Gobies (Teleostei: Gobiidae) of the oldest and deepest Caspian Sea sub-basin: an evidence-based annotated checklist and a key for species identification Author Zarei, Fatah 0000-0001-5552-4301 Ichthyology and Molecular Systematics Research Laboratory, Zoology Section, Department of Biology, College of Sciences, Shiraz University, Shiraz, Iran. & fataahzarei @ gmail. com; https: // orcid. org / 0000 - 0001 - 5552 - 4301 fataahzarei@gmail.com Author Esmaeili, Hamid Reza 0000-0002-9736-397X Ichthyology and Molecular Systematics Research Laboratory, Zoology Section, Department of Biology, College of Sciences, Shiraz University, Shiraz, Iran. & hresmaeili @ shirazu. ac. ir; https: // orcid. org / 0000 - 0002 - 9736 - 397 X hresmaeili@shirazu.ac.ir Author Abbasi, Keyvan Inland Waters Aquaculture Research Center, Iranian Fisheries Sciences Research Institute, Agricultural Research, Education and Extension Organization, Bandar Anzali, Iran. Author Kovačić, Marcelo Natural History Museum Rijeka, Lorenzov prolaz 1, HR- 51000 Rijeka, Croatia. Author Schliewen, Ulrich K. 0000-0003-0187-4319 SNSB-Bavarian State Collection of Zoology, Department of Ichthyology, Münchhausenstr. 21, 81247 München, Germany. schliewen @ snsb. de; https: // orcid. org / 0000 - 0003 - 0187 - 4319 schliewen@snsb.de Author Stepien, Carol A. 0000-0002-5544-4333 National Museum of Natural History, Department of Vertebrate Zoology, Smithsonian Institution, Washington D. C, USA. StepienCA @ si. edu; https: // orcid. org / 0000 - 0002 - 5544 - 4333 text Zootaxa 2022 2022-09-28 5190 2 151 193 journal article 153839 10.11646/zootaxa.5190.2.1 60faa853-726d-4b71-a3cb-c21a0087515f 1175-5326 7120060 92BFDA7A-28C0-4816-8A91-CFB842C95E96 28. Neogobius melanostomus (Pallas, 1814) ( Fig. 24 ), Round Goby Gobius melanostomus Pallas, 1814: 151 ; type locality: Sevastopol , Balaklava , Ukraine ; types : no types known. Etymology: Greek, melanos = black + Greek, stoma = mouth, means black-mouthed, but might be thought to refer to the conspicuous black spot typically present on the rear part of first dorsal fin. FIGURE 24. Neogobius melanostomus . Off Anzali, Gilan Province, Iran. Distribution and habitat: Widely distributed in the Ponto-Caspian basin ( Fig. 22C ). Present in all three areas of the Caspian Sea and entering various rivers of the Caspian Sea drainage. A benthic euryhaline species, inhabiting from the entirely of freshwaters of rivers and lakes to brackish polyhaline salinities ( Pinchuk et al. 2003d ). Laboratory experiments by Karsiotis et al. (2012) discerned broad salinity tolerances in the population that has established in the central Laurentian Great Lakes of North America, from 0–20 ppt, even without acclimation. This indicates high osmoregulatory capability. Remarks: Navozov (1912) distinguished the Caspian N. melanostomus as a separate subspecies, N. m. affinis Eichwald, 1831. Molecular data by Zarei et al. (2021) suggested three allopatric lineages, with shallow genealogical separations: (i) the Caspian Sea basin lineage corresponding to N. m. affinis ; (ii) a second lineage from the Black Sea basin (native range), European and North American locations (invasive samples) corresponding to the typological subspecies; and (iii) a third lineage distributed in Sinop , northern Turkey (Southern Black Sea basin). Material examined: ZM-CBSU S031, 108, off Astara ; ZM-CBSU S035, 1, Anzali Wetland ; ZM-CBSU S035, 6, off Anzali ; ZM-CBSU S059, 42, Sefidroud mouth, Gilan Province , Iran . IUCN: LC ( Freyhof & Kottelat 2008i ).