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First record of the Red Sea shrimp-goby Cryptocentrus caeruleopunctatus in the Mediterranean Sea

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 October 2015

Shevy B.S. Rothman and
Menachem Goren
Shevy B.S. Rothman
Affiliation:
Department of Zoology and The Steinhardt Museum of Natural History, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69778, Israel
Menachem Goren*
Affiliation:
Department of Zoology and The Steinhardt Museum of Natural History, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69778, Israel
*
Correspondence should be addressed to: M. Goren, Department of Zoology and The Steinhardt Museum of Natural History, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69778, Israel email: gorenm@tauex.tau.ac.il

Abstract

We report a first record of the alien fish Cryptocentrus caeruleopunctatus in the Mediterranean Sea. The fish was found along the northern coast of Israel. This finding increases the number of Red Sea gobies in the Mediterranean to six, and the number of shrimp-gobies to two. A dense colony of this species was observed at depths of 20–30 m in the Rosh Ha'nikra-Achziv Nature Reserve.

Keywords

Mediterranean Seaalien speciesCryptocentrus caeruleopunctatusshrimp-goby

Information

Type
Research Article
Information
Marine Biodiversity Records , Volume 8 , 2015, e157
Copyright
Copyright © Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 2015 

INTRODUCTION

More than 100 alien fish species have been recorded so far from the eastern Mediterranean, most of them of Red Sea origin (Galil & Goren, Reference Galil, Goren, Goffred and Dubinsky2014). These include five species of gobies: (Coryogalops ocheticus (Norman, 1927); Oxyurichthys petersii (Klunzinger, 1871); Silhouettea aegyptia (Chabanaud, 1933); Vanderhorstia mertensi Klausewitz, 1974; and Trypauchen vagina (Bloch & Schneider, 1801).

Recently, a sixth goby of Red Sea origin, Cryptocentrus caeruleopunctatus (Rüppell, 1830), was observed and photographed along the northern Mediterranean coast of Israel.

The shrimp-goby Indo-Pacific genus Cryptocentrus Valenciennes, 1837 comprises 35 valid species (Froese & Pauly, Reference Froese and Pauly2015) and is represented in the Red Sea by four species (Golani & Bogorodsky, Reference Golani and Bogorodsky2010). The present finding expands the distribution of the genus to the Mediterranean.

SYSTEMATICS

Order PERCIFORMES
Family GOBIIDAE Cuvier, 1816
Genus Cryptocentrus Valenciennes, 1837
Cryptocentrus caeruleopunctatus (Rüppell, 1830)
(Figures 1 & 2)
Fig. 1.

Cryptocentrus caeruleopunctatus (Rüppell, 1830) in the Mediterranean. Photo by O. Klein.

Fig. 2.

Cryptocentrus caeruleopunctatus (Rüppell, 1830) in the Mediterranean, with its associated shrimp. Photo by A. Gur.

Gobius caeruleopunctatus Rüppell, 1830. Type locality: Massawa, Eritrea, Red Sea. Observation site: Rosh Ha'nikra-Achziv Nature Reserve at depths of 20–30 m (33°04′59″N 35°06′10″E), Mediterranean Sea, Israel.

DIAGNOSTICS

Cryptocentrus caeruleopunctatus can easily be distinguished from all other congeners by its unique colour pattern. Body yellowish with diagonal wide brown bands and two large ocelli on sides of trunk. One ocellus under first dorsal fin, the second under the anterior third of second dorsal fin.

DESCRIPTION

Description of Mediterranean specimens, based on photographs: Body elongate and compressed, head convex and compressed. Eye high up, extends above the profile. Mouth oblique. Maxilla extends to below mid eye. Dorsal fins: VI-I10.

Colour: Body and head yellow, with 7–8 broad oblique bands on the body. Two large ocelli on sides of trunk. Many brown ocelli with light margin on head and dorsal fins. Scattered white dots on upper part of body and some on pelvic fins. Rays of pectoral fins are brown with five vertical semi-circular white dots. A wide light band on distal sub margin of caudal fin.

REMARKS

Cryptocentrus caeruleopunctatus was observed for the first time in November, 2014. Since then, a colony of this species has been regularly observed at the same site. The burrows were found at 5–10 m distance intervals. Several burrows were less than 1 m apart. Occasional counts along transects of ~100 m revealed 10 to 20 burrows per transect. An associated shrimp was observed in the burrows but not identified.

DISTRIBUTION

Cryptocentrus caeruleopunctatus is endemic to the Red Sea (Eschmeyer, Reference Eschmeyer2015) and has been observed from Massawa and the Dahlak Archipelago (Eritrea) in the southern Red Sea to the tip of the Gulf of Aqaba and the Gulf of Suez (M. Goren, personal observations).

HABITAT

Cryptocentrus caeruleopunctatus is a shrimp-associated goby. In the Mediterranean, the fish were observed at depths of 20–30 m, while in the Red Sea it is often observed in shallow waters of 0.5–10 m, usually in areas of soft bottom with rubble and in shallow lagoons (M. Goren and S. Rothman, personal observations).

DISCUSSION

The association between gobies and snapping shrimps is a well-documented phenomenon in tropical seas, with over 120 goby species involved (Karplus & Thompson, Reference Karplus, Thompson, Patzner, Van Tassell, Kovacic and Kapoor2011). Among the 117 gobies known from the Red Sea, 21 are shrimp-gobies (Goren, Reference Goren and Stambler2014). Therefore, one might expect a considerable presence of this group among the many alien fishes in the Mediterranean. However, only two shrimp-gobies, Vanderhorstia mertensi (reported by Bilecenoglu et al., Reference Bilecenoglu, Yokes and Eryigit2008) and Cryptocentrus caeruleopunctatus, have been reported to date from the eastern Mediterranean. Following the availability of a large variety of soft-bottom habitats along the eastern Mediterranean coast, combined with the recent widening and deepening of the Suez Canal, the number of shrimp-goby species in the Mediterranean is likely to increase.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

We are grateful to O. Klein and A. Gur for their pictures of the fish and to N. Paz for editing the manuscript.

References

REFERENCES

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Figure 0

Fig. 1.Cryptocentrus caeruleopunctatus (Rüppell, 1830) in the Mediterranean. Photo by O. Klein.

Figure 1

Fig. 2.Cryptocentrus caeruleopunctatus (Rüppell, 1830) in the Mediterranean, with its associated shrimp. Photo by A. Gur.