Biodiversity & Conservation

Giant goby - Gobius cobitis - General information

Gobius cobitis

Image Robin Gibson - Gobius cobitis, in a Brittany rockpool. Image width ca 25 cm.
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Distribution map

Gobius cobitis recorded (dark blue bullet) and expected (light blue bullet) distribution in Britain and Ireland (see below)

Why do the maps differ?

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  • WC_Act_1981

General information

Key Icon Researched by: Karen Riley Text page icon Refereed by: Prof. Robert Patzner

Taxonomy icon Taxonomy

Phylum Chordata Sea squirts, fish, reptiles, birds and mammals
Class Actinopterygii Ray-finned fish, e.g. sturgeon, eels, fin fish, gobies, blennies, and seahorses
Map icon Recorded distribution in Britain and Ireland The distribution of Gobius cobitis in Britain is restricted to the south-west coast of England, from Wembury to the Isles of Scilly.
Habitat information icon Habitat information In Britain, Gobius cobitis is found typically in the intertidal in high shore rock pools on sheltered shores. It is often found in brackish water with Ulva spp. present in the rockpools.
Text page icon Description The giant goby has relatively small and well spaced eyes, a short tail stalk and a deep body throughout its length. Greyish to olive brown in colour with 'pepper and salt' speckling. Dark blotches appear along and below the lateral midline. The edges of the dorsal, tail and anal fins are light greyish in colour. Breeding males are darker in colour than females. It reaches up to 27 cm in length.

This review can be cited as follows:

Karen Riley 2005. Gobius cobitis. Giant goby. Marine Life Information Network: Biology and Sensitivity Key Information Sub-programme [on-line]. Plymouth: Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom. [cited 25/05/2013]. Available from: <http://www.marlin.ac.uk/speciesfullreview.php?speciesID=3396>