Goby ID?

Are there any goby experts who might know what these gobies are? All the photos are from Kokopo (next to Rabaul) in PNG, between 7 and 10 meters depth, mucky bottom.

I think the first one is a species of Vanderhorstia, but not sure. I have no idea for the other two. They are all shrimp gobies.

Thanks,

Tony

Update: Got an ID of V. ornatissima for the third one. Looks right to me.

Nice images, I will try to ID when I get to my office, but if I can't, is it ok if I send the images to some specialist colleagues?

Luiz

Hi Luiz,

No problem. Have just been getting help from a guy in Japan who seems to know a lot about gobies.

It's looking like they're all Vanderhorstia species. The first one seems to resemble a goby that's spotted often in Bali, commonly referred to as a "spangled shrimp goby" (photos show up with a google search). The second might be V. lanceolata. Not too sure about that ID though. The third seems to be V. ornatissima.

Cheers,

Tony