Barbuligobius boehlkei, a New Indo-Pacific Genus and Species of Gobiidae (Pisces), with Notes on the Genera Callogobius and Pipidonia

Barbuligobius boehlkei, a new genus and new species of six-spined Gobiidae from the Indo-Pacific region is described and illustrated. The new taxa are characterized by the presence of numerous large barbels and some fleshy flaps on the snout and chin, those on the chin arranged in two regular rows; the almost total absence of cutaneous papillae on the head; a large, expanded pelvic structure, extending beyond the origin of the anal fin, with a small, fragile frenum; sensory pore pattern almost complete, lacking only the anterior interorbital pore; head depressed; a small species, less than 24 mm SL, with large scales on the body. Barbuligobius is represented by 16 specimens from the Seychelles Islands, Raphael Island, Ceylon and Taiwan. It probably is most closely related to the genus Pipidonia, which is redefined. Barbuligobius is compared with Pipidonia and Callogobius.