Krefft's Frillgoby, Bathygobius krefftii (Steindachner 1866)
Krefft's Frillgoby, Bathygobius krefftii, at Minnamurra, New South Wales, November 2010. Source: Sascha Schultz / iNaturalist.org. License: CC by Attribution-NonCommercial
A dark brown to blackish goby ; each cheek and operculurn with scattered small brown spots; broad vertical black band below first dorsal fin; fainter saddles on back below second dorsal fin; body with series of white spots forming longitudinal lines; midside with several small black spots; faint black vertical bands ventrally on body above anal fin; dorsal and caudal fins with rows of small black spots; other fins clear to grey. Larger males with body and fins dark brown to black, obscuring pattern.
Krefft's Frillgoby, Bathygobius krefftii (Steindachner 1866)
More Info
Distribution |
Mackay, Queensland, to Narooma, New South Wales, and the Gulf St. Vincent and Spencer Gulf, South Australia. Unlike other Bathygobius species, Krefft's Frillgoby usually inhabits seagrass beds in coastal bays and estuaries. Other species in the genus are usually found on rocky or coral reefs or rocks in mangroves. |
Features |
Dorsal fin VI + I, 10; Anal fin I, 9; Caudal fin (segmented rays) 17; Pectoral fin 16-17; Pelvic fin I, 5. Body slender. Head of moderate size (28-30% SL); interorbital narrow, about 3-5 in eye diameter; mouth oblique, of moderate size, rear end of jaws below middle of eyes; sensory pore by each posterior nostril and two median pores between eyes; two pores along each upper preopercular margin, 2 pores above each upper opercular margin, and 3 pores along each posterior preopercular margin; gill openings restricted to pectoral fin bases; small bump below each anterior nostril; tongue tip bilobed. Sides of head without scales, predorsal scales reaching forward to just behind eyes on top of head; body scales ctenoid, in 31-34 vertical rows; pectoral fin bases with cycloid scales; area before ventral fins with small cycloid scales. Two dorsal fins, first dorsal with rounded margin originating above ventral fin insertion; second dorsal origin just behind first dorsal fin; anal fin originating below and just behind second dorsal origin; caudal fin with rounded margin, length about equal to head length. Margin of pectoral fins rounded; upper three rays free from membrane for about half their lengths. Pelvic fins fused to form cup-shaped disc, originating below pectoral fin insertions. |
Colour |
Dark brown to black; cheek and operculum with scattered small brown spots; broad vertical black band below first dorsal fin; fainter saddles on back below second dorsal fin; body with series of white spots forming longitudinal lines; midside with several small black spots; faint black vertical bands ventrally on body above anal fin; dorsal and caudal fins with rows of small black spots; other fins clear to grey. Larger males with body and fins dark brown to black, obscuring pattern. |
Remarks |
Steindachner originally described the species as Gobius kreftii, but often incorrectly regarded as a lapsus calami. This species has typically been called Bathygobius krefftii on the assumption that it was named after Gerard Krefft. However, Steindachner (1866, 1867) consistently used the spelling of kreftii,with no indication for whom he named the fish. Also newspaper articles of the period often spelled Gerard Krefft's name as Kreft. Although the spelling krefftii is a incorrect as Steindachner did not indicate the origin of the name, kreftii has not been used since Steindachner (1867) (except by Eschmeyer, 1998). Therefore, the name Bathygobius krefftii is in prevailing usage and meets 33.3.1 of the International Commission of Zoological Nomenclature (1999), which states "when an incorrect subsequent spelling is in prevailing usage and is attributed to the publication of the original spelling, the subsequent spelling and attribution are to be preserved and the spelling is deemed to be a correct original spelling". Consequently, the name krefftii is retained (Hoese 2015). |
