| Family: |
Gobiesocidae (Clingfishes and singleslits), subfamily: Lepadogastrinae |
| Max. size: |
4.61 cm SL (male/unsexed) |
| Environment: |
demersal; marine; depth range 0 - 2 m |
| Distribution: |
Mediterranean Sea: restricted to the western Mediterranean basin with an easternmost record from Messina (Sicily). |
| Diagnosis: |
Vertebrae: 37-38. This species is distinguished from its congeners by the following set of characters: dorsal head profile straight between nape above eye and upper lip tip; the posterior angle of jaws extends to between a vertical line drawn through the posterior edge of the anterior nostril and a vertical line drawn through the anterior edge of the eye; infraorbital invagination vertical to posterior part of the eye; posterior opercular edge w-shaped with 2 equally long tips; longitudinal infralateral and suborbital transversal rows of superficial neuromasts are placed in the well-defined deep groove; trunk cross-section behind pectoral fin base half oval with straight ventral side; body granules shallow and inconspicuous; vertical eye diameter 2.6-3.3% of SL; horizontal eye diameter 2.3–2.9% of SL; head length 24.3-28.8% of SL; pectoral-fin length 8.6-9.3% of SL; prepectoral distance 24.4-28.4% of SL; ventral adhesive disc length 17.1-19.3% of SL; caudal-fin length 13.5-15.5% of SL; moderate number of vertebrae for the genus 37-38; pharyngeal jaws with small ceratobranchial 5, having several small conical teeth; nasal bones club-shaped; star-like pigmentation around eyes, body colouration when alive dark with clear stripes visible in less pigmented specimens (Ref. 123696). |
| Biology: |
Inhabits shallow waters (Ref. 10954). It reaches highest abundances in pebble and boulder beaches of less than 0.5 m depth (24 individuals/m2 in Messina), but reported to be found down to 2 m of water depth. It was also observed to occur with Lepadogaster lepadogaster and that males build and guard nests under boulders during spawning season (Ref. 123696), |
| IUCN Red List Status: |
Least Concern (LC); Date assessed: 13 March 2014 Ref. (130435)
|
| Threat to humans: |
harmless |
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