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Mudskippers are members of the subfamily Oxudercinae (tribe: Periophthalmini; Murdy, 1989), within the family Gobiidae (Gobies). While most marine fish live in intertidal habitats, surviving the retreat of the tide by hiding under wet seaweed or by using tide pools, mudskippers are uniquely adapted to a completely amphibious lifestyle (Graham, 1997). Mudskippers are found only in tropical and subtropical regions, having a geographical distribution that includes all the Indo-Pacific and the Atlantic coast of Africa. Mudskippers are very active when out of water, feeding and interacting with one another, for example to defend their territories.
These amphibious fish display a range of behavioural and physiological adaptations. Compared with normal, fully aquatic gobies, these include:
- Anatomical and behavioural adaptations that allow them to move effectively on land as well as in the water (Harris, 1961).
- The ability to breathe through their skin and also through the lining of the mouth (the mucosa) and throat (the pharynx). This is only possible when the mudskipper is wet, limiting mudskippers to humid habitats and requiring that they keep themselves moist. This mode of breathing, similar to that employed by amphibians, is known as cutaneous breathing (Graham, 1997).
- Digging of deep burrows in soft sediments that allow the fish to thermoregulate (Tytler & Vaughan, 1983); avoid marine predators during the high tide when the fish and burrow are submerged (Sasekumar et al., 1994); and for laying their eggs (Brillet, 1969).
Even when their burrow is submerged, mudskippers maintain an air pocket inside it, which allows them to breathe in conditions of environmental very low oxygen concentration (Ishimatsu et al., 1998; 2000; Lee et al., 2005).
The diverse and widespread genus Periophthalmus is by far the most diverse genus of mudskipper. Seventeen species are currently recognised (Larson & Takita, 2005). Periophthalmus argentilineatus is one of the most widespread and well known mudskippers. This species can be found in mangrove ecosystems and mudflats of East Africa and Madagascar east through South East Asia to Northern Australia, Hong Kong and Southern Japan, up to Samoa and Tonga Islands (Murdy, 1989). It grows to a length of about 6 in (15 cm) and is a carnivorous opportunist feeder. It feeds on small prey such as small crabs and other arthropods (Milward, 1974). Another species, Periophthalmus barbarus, is the only oxudercine goby that inhabits the coastal areas of Western Africa (Murdy, 1989). Both these mudskippers are widely traded as aquarium fish.
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"Mudskipper"