Lyre Goby, Evorthodus lyricus
Lyre Goby, Evorthodus lyricus, Female. Fish caught within the Indian River Lagoon, Micco, Florida, May 2021. Length: 7.6 cm (3.0 inches). Catch, photograph and identification courtesy of Ben Cantrell, Sebastian, Florida.
Lyre Goby, Evorthodus lyricus, Female. Fish caught in coastal waters of Palm Beach County, Florida, August 2021. Length: 7.6 cm (3.0 inches). Catch, photograph and identification courtesy of Luke Ovgard, Klamath Falls, Oregon.
Lyre Goby, Evorthodus lyricus, Male. Fish caught in coastal waters off Gulf Shores, Alabama, September 2023. Length: 7.6 cm (3.0 inches). Catch, photograph and identification courtesy of Luke Ovgard, Klamath Falls, Oregon.
The Lyre Goby, Evorthodus lyricus, is a member of the Goby or Gobiidae Family, and known in Mexico as tismiche. Globally, there are three species in the genus Evorthodus, two of which are found in Mexican waters, one in the Atlantic and one in the Pacific Ocean.
The Lyre Goby has an elongated robust body. They are sexually dimorphic with males greenish-tan dorsally and 5 or 6 black bars and a blotch on the sides and a caudal fin with 2 reddish horizontal stripes bordered with a central black stripe, and greenish pelvic fins with a white boarder; the females are light tan with 2 alternating rows of dark spots on the sides, black gill covers, a dusky caudal fin, a first dorsal fin that is dusky orange with oval black spots on the membranes, a large dark blotch on the base of the fin that extends onto the upper back; the anal fin and second dorsal fin are dusky orange and the caudal peduncle has two black diamond-shaped spots. They have a short, compressed head with a steeply rounded profile with a short mouth, equipped with flattened teeth set in a single row on the sides of the jaws and an overhanging snout. Their anal fin has 1 spine and 11 or 12 rays; their caudal fin is oval in males and large and round in females; their dorsal fin has 6 spines (which are elongated in males); their second dorsal fin has 1 spine and 10 or 11 rays; and, their pelvic fins are fused in the disc. They are covered with large scales. They do not have a lateral line.
The Lyre Goby is a demersal species found in bays, estuaries and tidal freshwater over muddy substrate this is found at depths up to 10 m (33 feet). They are capable of tolerating a board range of salinities and they are known to enter fresh water They reach a maximum of 15 cm (5.9 inches). Reproduction is oviparous and occurs in small tidal pools on the salt marsh surface. The Lyre Goby is poorly studied with very limited information available about their lifestyle and behavioral patterns including specific details on age, growth, longevity, movement patterns, diet, habitat use, and reproduction.
The Lyre Goby is a resident of all Mexican waters of the Atlantic Ocean including the Gulf of Mexico and the east coast of the Yucatán Peninsula in the Caribbean. In some areas they are locally abundant.
The Lyre Goby can be confused with the Highfin Goby, Gobionellus oceanicus (large silvery green ocellus under the dorsal fin).
From a conservation perspective the Lyre Goby is currently considered to be of Least Concern with stable, widely distributed populations. Their long-term viability is threatened by coastal development and related pollution destroying their native habitats. They are very small in stature and of limited interest to most.