GOBIES. 



■251 



THE DOUBLY-SPOTTED GOBY. 



GOHIUS FLAVESCEiNS. 



Plate XIII, tigs. 3 and 4. 



Second (lorsdl fin relativdji slnni, tin- Iciif/tli of its Imae hcivf/ at most ^/^ of the (listanco heticeeit the first dorsal 

 fill (tiid the tip of the snout. I'cditnvlv of the tail rel((tin'li/ loiii/ (uid dee}), its Jeinjth at the itjiper marfftn being 

 about eijiud to that of the base of the second dorsat fn, and its least depth more than 7 % of the lenr/th of the 

 Imhj, than SO % of the tentfth of the head or than 40 % of its oioi tength at the upper margin. Eyes, in 

 adult specimens, far apart at the top, and their longitudinal diameter from about 26 to 29 % of the lotgth of 

 the head, or from 3(1 to .-JS % of tlie distance between the first rays in the first and second dorsal fins. Number 

 of the scales in a transverse row on the body at the beginning of the anal fin between 10 and 12, and in a row 

 along the sides of the body about 40. The dorsal side in front of the first dorsal fin and the middle of the 

 central side in front of the anal fin scaleless. Seven rays in the first dorsal fin. Upper part of the body a more 

 or less greenish, blackish brown, with several more or less distinct, light, transverse patches on the back; the sides 

 marked with a row of more or less lustrous, dark S2>ots, one at the middle of the base of the caudal fin and {in 

 the male) another behind the base of the pector(d fin being the most prominent; the rentrcd side light with a yel- 

 loivish lustre. Dorsal and caudal fins marked with alternate, dark (red) and light {yellow) stripes, composed of 



spots. Anal, pectoral and ventral fins for the most part colourless. 



R. hr. ?, (4); D. 7 1 



; A. 



1 



'9—11' 10—11 

 6'. .r+ 11 (13)" + .i:: L. lat. circ. 35—40. 



; F. 17 1. 18; V. 1,5; 



SiiH. Gobitis flavescens, Fabr., Reise n. None. (1779), p. .322. 



Gobius Rviithensparri, Euphrasen, Trnnynims-Acten, p. 52 ; 

 Vet.-Akad. Handl. 1786, p. 64, tab. Ill, tig. 1; Retz., F». 

 Suec. Lin., p. 326; Cuv., Val., Hist. Nat. Poiss.. vol. XII, 

 p. 48; Fk., Vet.-Akad. Handl. 1838, p. 243; Kr., Danm. 

 Fiske, vol. I, p. 399; Yarr., Hist. Brit. Fisli., ed. II, vol. I, 

 p. 285; NiLss., Skand. Fn., Fisk., p. 226; Gthr, Cat. Brit. 

 Mus., Fish., vol. Ill, p. 76; Lindstr., Gotl. Lans Hush. 

 Sallsk. Arsber. 1866, p. 15 (sep.); Winth., Naturh. Tidskr. 

 Kbhvn, ser III, vol. IX, pp. 199 et 221 ; ibid., vol. XI, p. 65; 

 ibid., vol. XII, p. 17; Coll., Vid. Selsk. Forh. Christ. 1874, 

 p. 179; ibid., Tillajgsh., p. 58; HcKE, Schr. Naturw. Ver. 

 Schlesw. Hoist. 1875, 1. c; Id., Arch. Naturg., Jahrg. 46 

 (1880), I, p. 310, tab. XVI, fig. 5; Malm, Gbgs, Boh. 

 Fn., p. 434. tab. VI, fig. 1; Day. Fish. G:t Brit, Irel, 

 vol. I, p. 160, tab. LII, fig. 1; M6b., Hcke, Fische d. Osts., 

 p. 55; LiLLj., Sv., Norg. Fisk., vol. I, p. 609. 



Gobius minutus, Nilss., Prodr. Ichth. Scand., p. 94. 



Gobius- bipunctatus, Yarr., Hist. Brit. Fish., ed. I, vol. I, 

 p. 255. 



Obs. As Fabbicius's description of this species — "macula 

 caudali utrinque atra. Pinna D. 7. 12" — is quite as clear as 

 Euphrasen's remarks thereon, which were first published in 1784 in 

 the Swedish " Trangnnns-Acten" , the current rules of nomenclature 

 require that the name given the species by Fabbicius should be re- 

 stored, though it has been generally known for a long period by that 

 of Gobius Ruuthe7isparri. 



According to Fries (1. c.) it is "without doubt this species in 

 particular that bears the name of Aat (food) on the coast of Nor- 

 way", "being so called," writes StbOm (iSdndm. Be.'tkr., p. 266), "be- 

 cause it is eaten by other fishes." Muller (Prodr. Zool. Dan., p. 

 44) applies this pHSsago in Str6m to Gobius Aphija, wi.ich KR0TEB 

 (1. c.) therefore gives among the doubtful synonyms of the Doubly- 

 Spotted Goby. The Aat which is given among the Gobies by StrOm, 

 with a reference to Artedi's Gobius Aphya, is, however, described 

 as being transparent, and may with equal justice be regarded as a 

 Gobius minutus or an Aphya minuta. 



The greatest length attained by the Doubly-Spotted 

 Goby is betAveen 60 and 65 mm. The greatest depth 

 of the body is about 16 or 17 % (in gravid females 

 about 20 %) of the length thereof. The length of the 

 head is from 21 '/a to 23 V2 ^1 and its greatest Vjreadth 

 (thickness) about 12 or 13 %, of the length of the body. 

 The least depth of the tail is 7 or 8 % of the length 

 of the body. The other point in the external form of 

 the body which distinguishes this species of the genus, 

 as well as the following ones, from the preceding, is 

 the circumstance that the first dorsal fin begins some- 

 what farther back, the distance between it and the be- 

 ginning of the snout being apparently never less than 

 28 % of the length of the bod}'. The last ray in the 

 first dorsal fin is, as usual, farther apart from the next 

 ray than is the case with the others. There is a dis- 



"15, according to Winther. 



