Find a Fish
Decora Goby
Valenciennea decora Hoese & Larson, 1994
Above and below: A Decora Goby at a depth of 21m, North Solitary Island, New South Wales, January 2003. View larger image.
The Decora Goby has a yellow stripe on the lower side of the body and either one or four to five bars crossing the sides. There are two or three blue stripes on the head. The top of the head and snout have blue spots. The first dorsal fin has a black blotch.
This species grows to about 12cm in length.
It occurs in tropical marine waters of New Caledonia, Fiji and Australia.
In Australia it is known from the southern Great Barrier Reef and northern New South Wales.
The species name decora comes from the Latin word decorus meaning adorned or elegant.
View a map of the collecting localities of specimens in the Australian Museum Fish Collection.
Further reading
- Hoese, D.F & Larson, H.K. 1994. Revision of the Indo-Pacific Gobiid Fish Genus Valenciennea, with Descriptions of Seven New Species. Indo-Pacific Fishes. 23: 1-71.
