPBC Act 1999 : Not listed
  • IUCN Red List : Not listed

Author

article author Bray, D.J.

Di Bray is a Senior Collection Manager of ichthyology at Museum Victoria.

Author

article author Gomon, M.F.

Dr. Martin Gomon is a Senior Curator of ichthyology at Museum Victoria.

citation

Cite this page as:
Bray, D.J. & Gomon, M.F., 2011, Girdled Goby, Nesogobius maccullochi, in Taxonomic Toolkit for marine life of Port Phillip Bay, Museum Victoria, accessed 20 Apr 2024, http://136.154.202.208:8098/species/6422

Text: creative commons cc by licence