Family : Gobiidae
Text © Giuseppe Mazza
English translation by Mario Beltramini
Not longer than 5 cm, Tigrigobius multifasciatus is a colourful Caribbean goby with the livery brindled by 17-23 green vertical bars © Allison & Carlos Estape
Tigrigobius multifasciatus (Steindachner, 1876), in English known with the name of “Greenbanded goby”, belongs to the class of the Actinopterygii, the ray-finned fish, and to the order of the Gobiiformes, that after some scholars are included in the Perciformes and by others in the Cypriniformes, and to the family of the Gobiidae, by sure one of the richest in the marine world, as it counts more than 200 genera and almost 2000 species.
These are fish mainly present in the temperate and warm seas, but with some members also in the fresh waters. and in the brackish ones at the mouth of the rivers.
The name of the genus Tigrigobius, originates in Latin from “tigris”, tiger, because the vertical bands of this fish recall those of a tiger and from the genus Gobius that has originated the family, whilst the specific term multifasciatus, always in Latin, adds that these bands are many.
On the head stand out two dark red horizontal bands hiding the eye, characterized on the back by a small bright red spot to confuse the predators © Allison & Carlos Estape
Zoogeography
Tigrigobius multifasciatus is frequent in western Atlantic from the Bahamas Islands, Cuba and Lesser Antilles up to the Venezuelan coasts.
The reports of this fish in Panama waters actually refer to a similar but distinct species, Tigrigobius panamensis (Victor 2010), with less vertical bands, and those along Honduras coasts are assigned to Tigrigobius rubrigenis (Victor 2010) that displays an additional red line under the chin.
Ecology-Habitat
It mainly lives in tide pools in a few centimetres of water, hidden under the sea urchins that dig niches into the calcareous substratum © Allison & Carlos Estape
Tigrigobius multifasciatus is a benthic fish that does not exceed the depth of 1 m, mainly living in the tide pools where is satisfied with a few centimetres of water, hidden under the sea urchins that dig burrows in the calcareous substrate as happens for the smaller but no less spectacular Ginsburgellus novemlineatus.
Morphophysiology
Tigrigobius multifasciatus measures approximately double with a maximum of 5 cm, and the difference between liveries immediately catches the eye. The vertical bars are no longer 9 blue, but vary from 17 to 23, of bright clear green colour on a greenish background.
The head, light brown, is adorned with two dark red horizontal bands that hide the eye, characterized on the back by a small spot, bright red like a traffic light that confuses the predators.
In the wild females lay 200-450 eggs stuck to the seabeds and starting from the 2 cm they can transform into males © Allison & Carlos Estape
The body has no scales and there is no lateral line.
The snout appears pointed with a straight profile. On both jaws we note 5-7 rows of small teeth, more spaced on the outer side, with canines on the front and two big further behind for holding the prey.
There are two dorsal fins, the first with 7 spiny rays with the first longer and the second with 1 spiny ray and 10-11 soft.
The anal has 1 spiny ray and 8-9 unarmed like those of the pectoral ones that count 19-20 of them and are the motor of the fish who moves forward by waving them like the puffer fish, with a swimming rightly called diodontiform. The caudal fin is rounded.
Ethology-Reproductive Biology
Due to the modest size Tigrigobius multifasciatus accepts the captivity life reproducing even in small pools © Allison & Carlos Estape
Tigrigobius multifasciatus is a monandric protogynous hermaphrodite species, that is with females that starting from the 2 cm may transform into males.
One single female can lay up to 200-450 eggs stuck to the seabed and the reproduction occurs also in small aquaria.
The resilience of the species is excellent, with a minimum doubling time of the populations of less than 15 months, and the fishing vulnerability stands among the lowest, marking only 10 on a scale of 100. Since 2010 Tigrigobius multifasciatus appears therefore as “LC, Least Concern” in the IUCN Red List of the endangered species.
Synonyms
Gobiosoma multifasciatum Steindachner, 1876; Elacatinus multifasciatum (Steindachner, 1876); Elacatinus multifasciatus (Steindachner, 1876); Gobius lineatus Poey, 1861.
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