Bali Dive Safari - Gobies

Dive Safari Bali - Gobies

Gobies are the largest group of marine fishes, and fresh, brackish and salt combined; and the dominant element in small-fish bottom fauna on tropical reefs.

Most species live in, on, or near the bottom and are of small size. One super goby species attains a gargantuan eighteen inches, but almost all his kin are less than four inches in total length. The family contains the world's smallest fishes and vertebrate. Trimmatom nanus of the Indian Ocean females reach a mere 8-10 mm. There are other goby species only slightly larger.

Many of the gobies live in close association with invertebrates such as sponges, shrimps and sea urchins.

Diversity/Classification:

In recent times the Suborder Gobioidei has been divided into as many as six separate families. "Clarity is pleasurable", and for simplicity's sake we will stick with the historical two, the freshwater loach gobies, family Rhyacichthyidae of the Indo-Australian archipelago, & the humungous family Gobiidae. Alternatively you may find numerous families and subfamilies of "true" and fancifully named gobies in the literature and real life; the Odontobutidae, the sleeper gobies, family Eleotridae, sand fishes or sand gobies, family Kraemeridae, the obscure Xeristhmidae, worm- or Dartfishes, family Microdesmidae, and the family Schindleriidae. You'll forgive me if we don't list all the subfamilies.

All told the gobies number some 267 genera and 2,100 described species with many more to come. All but about 200 are marine; mostly tropical and subtropical reef.

What's A Goby?:

The gobies are grouped together on the basis of several hard to discern characters; bones of the head, a family-unique sperm gland.

Most live in or on the bottom and are aptly adapted for a demersal existence. They are roughly torpedo-cylindrically shaped, and have reduced lateral line systems coupled with enhanced vision. Generally gobies lack swim-bladders and display degrees of fusion of their pelvic fins that are located anteriorly under their pectorals and used as a sort of suction disc to help them stay in place.

In case you're asked, gobies can be readily distinguished from the numerous fellow bottom-dwelling blennies on the basis of dorsal finnage. Most gobies have two distinct top fins; Blennioids have a single long one.