Brachygobius

Brachygobius is a small genus of gobies. They are popular aquarium fish where a number of species are sold as bumblebee gobies because their colours are similar to those of bumblebees.^[1]

Brachygobius
Bumblebee Fish (B. xanthozonus)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Actinopterygii
Order:	Gobiiformes
Family:	Oxudercidae
Subfamily:	Gobionellinae
Genus:	Brachygobius Bleeker, 1874
Type species
Gobius doriae Günther, 1868
Synonyms
Hypogymnogobius Bleeker, 1874 Thaigobiella H. M. Smith, 1931

Morphology

Bumblebee gobies range in size from 1.5 cm to 4 cm.^[2] They are generally coloured black with pale yellow to orange bands.^[3] Males are generally slimmer than females and often have more vivid colours, typically orange rather than yellow.^[3] Females may also have smaller and rounder heads.^[2] When spawning, the colours of the males become deeper, the orange bands becoming red in the case of Brachygobius doriae.^[2]

Taxonomy

This genus is informally divided by taxonomists into the dwarf Brachygobius nunus-species group (e.g., B. nunus, B. aggregatus, and B. mekongensis) and the bigger Brachygobius doriae-species group (e.g., B. doriae, B. sabanus, and B. xanthomelas).^[2]

Species

There are currently nine recognized species in this genus:^[4]

• Brachygobius aggregatus Herre, 1940 (Schooling bumblebee goby)
• Brachygobius doriae (Günther, 1868) (Bumblebee goby)
• Brachygobius kabiliensis Inger, 1958 (Kabili bumblebee goby)
• Brachygobius mekongensis Larson & Vidthayanon, 2000
• Brachygobius nunus (F. Hamilton, 1822)
• Brachygobius sabanus Inger, 1958
• Brachygobius sua (H. M. Smith, 1931)
• Brachygobius xanthomelas Herre, 1937
• Brachygobius xanthozonus (Bleeker, 1849) (Bumblebee fish)

Ecology

Bumblebee gobies are found across Southern and Southeast Asia primarily in freshwater habitats but also in slightly brackish waters.^[2][3]

Reproduction

These gobies are oviparous. Eggs are deposited in a cave where they are guarded by the male.^[3] Clutch size is around 150–200 eggs.^[5] The eggs hatch after around seven days and the fry become free swimming another five to seven days later.^[3]

In the aquarium

Bumblebee gobies are popular aquarium fish.^[5] A tank around 40 liters in size will house a dozen specimens comfortably. Under good conditions, they can live in an aquarium for around 5 years.^[3] The most commonly traded species in the hobby belong to the Brachygobius doriae-species group but the smaller Brachygobius nunus is also traded occasionally.^[2][3] Although many aquarium books use the name Brachygobius xanthozona, this species is very rare in the wild and is not commercially traded.^[3]