The newly discovered Godzilla goby fish

Date: June 8, 2016

Source: Pensoft Publishers

As part of the Deep Reef Observation Project (DROP), initiated by the Smithsonian Institution, a new goby fish species was discovered in the southern Caribbean. Living at depths greater than conventional SCUBA divers can access, yet too shallow to be of interest for deep-diving submersibles, the fish will now be known under the common name of the Godzilla goby.

Its discoverers Drs Luke Tornabene, Ross Robertson and Carole C. Baldwin, all affiliated with the Smithsonian Institution, have described the species in the open access journal ZooKeys.

Formally called Varicus lacerta, the species name translates to 'lizard' in Latin and refers to the reptilian appearance of the fish. Its prime colors are bright yellow and orange, while the eyes are green.

The new goby also has a disproportionately large head and multiple rows of recurved canine teeth in each jaw. This is also why the research team has chosen the common name of the Godzilla goby.

Apart from its lovely coloration, the new fish stands out with its branched, feather-like pelvic-fin rays and the absence of scales.

The scientists caught the Godzilla goby thanks to the manned submersible Curasub, which had already helped in discovering several species over the course of the project. Last year, Drs Ross Robertson and Carole Baldwin had another new goby published in ZooKeys. That time, they even named it after the submersible. Earlier this year, the DROP team also described nine additional new species, many of which were collected by the Curasub.

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Scientists discover new species of goby fish

JULY 19, 2015

by Shayne Jacopian

As part of the Smithsonian Institution’s Deep Reef Observation Project (DROP), Doctors Carole Baldwin and Ross Robertson have discovered a new variety of goby fish that is smaller, has unique coloration, and lives at a deeper habitat (70-80m) in the southern Caribbean. This new species was named Coryphopterus curasub, after the Curasub submersible that enabled their deep-reef research.

Here, check out the picture provided by the researchers:

While the marine life of shallow Caribbean coral reefs has been studied for over 150 years, studying environments far deeper wasn’t possible until the advent of manned submersibles that can be taken 300 meters under the sea.

Still, the habitats just below shallow coral reefs goes largely ignored.

"Deep reefs are diverse ecosystems in tropical seas that science has largely missed," said Dr. Baldwin. "Too deep to access using SCUBA gear and too shallow to be of much interest to deep-diving submersibles capable of descending thousands of meters."

"How incomplete is our picture of tropical reef biodiversity if so little attention has been devoted to depths just below those home to shallow coral reefs? We don't know," she said.

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Rare Giant Goby found in the Helford River

The Giant Goby found in the Helford River

9:10am Saturday 16th April 2011

A rare fish has been uncovered in the Helford River by rockpoolers from Cornwall Wildlife Trust.

The Giant Goby is a southern European fish, and is not usually found in colder northern waters.

But the volunteers, led by fish expert Doug Herdson, came across the rare find while taking part in a training programme put together as part of the Your Shore project.

“It was fantastic end to an inspiring and exciting day out on the shore,” said Abby Cross, Marine Conservation Officer for Cornwall Wildlife Trust “Giant Gobies are protected under schedule five of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 so, after the group had confirmed its identification, the leader Doug Herdson, was quick to ensure that the fish was returned immediately to the rock pool that it was found in.”

The Your Shore project is part of Cornwall Wildlife Trust's Marine Conservation programme, and runs events and activities which aim to engage people with the marine environment.

It runs for three years and is based within the Voluntary Marine Conservation areas of St Agnes and Polzeath on the north coast, and Helford, Fowey and Looe on the south.

http://www.falmouthpacket.co.uk/news/8978040.Rare_fish_found_in_the_Helford_River/?ref=mr
(Via Liz R)

Not One, But Two Kinds Of Males Found In Invasive Round Goby Fish

ScienceDaily (June 18, 2009) — Scientists have found the existence of two types of males of a fiercely invasive fish spreading through the Great Lakes, which may provide answers as to how they rapidly reproduce.

The research, published in the Journal of Great Lakes Research, looks at the aggressive round goby, a bottom-dwelling fish which infested the Great Lakes watersheds around 1990.

Presently, they are working their way inland through rivers and canal systems and can lead to the decline of native species through competition and predation.

Researchers at McMaster University discovered evidence that in addition to round goby males which guard the nest from predators and look after their offspring, there exists what scientists call "sneaker" males – little males that look like females and sneak into the nests of the larger males.

"The existence of these two kinds of males will help scientists understand how round gobies reproduce, how quickly their populations grow, and track how these populations change over the course of invasion," says Julie Marentette, lead author and a Ph.D. student in the department of Psychology, Neuroscience & Behaviour at McMaster University. "This has the potential to have a significant impact on how researchers tackle what has become a very difficult problem in the Great Lakes."

Because males expend lots of energy or eat less while guarding their nests, and attracting females while providing care can be difficult, males in some species have found a sneakier way to mate, Marentette explains. Instead of courting females and protecting the young, some males will parasitize the courtship –and sometimes the parenting duties –of conventional males. They do this by sneaking into the nests of big males or pretending to be females.

"Prior to our findings, only one type of male reproductive behaviour would have been incorporated into projections and modeling analyses of the population dynamics of round goby invasive capacities", says Sigal Balshine, associate professor in the department of Psychology, Neuroscience & Behaviour and academic advisor on the study. "Our results will shed light on how populations of this invasive species are likely to grow and spread through time and space."
The McMaster scientists compared the physical, hormonal and sperm traits of hundreds of males, and found that the nest-guarding, parental males were big, black and had wide heads. The small female-like sneaker males were tiny, mottled brown and had narrow heads. Both types of males produced sperm, but sneakers produced more sperm than the parental males, and had bigger testes. By contrast, parental males have bigger glands used to produce pheromones that attract females.

Funding for the research was provided by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), Canada Fund for Innovation, the Ministry of Research and Innovation and the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO).

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/06/090615112225.htm