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 19. Benthophilus spinosus Kessler, 1877 , Spiny Tadpole Goby Benthophilus spinosus Kessler, 1877: 50 ; type locality: Middle Caspian Sea region , depth 42.7 m ; lectotype : ZISP 10896, syntypes : (5) BMNH 1897.7 .5.17 [ex MLSU] (1), others lost. Etymology: Latin, spinosus = prickly or thorny, refers to the well-developed spiny tubercles. Distribution and habitat: Eastern and western coasts of the Middle Caspian Sea, southeastern North Caspian Sea (from Kulaly Island south to Mangyshlak Peninsula), and the northwestern and northeastern South Caspian Sea ( Fig. 11C ). No records from Iran . Sampled at 10–25 m during the spawning season and down to 40–45 m in winter ( Boldyrev & Bogutskaya 2007 ). IUCN: LC ( Bogutskaya 2020i ).