Pomatoschistus pictus (Malm, 1865)
Painted goby
Pomatoschistus pictus
photo by Svensson, A.

Family:  Gobiidae (Gobies), subfamily: Gobionellinae
Max. size:  6 cm TL (male/unsexed); max. reported age: 2 years
Environment:  demersal; marine; depth range 1 - 55 m
Distribution:  Eastern Atlantic: Norway (Trondheim fjord) to Spain and the Canary Islands. Reported from the Mediterranean Sea (Ref. 50345).
Diagnosis:  Dorsal fins are close together, covered by black spots. Brownish marking in the middle of each flank, at least 4-5 and doubled (Ref. 35388); body shape is terete, slightly depressed; eyes situated dorso-laterally; reduced swim bladders (Ref. 92840).
Biology:  Inhabits gravel and sand; young may occur in shore pools. Feeds on crustaceans (copepods and amphipods) (Ref. 4696).
IUCN Red List Status: Least Concern (LC); Date assessed: 13 March 2014 Ref. (130435)
Threat to humans:  harmless


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 Not for publication.