Etymology |
The species is presumably named in honour of Gerard Krefft, an Australian zoologist and paleontologist. Krefft was appointed Director of the Australian Museum, Sydney in 1864. |
Species Citation |
Gobius kreftii Steindachner 1866, Anz. Kaiserlich. Akad. Wissensch. Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Klasse, Wien 3(7): 53. Type locality: Port Jackson, NSW. |
Author |
Bray, D.J. 2022 |
Resources |
Krefft's Frillgoby, Bathygobius krefftii (Steindachner 1866)
References
De Vis, C.W. 1884. New fishes in the Queensland Museum. No. 4. Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales 1 9(3): 685-698. (p. 685, described as Gobius watkinsoni)
Eschmeyer, W.N. 1998. Catalog of Fishes. San Francisco : California Academy of Sciences 2905 pp., 3 vols. (as Bathygobius kreftii)
Hammer, M.P. 2006. Range extensions for four estuarine gobies (Pisces: Gobiidae) in Southern Australia: Historically overlooked native taxa or recent arrivals? September. Transactions of the Royal Society of South Australia 130(2):187-196 https://doi.org/10.1080/3721426.2006.10887057
Hoese, D.F. & Larson, H.K. 1994. Family Gobiidae. pp. 781-810, figs 690-714 in Gomon, M.F., Glover, C.J.M. & Kuiter, R.H. (eds) The Fishes of Australia's South Coast. Adelaide : State Printer 992 pp. 810 figs.
Hoese, D.F. & Larson, H.K. 2008. Family Gobiidae. pp. 749-773 in Gomon, M.F., Bray, D.J. & Kuiter, R.H. (eds) Fishes of Australia's Southern Coast. Sydney : Reed New Holland 928 pp.
Hutchins, J.B. & Swainston, R. 1986. Sea Fishes of Southern Australia. Complete field guide for anglers and divers. Perth : Swainston Publishing 180 pp.
Johnson, J.W. 2010. Fishes of the Moreton Bay Marine Park and adjacent continental shelf waters, Queensland, Australia. pp. 299-353 in Davie, P.J.F. & Phillips, J.A. Proceedings of the Thirteenth International Marine Biological Workshop, The Marine Fauna and Flora of Moreton Bay. Memoirs of the Queensland Museum 54(3)
Kuiter, R.H. 1993. Coastal Fishes of South-eastern Australia. Bathurst : Crawford House Press 437 pp.
Kuiter, R.H. 2000. Coastal Fishes of South-eastern Australia. Gary Allen. 437 pp.
Larson, H.K. 2011. The marine temperate gobioids of southern Australia and the New Zealand region. Chapter 2.4, pp. 235-241. In: R.A. Patzner et al. (eds) The Biology of Gobies. CRC Press, Science Publishers.
Macleay, W.J. 1881. Descriptive catalogue of the fishes of Australia. Part 2. Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales 1 5(4): 510-629 pls 13-14 (p. 682, described as Gobius flavidus)
McCulloch, A.R. & Ogilby, J.D. 1919. Some Australian fishes of the family Gobiidae. Records of the Australian Museum 12(10): 193-291 figs 31-37. (p. 234, as Mapo krefftii)
Steindachner, F. 1866. Über die Fische von Port Jackson in Australien. Anzeiger der Kaiserlichen Akademie der Wissenschaften. Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Klasse, Wien 3(7): 50-55.
Steindachner, F. 1867. Ichthyologische Notizen (6) 2. Zur Fischfauna von Port Jackson. Sitzungsberichte der Akademie der Wissenschaften in Wien. Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Klasse 56(1): 320-335 fig. 1 (as Gobius krefftii - described in more detail) See ref at BHL
Thomson, J.M. 1978. A Field Guide to the Common Sea & Estuary Fishes of Non-tropical Australia. Sydney : Collins 144 pp.
Tosetto, L., Williamson, J.E. & Brown, C. 2017. Trophic transfer of microplastics does not affect fish personality, Animal Behaviour 123: 159-167, ISSN 0003-3472, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.anbehav.2016.10.035. Abstract
White, G.E. & Brown, C. 2015. Microhabitat use affects goby (Gobiidae) cue choice in spatial learning task. Journal of Fish Biology. doi: 10.1111/jfb.12638