Arrow Dartgoby, Ptereleotris evides (Jordan & Hubbs 1925)


Other Names: Arrow Dart-goby, Arrow Goby, Blackfin Dartfish, Sailfin Hovergoby, Scissortail Dartfish, Spottail Gudgeon, Twotone Dartfish

An Arrow Dartgoby, Ptereleotris evides, at Raja Ampat, West Papua, Indonesia. Source: Paddy Ryan / http://www.ryanphotographic.com/ptereleotridae.htm. License: All rights reserved

Summary:
A pale bluish-grey dartgoby becoming almost black posteriorly, with a dark snout, iridescent blue markings on the gill cover, and blackish to dark reddish caudal-fin lobes. Juveniles have a black spot on the lower part of the tail base. A low fleshy papilla on the chin narrows posteriorly into a long low fold.

Cite this page as:
Bray, D.J. 2025, Ptereleotris evides in Fishes of Australia, accessed 27 Jun 2025, https://fishesofaustralia.net.au/Home/species/192

Arrow Dartgoby, Ptereleotris evides (Jordan & Hubbs 1925)

More Info


Distribution

Rottnest Island to the Dampier Archipelago, and offshore reefs of north Western Australia, Ashmore Reef, Timor Sea, to Batemans Bay, New South Wales; also reefs in the Coral Sea, Elizabeth and Middleton Reefs, Lord Howe Island and Norfolk Island in the Tasman Sea, and Cocos (Keeling) Islands and Christmas Island in the eastern Indian Ocean. Elsewhere the species is widespread in the Indo-west-central Pacific central Pacific. 
Inhabits outer reef slopes, lagoons and bays. Adult pairs, or small groups of juveniles hover 1-2 m above the bottom to feed on zooplankton.

Features

Dorsal fin VI + I, 23-26; Anal fin I, 23-26; Pectoral fin 21-24; lateral-line scales ~135-148; Vertebrae 26. 
Chin with a low fleshy protuberance, narrowing posteriorly to a low longitudinal fold. First dorsal fin pointed, second dorsal fin and anal fin higher anteriorly than posteriorly; pelvic fins short; caudal fin deeply emarginate. Median chin barbel absent, but low fold present. Gill opening to rear edge of preopercle.

Colour

Body pale bluish grey anteriorly, shading to black or purplish black posteriorly; iridescent blue markings on operculum; distal edge of 1st dorsal fin orange to yellow; upper and lower lobes of caudal fin reddish to blackish, centre of fin translucent to whitish. Juveniles paler, with large oval black spot on lower caudal-fin base. 

Feeding


Biology

Adults form monogamous pairs, while juveniles are often seen in small groups. 

Etymology

The specific name is from the Greek evides (= comely, beautiful).

Species Citation

Encaeura evides Jordan & Hubbs 1925, Memoirs of the Carnegie Museum 10(2): 303, pl. 11, fig. 2. Type locality: Wakanoura, Wakayama Prefecture, Japan, Inland Sea.

Author

Bray, D.J. 2025

Resources

Atlas of Living Australia

Arrow Dartgoby, Ptereleotris evides (Jordan & Hubbs 1925)

References


Allen, G.R. 1993. Fishes of Ashmore Reef and Cartier Island. Records of the Western Australian Museum, Supplement 44: 67-91.

Allen, G.R. 1997. Marine Fishes of Tropical Australia and South-east Asia. Perth : Western Australian Museum 292 pp. 106 pls. 

Allen, G.R., Hoese, D.F., Paxton, J.R., Randall, J.E., Russell, B.C., Starck, W.A., Talbot, F.H. & Whitley, G.P. 1976. Annotated checklist of the fishes of Lord Howe Island. Records of the Australian Museum 30(15): 365-454 figs 1-2 

Allen, G.R. & Erdmann, M.V. 2012. Reef fishes of the East Indies. Perth : Tropical Reef Research 3 vols, 1260 pp. 

Allen, G.R. & Smith-Vaniz, W.F. 1994. Fishes of Cocos (Keeling) Islands. Atoll Research Bulletin 412: 1-21. 

Allen, G.R. & Steene, R.C. 1979. The Fishes of Christmas Island, Indian Ocean. Aust. Natl. Parks Wldlf. Ser. Spec. Publ. 2. Canberra : Australian Government Publishing Service 81 pp. 15 pls. 

Allen, G.R., Steene, R.C. & Orchard, M. 2007. Fishes of Christmas Island. Christmas Island : Christmas Island Natural History Association 2 edn, 284 pp. 

Francis, M. 1993. Checklist of the coastal fishes of Lord Howe, Norfolk, and Kermadec Islands, southwest Pacific Ocean. Pacific Science 47(2): 136-170 figs 1-2 

Greenfield, D. & Munroe, T.A. 2016. Ptereleotris evides. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016: e.T69179838A69183214. http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T69179838A69183214.en. Downloaded on 18 November 2016.

Hobbs, J-P.A., Newman, S.J., Mitsopoulos, G.E.A., Travers, M.J., Skepper, C.L., Gilligan, J.J., Allen, G.R., Choat, H.J. & Ayling, A.M. 2014. Checklist and new records of Christmas Island fishes: the influence of isolation, biogeography and habitat availability on species abundance and community composition. Raffles Bulletin of Zoology Supplement 30: 184–202.

