Nesogobius pulchellus

Australian sailfin goby
Nesogobius pulchellus
Nesogobius pulchellus, male, Port Phillip Bay, VIC, Photo: Rick Stuart-Smith
Nesogobius pulchellus
Nesogobius pulchellus, Jervis Bay, NSW, Photo: Andrew Green
Nesogobius pulchellus
Nesogobius pulchellus, Jervis Bay, NSW, Photo: Andrew Green
Nesogobius pulchellus
Nesogobius pulchellus, Tasman Peninsula, Tasmania, Photo: Andrew Green
Nesogobius pulchellus
Nesogobius pulchellus, Tasman Peninsula, Tasmania, Photo: Andrew Green
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Nesogobius pulchellus
Nesogobius pulchellus
Nesogobius pulchellus
Nesogobius pulchellus
Nesogobius pulchellus

Distribution

Temperate Australasia


Description

Eye stripe across the head and through the eyes to the jaw; distinct in juveniles but may be less prominent in large adults. This is a fairly safe distinguishing feature for N pulchellus, as while N greeni (not shown) can have an eye stripe, it is not as obvious and the eye doesn’t boggle as much. Dark colour, particularly near the tail, and with red spots forming stripes on the dorsal fin. The first dorsal fin in the male is elevated and used as a flag to signal other animals.


Information

Max Size: 7 cm

Sea Temperature Range: 11-21.7°C

Depth: 0-10m

Habitat Generalization Index: N/A

Also referred to as the SGI (Species Generalisation Index), this describes the habitat niche breadth of the species. Species with values less than 15 are found in a relatively narrow range of reef habitat types (specialists), while those over 25 may be found on most hard substrates within their range (generalists). Learn more here.


Conservation and Rarity

IUCN Status: Not Evaluated

Occurrence: Infrequent (5.6% of sites)

Occurrence describes how often the species is found on surveys within its distribution. It is calculated as the % of reef sites surveyed by RLS divers across all the ecoregions in which the species has been observed

Abundance: Many (41 per transect)

Abundance is calculated as the average number of individuals recorded per RLS transect, where present.


Edit by: Andrew Green