''Aphia minuta'', the transparent goby, is a species of the goby native to the northeastern Atlantic Ocean where it can be found from Trondheim, Norway to Morocco. It is also found in the Mediterranean, Black Sea and the

Sea of Azov The Sea of Azov ( Crimean Tatar: ''Azaq deñizi''; russian: Азовское море, Azovskoye more; uk, Азовське море, Azovs'ke more) is a sea in Eastern Europe connected to the Black Sea by the narrow (about ) Strait of Kerch, ...

. It is a pelagic species, inhabiting inshore waters and estuaries. It can be found at depths of from the surface to , though it is usually found at , over sandy and muddy bottoms and also in eelgrass beds. This species can reach a length of TL. It is an important species to local commercial fisheries. It is currently the only known member of its genus.

Gastronomy

This fish is appreciated in Spain as part of the

Andalusian Andalusia is a region in Spain. Andalusian may also refer to: Animals *Andalusian chicken, a type of chicken *Andalusian donkey, breed of donkey *Andalusian hemipode, a buttonquail, one of a small family of birds *Andalusian horse, a breed of ho ...

, Catalan and Valencian cuisines, and in Italy as part of the Italian cuisine. In Andalusia where they are called ''chanquetes'', they are traditionally served deep-fried, with fried eggs and roasted or fried

bell pepper The bell pepper (also known as paprika, sweet pepper, pepper, or capsicum ) is the fruit of plants in the Grossum Group of the species ''Capsicum annuum''. Cultivars of the plant produce fruits in different colors, including red, yellow, orange ...

. Due to their high price and to their now protected species status in Spain, they are often replaced by some species of East Asian noodlefishes, locally called ''chanquete chino'' (Chinese ''chanquete''), '' Neosalanx tangkahkeii'' and '' Protosalanx''. This replacement is often done openly, but sometimes it is done fraudulently.

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transparent goby Marine fish of Europe Marine fauna of North Africa Fish of Western Asia Fish of the Mediterranean Sea Fish of the Black Sea Fish of the North Sea transparent goby Monotypic fish genera {{Gobiidae-stub