Hobbs, J-P.A., Newman, S .J., Mitsopoulos, G.E.A., Travers, M.J., Skepper, C.L., Gilligan, J.J., Allen, G.R., Choat, H.J. & Ayling, A.M. 2014. Fishes of the Cocos (Keeling) Islands: new records, community composition and biogeographic significance. Raffles Bulletin of Zoology Supplement 30: 203–219.

Hoschke, A., Whisson, G. & Moore, G.I. 2019. Complete list of fishes from Rottnest Island. pp. 150-161 in Whisson, G. & Hoschke, A. (eds). The Rottnest Island fish book. 2nd ed. Perth : Aqua Research and Monitoring Services.

Hutchins, B. 2004. Fishes of the Dampier Archipelago, Western Australia. Records of the Western Australian Museum, Supplement 66: 343–398.

Jordan, D.S. & Hubbs, C.L. 1925. Record of fishes obtained by David Starr Jordan in Japan, 1922. Memoirs of the Carnegie Museum 10(2): 93-346 pls 5-12 See ref at BHL

Kuiter, R.H. 1992. Tropical Reef-Fishes of the Western Pacific, Indonesia and Adjacent Waters. Jakarta : PT Gramedia Pustaka Utama 314 pp. pls. 

Kuiter, R.H. 1993. Coastal Fishes of South-eastern Australia. Bathurst : Crawford House Press 437 pp. 

Kuiter, R.H. 1996. Guide to Sea Fishes of Australia. A comprehensive reference for divers and fishermen. Sydney, NSW, Australia : New Holland Publishers xvii, 434 pp. 

Kuiter, R.H. & Tonozuka, T. 2001. Pictorial guide to Indonesian reef fishes. Part 3. Jawfishes - Sunfishes, Opistognathidae - Molidae. Melbourne : Zoonetics pp. 623–893.

Larson, H.K. 2001. Microdesmidae. Wormfishes, dart-gobies, fire gobies, pp. 3607-3608, in Carpenter, K.E. & Niem, T.H. (eds) The Living Marine Resources of the Western Central Pacific. FAO Species Identification Guide for Fisheries Purposes. Rome : FAO Vol. 6 pp. 3381-4218.

Larson, H.K. 2022. Family Microdesmidae, Wormfishes and Dartgobies, pp. 187-197, Pls. 48-51 in Heemstra, P.C., Heemstra, E., Ebert, D.A., Holleman, W. & Randall, J.E. (eds). Coastal fishes of the western Indian Ocean. Volume 5. Makhanda, South Africa : South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity, i, 1-487, i-xi, Pls. 1-129. See ref online

Myers, R.F. 1999. Micronesian Reef Fishes. A comprehensive guide to the coral reef fishes of Micronesia. Guam : Coral Graphics vi 330 pp. 192 pls.

Nichols, J.T. 1952. Four new gobies from the Eastern and Western Pacific. American Museum Novitates 1594: 1-5.

Oxley, W.G., Ayling, A.M., Cheal, A.J. & Osborne, K. 2004. Marine surveys undertaken in the Elizabeth and Middleton Reefs Marine National Nature Reserve, December 2003. Townsville : Australian Institute of Marine Sciences 64 pp. 

Oxley, W.G., Ayling, A.M., Cheal, A.J. & Thompson, A.A. 2003. Marine surveys undertaken in the Coringa-Herald National Nature Reserve, March-April 2003. Townsville : Australian Institute of Marine Science 59 pp. 

Oxley, W.G., Emslie, M., Muir, P. & Thompson, A.A. 2004. Marine surveys undertaken in the Lihou Reef National Nature Reserve, March 2004. Townsville : Australian Institute of Marine Science i-vii, 1-67 pp. 

Randall, J.E. 2005. Reef and shore fishes of the South Pacific. New Caledonia to Tahiti and the Pitcairn Islands. Honolulu : University of Hawaii Press 707 pp.

Randall, J.E., Allen, G.R. & Steene, R. 1990. Fishes of the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea. Bathurst : Crawford House Press 507 pp. figs. 

Randall, J.E., Allen, G.R. & Steene, R. 1997. Fishes of the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea. Bathurst : Crawford House Press 557 pp. figs. 

Randall, J.E. & Hoese, D.F. 1985. A revision of the dartfishes, genus Ptereleotris (Perciformes: Gobioidei). Indo-Pacific Fishes 7: 1-36 figs 1-11 pls 1-4 

Russell, B.C., Larson, H.K., Hutchins, J.B. & Allen, G.R. 2005. Reef fishes of the Sahul Shelf. The Beagle, Records of the Museums and Art Galleries of the Northern Territory Supplement 1 2005: 83-105.

Quick Facts


CAAB Code:37435015

Conservation:IUCN Least Concern

Depth:2-15 m

Fishing:Aquarium fish

Habitat:Reef associated

Max Size:11 cm SL

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Species Maps

CAAB distribution map