Nemateleotris is a small genus of dartfishes in the bony fish family Gobiidae (gobies). Members of the genus are small (rarely exceeding 7 cm, or 2.8 inches, total length), brightly colored, elongate and moderately compressed fishes.They possess an elongate pennant-like first dorsal fin which they flick back and forth repeatedly, often in synchrony with their pelvic fins.They are frequently found hovering close to the substrate near or in coral reefs at depths between 6-100 m (20-328 feet), especially in areas replete with sand channels and loose coral rubble.Their diet primarily plankton and other small invertebrates which they pick out of the water column.They are most frequently observed singly or in pairs, juveniles sometimes in small groups, often mixed with other plankton feeders.When startled they quickly dart into small holes or crevices in the substrate, emerging a few minutes later when the threat has passed.
Nemateleotris currently includes five scientifically recognized species native to the Indian and Pacific oceans.“The new species, the lavender-blushed dartfish (Nemateleotris lavandula), is described on the basis of the holotype from Augulupelu Reef, Palau, and twelve paratypes from across the western and central Pacific Ocean, including Fiji, Guam, Japan, and the Marshall Islands,” said Dr. Yi-Kai Tea from the Australian Museum Research Institute and the University of Sydney and Dr. Helen Larson from the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory.“It was previously confused with the Helfrich’s dartfish (Nemateleotris helfrichi), but molecular analysis reveals a difference of 1% in sequence data between both species, in addition to differences in morphometric measurements, live, and preserved coloration details.”Nemateleotris lavandula measures 5 cm (2 inches) in length has a lavender to lilac body, becoming increasingly pale toward caudal peduncle.
The species is widespread across much of the western and central Pacific Ocean.“Its distribution follows the northwestern contours of the Pacific Plate, from Yakushima Island in southern Japan, throughout the Ryukyu and the Ogasawara Islands, and south to Taiwan and the northern Philippines, extending east across Micronesia, including the Caroline Islands, the Marshall Islands, and the Mariana Islands,” the researchers said.“In Melanesia, the species has been reported from Fiji, Vanuatu, and New Caledonia.”“It has also been reported from Samoa, American Samoa, Tonga, the Coral Sea, and Hicks Reef on the Great Barrier Reef.”“It frequents seaward sand channels and rubble pans adjacent to coral reefs at depths between 25-100 m (82-328 feet).”
The discovery is reported in a paper in the Raffles Bulletin of Zoology.
Yi-Kai Tea & Helen K. Larson. 2023. Synopsis of the ptereleotrine goby genus Nemateleotris, with description of a new species from the western and central Pacific Ocean (Teleostei: Gobiidae). Raffles Bulletin of Zoology 71: 248-266; doi: 10.26107/RBZ-2023-0019
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