Species: Cerdale paludicola, Mangrove worm-goby

belly - row dark dots

Cerdale paludicola Dawson, 1974
Mangrove worm-goby
Body short, stubby, eel-like, body height ~ 10% of SL; tail longer than head and body; mouth strongly oblique, lower jaw projecting; top lip with a two-lobed cirrus between the front and rear nostrils; lower lip notched below front nostril; lower lip with broad fleshy expansion at rear; chin ridged on sides; 2 rows of teeth on each jaw, conical outer row, chisel-like inner row; gill opening tubular; dorsal fin spines of equal height and spacing X-XII, 30-33, origin over or behind pectoral fin; anal rays 0, 28-32 ; pectoral rays 15; dorsal and anal fins unconnected to tail fin; scales small, close-set to slightly overlapping on head and upper body; body completely scaled except for mouth and area before rear nostril; tail fin with inner ½ scaled; a few scales on base of pelvics.
Brown to tan, paler below; top of head mottled; sometimes 3 narrow pale bars angled across operculum and cheek; scales on sides with dark margins; mid-belly with row of dark dots; front of chin dark; fins pale; pupil dark grey.
Size: 8 cm.
Habitat: mangrove swamps, including high intertidal.
Depth: 0-2 m.
Costa Rica to Ecuador.

High Resolution Map Download
- Salinity
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- Brackish
- Non Marine
- Inshore/Offshore
-
- Inshore Only
- Inshore
- Water Column Position
-
- Bottom only
- Bottom
- Habitat
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- Mangrove
- Estuary
- Soft bottom (mud/sand/gravel/beach/estuary/mangrove/seagrass)
- Soft bottom only
- FishBase Habitat
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- Demersal
- Feeding Group
-
- No Data
- Carnivore
- Diet
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- Mobile benthic crustacea (shrimps/crabs)
- Zooplankton
- Data
- Egg Type
-
- No data
- Pelagic larva
- Benthic
- Global Endemism
-
- All species
- Tropical Eastern Pacific (TEP) endemic
- East Pacific endemic
- Regional Endemism
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- TEP endemic
- Continent only
- Panamic province endemic
- Continental TEP endemic
- Continent
- All species
- Residency
-
- Resident
- Climate Zone
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- Equatorial (Costa Rica to Ecuador + Galapagos, Clipperton, Cocos, Malpelo)
- IUCN Red List
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- Data deficient
- Listed
- CITES
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- Not listed
- Length Max
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- 8
- Depth Range Min
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- 0
- Depth Range Max
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- 2