Ponticola kessleri
| Bighead goby | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Perciformes |
| Suborder: | Gobioidei |
| Family: | Gobiidae |
| Subfamily: | Benthophilinae |
| Genus: | Ponticola |
| Species: | P. kessleri |
| Binomial name | |
|
Ponticola kessleri (Günther, 1861) |
|
 |
|
| The range of the bighead goby | |
| Synonyms | |
|
|
| External identifiers for Ponticola kessleri | |
|---|---|
| Encyclopedia of Life | 4668397 |
| ITIS | 172071 |
| NCBI | 320565 |
| WoRMS | 125996 |
| Also found in: FishBase | |
Ponticola kessleri, the bighead goby or Kessler's goby, is a species of goby native to Eurasia. The bighead goby is a Ponto-Caspian relict species. It inhabits the fresh and oligohaline waters, with mineralisation from 0-0.5‰ up to 1.5-3.0‰.
This species has a big flattened head, strongly expended upper lip, prolonged-conical body and thickened anterior. The mandibula is longer than maxilla. It reaches 22 centimeters (8.7 in). A triangular dark spot is visible near the caudal fin. The collar of its abdominal sucker has blades. The sucker does not reach the anus. It is red- or grey-brown with 5 transverse lines on the back, one of which is on the basis of the caudal fin. The head has light round spots with a white margin on sides. The basis of the pectoral fin has wave-shaped brown spots, odd fins have lines of black spots.
This species is distinguished from related Black Sea basin inhabitants by the following: 75-95% of its length is between its origin and anus; ctenoid scales completely cover the predorsal area and nape; pelvic disc fraenum with angular lobes, Distinguishing characteristics include a fraenum with length 1/6-1/2 of its width at base, midlateral series scales 68-72 +3-4, a snout length 1.5-2.0 times its eye diameter, that its first branched ray of second dorsal is about as long as penultimate ray and that the posterior part of first dorsal is without a black spot.
It is present in lagoons and estuaries of the north-western Black Sea, near the Bulgarian coast, especially in lakes Mandra, Vaya, Varna, Beloslavsko. In the Danube River the original distribution of the bighead goby reached Vidin and was common in the lakes of the Danube delta. It inhabits the rivers Dniester up to Kamianets-Podilskyi, small rivers Zbruch and Bystrytsia. Dnieper up to Dnipropetrovsk, also in the Southern Bug River.
...
Wikipedia