Black Gudgeon
Eleotris melanosoma
- Usual depth0–2 m
- Water temperature23–30 °C
- Best monthsApril
- How commonOccasional
About this species
Eleotris melanosoma, the broadhead sleeper or dusky sleeper, is a species of fish in the family Eleotridae native to marine, fresh, and brackish waters from coastal eastern Africa through southern Asia to the islands of the western Pacific Ocean. This species can reach a length of 26 cm (10 in). It is of minor importance to local commercial fisheries. This species has been introduced to the Panama Canal Zone.
Text from the Wikipedia article “Eleotris melanosoma”, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the article
Where and when
Where it has been recorded
Worldwide
Loading the map
Best months
Worldwide (open data)
- January: 7 records
- February: 15 records
- March: 10 records
- April: 61 records
- May: 29 records
- June: 15 records
- July: 27 records
- August: 18 records
- September: 35 records
- October: 19 records
- November: 22 records
- December: 5 records
Depth and water temperature
Depth
Mostly recorded at 0–2 m · Deepest record: 19.5 m
Water temperature
Recorded in surface water of 23–30 °C
Names and classification
- English
- Black Gudgeon, Black Spine-cheek Gudgeon, Black Spinecheek Gudgeon, Broadhead Sleeper, Ebony Gudgeon, ebony sleeper
Names in 4 more languages
- French
- Éléotris noir
- Japanese
- Okamehaze, オカメハゼ
- Thai
- ปลาบู่ดำ
- Simplified Chinese
- 黑體塘鱧
Other scientific names: Culius insulindicus, Culius melanosoma, Eleotris hainanensis, Eleotris melanura, Eleotris melanurus, Eleotris pseudacanthopomus
Similar species
Dusky sleeperEleotris fusca
- Snakehead gudgeon
Giuris margaritaceus
Green-backed GuavinaBunaka gyrinoides
- Doublespot Coralgudgeon
Calumia godeffroyi
- Deepreef Coralgudgeon
Calumia profunda
- Golden Carp-gudgeon
Hypseleotris cyprinoides
Sources and credits
Names and taxonomy: WoRMS (CC BY 4.0) and the GBIF Backbone (CC BY 4.0). Photos: iNaturalist observers, each under the licence shown (CC0, CC BY or CC BY-SA).
- Depth, temperature, months and maps: records from OBIS and GBIF under CC0 or CC BY.
- Descriptions: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA, each linked to its article.
- Conservation status as published by GBIF (IUCN Red List).
- 591 open-data records from 1929 to 2023.
- Species data updated October 26, 2026.
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