Metadata

Gouania willdenowi

(Risso 1810)

ORDERSUB-ORDERFAMILY
GobiesociformesGobiesociformesGobiesocidae

Synonyms

Lepadogaster piger  Nardo 1827

Gouania prototypus  Nardo 1833

Rupisuga nicensis  Swainson 1839

Leptopterygius coccoi   Troschel 1860

Previously referred to by the informal name of Western Mediterranean stout Gouania (Wagner et al. 2019).

Country

Mediterranean

Distribution

Throughout the northern coast of the Mediterranean.

Habitat

The interstices of marine sands.

Systematics

Morphological and molecular studies by Wagner et al. (2019) demonstrate conclusively that there are at least five cryptic species across the Mediterranean and not one as previously understood. These have now been formally described by Wagner et al. (2020).

A member of the Subfamily Lepadogastrinae together with the following genera:  Apletodon (7 species), Diplecogaster (8 species), Lepadogaster (3 species), Lecanogaster (2 species) and Opeatogenys (2 species) (Briggs 1957).

King (2017) examined the molecular phylogeny of clingfishes (Gobiesocidae) and found that Gouania willdenowi is the single sister species to Lepadogaster lepadogaster and L. purpurea and the three species togther are a single clade. This relationship had previously been determined by Almada et al. (2008).

Biological Notes

Patzner (1999:208) says that G. willdenowi occupies the following habitat:

"Banks of large pebbles. In some of the more protected bays, these layered habitats can be found from above the high water mark down to about 1m depth. The smooth, rounded pebbles on the surface have maximum diameters between 3 and 10 cm, while those beneath are 1–2 cm in size. The pebbles do not harbour any high epibiota because of frequent disturbance by wave action."

He goes on to provide the following deatails (Patzner 1999:210):

"This species was found only in shallow water (20–50 cm) in banks of pebbles (habitat B). The fish live within the lower, second layer in which pebbles have a diameter between 1 and 2 cm. There the fish lead a very hidden life and were never observed outside their layer of pebbles. Gouania wildenowi from Ibiza are medium brownish-grey. The largest individual caught at Ibiza measured 31/36mm (SL/TL)."

Reported to be amphibious and able to live out of water for up to 2 hours (Bilecenoglu 2015).

Conservation Status

[LC]

Herler, J., Williams, J.T. and Kovacic, M. 2014. Gouania willdenowi. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2014: e.T194960A49087174. http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2014-3.RLTS.T194960A49087174.en. Downloaded on 23 July 2019.

Internet Resources

LOC114459876 transcription factor 7-like Gouania willdenowi

Key References

The reference list for this species contains, in addition to directly relevant sources, sources with data on other interstitial fishes, especially the Japanese and Korean species in the genus Luciogobius which seem very similar in environment, habits and morphology.

The most important sources for Gouania are:

Leray (1961) - Contribution a l'étude ostéologique de Gouania wildenowii Risso (Téléostéens) (squelette céphalique et ceintures)

Peres (1967) - The Mediterranean benthos

Hofrichter (1995) - Taxonomie, Verbreitung und Ökologie von Schildfischen der Unterfamilie Lepadogastrinae (Gobiesocidae, Teleostei)

Patzner (1999) - Habitat utilization and depth distribution of small cryptobenthic fishes (Blenniidae, Gobiesocidae, Gobiidae, Tripterygiidae) in Ibiza (western Mediterranean Sea)

Hofrichter and Patzner (2000) - Habitat and microhabitat of Mediterranean clingfishes (Teleostei: Gobiesociformes: Gobiesocidae)

Ellingson (2012) - Phylogenetics and phylogeography of North Pacific bay gobies: adaptive convergence, relictual endemism, and climate-driven population structure

Ellingson et al. (2014) - Convergent evolution of ecomorphological adaptations in geographically isolated Bay gobies (Teleostei: Gobionellidae) of the temperate North Pacific

Wagner et al. (2017) - Cryptic diversity in pebble beaches: Rapid speciation and convergent evolution in the genus Gouania (Gobiesocidae)

Wagner (2018) - New insights into the phylogeography and evolutionary history of two Mediterranean clingfish genera (Teleostei, Gobiesocidae)

Wagner et al. (2019) - Diversification in gravel beaches: A radiation of interstitial clingfish (Gouania, Gobiesocidae) in the Mediterranean Sea

Wagner et al. (2020) - Unravelling the taxonomy of an interstitial fish radiation: Three new species of Gouania (Teleostei: Gobiesocidae) from the Mediterranean Sea and redescriptions of G. willdenowi and G. pigra

The most important sources for Luciogobius are:

Yamada et al. (2009) - Adaptive radiation of gobies in the interstitial habitats of gravel beaches accompanied by body elongation and excessive vertebral segmentation

Kondo and Kato (2019) - Life in coastal pebble sediment: Unique interstitial organism community and selective feeding on meiobenthos by interstitial fishes (Luciogobius: Gobiidae)

Shibukawa et al. (2019) - Preliminary review of earthworm gobies of the genus Luciogobius (Gobiiformes, Oxudercidae) from Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan (in Japanese)

