# Rock goby

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> Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rock_goby
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{{Short description|Species of fish}}
{{Speciesbox
| image = Gobius_paganellus.jpg
| image_caption = In [Tuscany](/source/Tuscany), [Italy](/source/Italy)
| status = LC
| status_system = IUCN3.1
| status_ref = <ref name = IUCN>{{cite journal | author1 = Carpenter, K.E. | author2 = Smith-Vaniz, W.F. | author3 = de Bruyne, G. | author4 = de Morais, L. | name-list-style=amp | year= 2015 | title = ''Gobius paganellus'' | journal = [The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species](/source/The_IUCN_Red_List_of_Threatened_Species) | volume = 2015 | page = e.T198662A21913408 | doi = 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2015-4.RLTS.T198662A21913408.en | doi-access = free }}</ref>
| taxon = Gobius paganellus
| authority = [Linnaeus](/source/Carl_Linnaeus), [1758](/source/10th_edition_of_Systema_Naturae)
| synonyms = 
* ''Bathygobius paganellus'' <small>(Linnaeus, 1758)</small>
* ''Gobius bicolor'' <small>[J. F. Gmelin](/source/Johann_Friedrich_Gmelin), 1789</small>
* ''Gobius capito'' <small>[Valenciennes](/source/Achille_Valenciennes), 1837</small>
* ''Gobius punctipinnis'' <small>[Canestrini](/source/Giovanni_Canestrini), 1862</small>
* ''Gobius capitonellus'' <small>Kessler, 1874</small>
* ''Gobius albosignatus'' <small>[Kessler](/source/Karl_Fedorovich_Kessler), 1874</small>
}}

The '''rock goby''' (''Gobius paganellus'') is a small [coast](/source/coast)al [goby](/source/goby) of eastern [Atlantic](/source/Atlantic) waters, from [Scotland](/source/Scotland) to [Senegal](/source/Senegal).<ref>Miller P.J. (1986) Gobiidae. In: Whitehead P.J.P., Bauchot M.-L., Hureau J.-C., Nielsen J., Tortonese E. (eds.) Fishes of the North-eastern Atlantic and the Mediterranean, Vol. 3. UNESCO, Paris.</ref> It is also reported from the [Mediterranean](/source/Mediterranean) and [Black Sea](/source/Black_Sea)s, and is an [anti-Lessepsian migrant](/source/Lessepsian_migration) in the [Gulf of Aqaba](/source/Gulf_of_Aqaba) and the [Red Sea](/source/Red_Sea). There are unconfirmed records from the area around [Pointe Noire](/source/Pointe_Noire) in [Congo-Brazzaville](/source/Congo-Brazzaville).<ref name=FishBase>{{FishBase |genus= Gobius|species= paganellus| month = June | year = 2013}}</ref>

==Description==
The rock goby is usually black with white blotches, but they can change color, and males are much more black when guarding the eggs.  The neck area lacks scales and there is a pale band on the top of the first dorsal fin. Both dorsal fins lack black spots on their leading edges. This species can reach a length of {{convert|12|cm|in}} [TL](/source/fish_measurement) and has been known to live for ten years.<ref name=FishBase/>

==Distribution and habitat==
The rock goby is found in the temperate East Atlantic and the Mediterranean Sea. Its range extends from western Scotland southwards to the Azores and Senegal, most of the [Mediterranean Sea](/source/Mediterranean_Sea) and the [Black Sea](/source/Black_Sea). It sometimes migrates through the [Suez Canal](/source/Suez_Canal) to the [Red Sea](/source/Red_Sea) and the [Gulf of Aqaba](/source/Gulf_of_Aqaba). It prefers rocky [sea floor](/source/sea_floor)s below the low tidemark, although it can be found in larger [rock pool](/source/rock_pool)s in Summer. It may also live in fresh or brackish water. It can be found at depths of from {{convert|0|to|15|m|ft}}.<ref name=FishBase/>

==Behaviour==
The rock goby eats small [crab](/source/crab)s and [amphipod](/source/amphipod)s, [polychaete](/source/polychaete)s, [larva](/source/larva), small [fish](/source/fish), [Calanus](/source/Calanus), [copepod](/source/copepod), and [mite](/source/mite)s.<ref name=FishBase/>

== Reproduction ==
The rock goby reproduces in spring. It nests in rocky areas near the [kelp forest](/source/kelp_forest). Up to 7000 eggs are laid under rocks and shells in a single layer (2.5&nbsp;mm in height), and guarded aggressively by the male. The eggs hatch in about 19 days.

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

{{Taxonbar|from=Q1907084}}

rock goby
Category:Marine fish of Europe
Category:Marine fish of West Africa
Category:Fauna of Macaronesia
Category:Fish of the Mediterranean Sea
rock goby
rock goby

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Rock goby](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rock_goby) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rock_goby?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.