Decorated goby
Istigobius decoratus
Valid name (FishBase; confirmed in Eschmeyer's Catalog of Fishes and WoRMS, October 2026).
- English
- Decorated goby
- Scientific
- Istigobius decoratus
- Dhivehi
- ނަލަ ފުންނަNala funna
- Group
- Reef fish
- Family
- Gobiidae (gobies)
- Maximum size
- Up to about 13 cm (total length) (FishBase); MRS 1997 gives max. 13 cm
- Depth and habitat
- Coral reefs and reef-associated habitats, recorded from 1 to 25 m (usually 1 to 18 m)
- IUCN status
- LC · Least ConcernLeast Concern (LC), assessed 2017
Description
A light brown goby with a honeycomb of dark scale edges, rows of white and black spots and a row of paired dark spots along the middle of the side. It lives alone on coralline sand near clean reefs, from shallow water to about 18 m. Its colour varies a lot between places, from very pale to quite dark.
In the Maldives
Dhivehi Wikipedia (MRS-derived) gives nala funna, a name coined in MRS (1997).
Sources
- fishbase.se /summary/Istigobius-decoratus.html
- fao.org /4/AD471E/AD471E00.htm
- dv.wikipedia.org /wiki/ނަލަ_ފުންނަ
- commons.wikimedia.org /wiki/File:Istigobius_decoratus.jpg
Dhivehi name source: M.R.S. (1997) Fishes of the Maldives (FAO/BOBP MAG/21) gives 'Nala funna' (Latin form). Thaana from the Dhivehi Wikipedia article 'ނަލަ ފުންނަ' (derived from the MRS 1997 Dhivehi edition); it matches the Latin form. FLAG: the source states no traditional name was recorded and this descriptive name was coined for the book; it is not an established fishermen's name.