Gobiodon irregularis Herler, Bogorodsky & Suzuki, 2013
Rufous coralgoby
Gobiodon irregularis
photo by Herler, J.

Family:  Gobiidae (Gobies), subfamily: Gobiinae
Max. size:  3.23 cm SL (male/unsexed)
Environment:  reef-associated; marine
Distribution:  Western Indian Ocean: Gulf of Aqaba, Red Sea and Rodrigues.
Diagnosis:  Dorsal spines (total): 7-7; Dorsal soft rays (total): 10-11; Anal spines: 1-1; Anal soft rays: 9-10. This species is distinguished by the following characters: D VI+I,10-11 (usually 11); A I,9-10 (usually 9); head and body are naked; body is relatively elongate (depth 35.1-39% SL) and compressed; head is slightly pointed in juveniles, becoming more rounded in adults; snout sometimes has a slight hump above upper lip; groove between isthmus and interopercle absent; slender caudal peduncle (depth 14.5-15.8% SL); caudal fin is relatively long (22.6-24.6% SL); colour of juveniles and subadults greenish or brownish green with up to 7 red bars with bluish interspaces on head and pectoral-fin base, 3 anteriormost bars also run across eye; nape and dorsal part of body with irregular red lines and small spots; lines and dots usually vanish in adults of more than 3 cm TL; body becomes uniformly brown or reddish brown, usually with remnants of the orbital and suborbital bars (Ref. 94082).
Biology:  This species exhibits a generalised habitat selection and occupies a great range of Acropora corals. It is found in deeper water regions, at lower reef slope and fore reef areas, and is most common in corals such as Acropora samoensis, A. valida and A. secale, but was also observed in Acropora eurystoma and A. pharaonis in the northern Red Sea (Ref. 94082).
IUCN Red List Status: Least Concern (LC); Date assessed: 28 June 2018 Ref. (130435)
Threat to humans:  harmless


Source and more info: www.fishbase.org. For personal, classroom, and other internal use only. Not for publication.