''Elacatinus atronasus'' is a species of

ray-finned fish Actinopterygii (; ), members of which are known as ray-finned fish or actinopterygians, is a class of bony fish that comprise over 50% of living vertebrate species. They are so called because of their lightly built fins made of webbings of sk ...

in the

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Gobiidae Gobiidae or gobies is a family (biology), family of bony fish in the order (biology), order Gobiiformes, one of the largest fish families comprising over 2,000 species in more than 200 genus, genera. Most of gobiid fish are relatively small, typ ...

which is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

to a single reef in

Exuma Sound Exuma Sound is a body of water in the Bahama Islands.''Merriam Webster's Geographical Dictionary, Third Edition'', p. 373. Springfield, Massachusetts: Merriam-Webster, Incorporated, 1997. It lies southeast of New Providence Island and Eleuther ...

in the Bahamas. It is a species associated with a coral reefs but unlike many other species in the genus ''

Elacatinus ''Elacatinus'' is a genus of small marine gobies, often known collectively as the neon gobies. Although only one species, ''E. oceanops'', is technically the "neon goby", because of their similar appearance, other members of the genus are g ...

'' it does not engage in cleaning behaviour, feeding instead on particulate

zooplankton Zooplankton are the heterotrophic component of the planktonic community (the " zoo-" prefix comes from ), having to consume other organisms to thrive. Plankton are aquatic organisms that are unable to swim effectively against currents. Consequent ...

. It occurs in large, mixed groups in the vicinity of vertical faces which have plentiful holes and near undercut ledges. It forms schools above the sea floor where has been recorded as remaining stationary, hovering above corals by day, resting on the coral during the night. Its reproductive behaviour is unknown. The

IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. Founded in 1948, IUCN has become the global authority on the status ...

assess ''Elacatinus atronasus'' as

endangered An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching, inv ...

due to its restricted range and the perceived vulnerability of this species to predation by the invasive

lionfish ''Pterois'' is a genus of venomous fish, venomous marine fish, commonly known as the lionfish, native to the Indo-Pacific. It is characterized by conspicuous aposematism, warning coloration with red or black bands and ostentatious dorsal fins tip ...

, ''

Pterois miles ''Pterois miles'', the devil firefish or common lionfish, is a species of ray-finned fish native to the western Indo-Pacific region. It is frequently confused with its close relative, the red lionfish (''Pterois volitans''). The scientific name ...

'' and ''

Pterois volitans The red lionfish (''Pterois volitans'') is a venomous coral reef fish in the family Scorpaenidae, order Scorpaeniformes. It is mainly native to the Indo-Pacific region, but has become an invasive species in the Caribbean Sea, as well as along the ...

''.

References

{{Taxonbar, from = Q785108 atronasus Fish described in 1968