Dr. John Ernest (Jack) Randall (†), Hawaii
Info
Dr. Jack Randall discovered 2 specimens of this goby species in 1983 around Vava'u Island, Tonga, in underwater caves with Alpheus crabs.
The seabed consisted of silty sand and rubble, and the two gobies were discovered in a water depth of only one meter.
Considering the many fish collections in Tonga, it was very surprising to Dr. Randall that more specimens of this species could not be discovered and collected.
For a long time nothing was heard of Ctenogobiops tongaensis, only 21 years later some specimens of Ctenogobiops tongaensis were discovered by Prof. Phil Munday on Lizard Island, Great Barrier Reef, Australia.
The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species has not yet focused on the goby, so it may well be questionable whether Ctenogobiops tongaensis is not already extinct.
The holotype was pale gray, shaded whitish ventrally on the head and abdomen, with 4 longitudinal rows of somewhat rounded blackish spots on the body, the largest in the middle row, consisting of 7 spots that gradually decrease towards the back, the last one is located at the base of the caudal fin.
the base of the caudal fin.
On the cheek there is a blue and yellow line, a series of 7 yellow and blue lines that form an arc from behind the eye to the origin of the dorsal fin, the last 2 are covered by dark pigment.
The snout and lips are bluish gray, the iris dark yellow with dark brown spots.
The first dorsal fin has bluish-brown spines, the membranes at the base with alternating light blue and brownish yellow lines.
The second dorsal fin is pale blue at the base with 2 irregular brownish yellow lines, the membranes of the rest of the fin have alternating oblique blue and black-edged yellowish lines.
The basal half of the anal fin is bluish white, the other half is black, merging distally into dark purple, the 2 zones are separated by a blue line.
The caudal fin shows bluish-brown rays and 3 small spots in a vertical row at the base, the lower spot is only slightly pronounced.
The pectoral fins are translucent gray with a spindle-shaped white spot that is longer than the pupil and is located near the base on the lower third of the fin.
The pelvic fins are dusky with light blue rays.
Etymologie: Named "tongaensis" for the type locality Tonga.
Ähnliche Art: Ctenogobiops pomastictus
The seabed consisted of silty sand and rubble, and the two gobies were discovered in a water depth of only one meter.
Considering the many fish collections in Tonga, it was very surprising to Dr. Randall that more specimens of this species could not be discovered and collected.
For a long time nothing was heard of Ctenogobiops tongaensis, only 21 years later some specimens of Ctenogobiops tongaensis were discovered by Prof. Phil Munday on Lizard Island, Great Barrier Reef, Australia.
The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species has not yet focused on the goby, so it may well be questionable whether Ctenogobiops tongaensis is not already extinct.
The holotype was pale gray, shaded whitish ventrally on the head and abdomen, with 4 longitudinal rows of somewhat rounded blackish spots on the body, the largest in the middle row, consisting of 7 spots that gradually decrease towards the back, the last one is located at the base of the caudal fin.
the base of the caudal fin.
On the cheek there is a blue and yellow line, a series of 7 yellow and blue lines that form an arc from behind the eye to the origin of the dorsal fin, the last 2 are covered by dark pigment.
The snout and lips are bluish gray, the iris dark yellow with dark brown spots.
The first dorsal fin has bluish-brown spines, the membranes at the base with alternating light blue and brownish yellow lines.
The second dorsal fin is pale blue at the base with 2 irregular brownish yellow lines, the membranes of the rest of the fin have alternating oblique blue and black-edged yellowish lines.
The basal half of the anal fin is bluish white, the other half is black, merging distally into dark purple, the 2 zones are separated by a blue line.
The caudal fin shows bluish-brown rays and 3 small spots in a vertical row at the base, the lower spot is only slightly pronounced.
The pectoral fins are translucent gray with a spindle-shaped white spot that is longer than the pupil and is located near the base on the lower third of the fin.
The pelvic fins are dusky with light blue rays.
Etymologie: Named "tongaensis" for the type locality Tonga.
Ähnliche Art: Ctenogobiops pomastictus
