Biology and ecology of amphidromous Gobiidae of the Indo-Pacific and the Caribbean regions

In the Indo-Pacific and the Caribbean regions, isolated rivers are host to amphidromous Gobiidae with a life cycle adapted to extreme climatic and hydrological seasonal variation. Although this is the most diverse family of freshwater fish, their biological cycle and the parameters and evolutionary processes that lead to such diversity are poorly understood. This paper reports on the current knowledge on reproduction (nidification, spawning, larval life and sexuality), recruitment into the rivers, upstream migration and distribution in the rivers. Management and restoration strategies to preserve amphidromous gobies, often endemic and bordering on extinction, require the development of research to have a better understanding of their life cycle. (C) 2003 The Fisheries Society of the British Isles.