References

Risso, A. Book 1810 Ichthyologie de Nice, ou histoire naturelle des poissons du Département des Alpes Maritimes
Nardo, G.D. Journal Article 1827 Prodromus observationum et disquisitionum Adriaticae ichthyologiae
Nardo, G.D. Journal Article 1827 Prodromus observationum et disquisitionum ichthyologiae Adriaticae
Nardo, G.D. Journal Article 1833 Eine neue Art von Lepadogaster (L. piger)
Swainson, W. Book 1839 On the natural history and classification of fishes, amphibians, & reptiles, or monocardian animals. Volume 2
Troschel, F.H. Journal Article 1860 Leptopterygius, neue Gattung der Discoboli
Briggs, J.C. Journal Article 1955 A monograph of the clingfishes (order Xenopterygii)
Leray, C. Journal Article 1961 Contribution a l'étude ostéologique de Gouania wildenowii Risso (Téléostéens) (squelette céphalique et ceintures)
Peres, J.M. Journal Article 1967 The Mediterranean benthos
Katayama, M and Ikeda, H Journal Article 1972 Luciogobius pallidus collected at Nagato-shi in Yamaguchi Prefecture
Birdsong, R.S., Murdy, E.O. and Pezold, F. Journal Article 1988 A study of the vertebral column and median fin osteology in gobioid fishes with comments on gobioid relationships.
Hofrichter, R. Thesis 1995 Taxonomie, Verbreitung und Ökologie von Schildfischen der Unterfamilie Lepadogastrinae (Gobiesocidae, Teleostei)
Herler, J.R.A., Patzner, A.A. and Hilgers, H. Journal Article 1999 Habitat selection and ecology of two speleophilic gobiid fishes (Pisces: Gobiidae) from the western Mediterranean Sea
Patzner, R. Journal Article 1999 Habitat utilization and depth distribution of small cryptobenthic fishes (Blenniidae, Gobiesocidae, Gobiidae, Tripterygiidae) in Ibiza (western Mediterranean Sea).
Hofrichter, R. and Patzner, R.A. Journal Article 2000 Habitat and microhabitat of Mediterranean clingfishes (Teleostei: Gobiesociformes: Gobiesocidae)
Almada, F., Henriques, M., Levy, A., Pereira, A.M., Robalo, J.I. and Almada, V.C. Journal Article 2008 Reclassification of Lepadogaster candollei based on molecular and meristic evidence with a redefinition of the genus Lepadogaster
Maeda, K., Yamasaki, N., Kondo, M. and Tachihara, K. Journal Article 2008 Occurrence and morphology of larvae and juveniles of six Luciogobius species from Aritsu Beach, Okinawa Island
Yamada, T., Sugiyama, K, Tamaki, K, Kawakita, A. and Kato, M. Journal Article 2009 Adaptive radiation of gobies in the interstitial habitats of gravel beaches accompanied by body elongation and excessive vertebral segmentation
Ellingson, R.A. Thesis 2012 Phylogenetics and phylogeography of North Pacific bay gobies: adaptive convergence, relictual endemism, and climate-driven population structure
Ellingson, R.A., Swift, C.C., Findley, L.T. and Jacobs, D.K. Journal Article 2014 Convergent evolution of ecomorphological adaptations in geographically isolated Bay gobies (Teleostei: Gobionellidae) of the temperate North Pacific
Bilecenoglu, M. Journal Article 2015 First observation of the amphibious behaviour of Gouania willdenowi (Gobiesocidae) in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea
Wagner, M., Bračun, S. and Koblmüller, S. Conference Paper 2017 Cryptic diversity in pebble beaches: Rapid speciation and convergent evolution in the genus Gouania (Gobiesocidae)
King, C.D. Thesis 2017 Molecular phylogenetic investigation of the clingfishes (Teleostei: Gobiesocidae)
Wagner, M. Thesis 2018 New insights into the phylogeography and evolutionary history of two Mediterranean clingfish genera (Teleostei, Gobiesocidae)
Wagner, M., Bračun, S., Skofitsch, G., Kovačić, M., Zogaris, S., Iglésias, S.P., Sefc, K.M. and Koblmüller, S. Journal Article 2019 Diversification in gravel beaches: A radiation of interstitial clingfish (Gouania, Gobiesocidae) in the Mediterranean Sea
Kondo, K. and Kato, M. Journal Article 2019 Life in coastal pebble sediment: Unique interstitial organism community and selective feeding on meiobenthos by interstitial fishes (Luciogobius: Gobiidae)
Mirete-Bachiller, S., Olivieri, D.N., Gambón-Deza, F. Journal Article 2019 Gouania willdenowi is a teleost fish without immunoglobulin genes
Shibukawa, K., Aizawa, M., Suzuki, T., Kanagawa N. and Muto, F. Journal Article 2019 Preliminary review of earthworm gobies of the genus Luciogobius (Gobiiformes, Oxudercidae) from Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan
Yun, S.-M., Park, J.-M. and Han, K.-H. Journal Article 2020 Osteological development of the larvae and juvenile of Luciogobius grandis (Pisces: Gobiidae)
Wagner, M., Kovacic, M. and Koblmüller, S. Journal Article 2021 Unravelling the taxonomy of an interstitial fish radiation: Three new species of Gouania (Teleostei: Gobiesocidae) from the Mediterranean Sea and redescriptions of G. willdenowi and G. pigra.
Charmpila, E.A., Wagner, M. and Reichenbacher, B. Journal Article 2021 First documentation of the otoliths of the species of Gouania (Teleostei: Gobiesocidae) in the Mediterranean Sea.