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 8. Benthophilus granulosus Kessler, 1877 ( Fig. 10 ), Granular Tadpole Goby Benthophilus granulosus Kessler, 1877: 57 , fig. 14; type locality: Baku Bay , Caspian Sea , Azerbaijan ; lectotype : ZISP [= ZIN] 2242, syntypes : (7 + 1) BMNH 1897.7 .5.14 [ex ZIN] (1), ZIN 10898 (1, damaged). Etymology: Latin, granulatus = covered or composed of grains, refers to the granular appearance of the skin. Distribution and habitat: Coastal waters in all three sub-basins of the Caspian Sea ( Fig. 11A ), also enters river deltas. Eurybathic, during the warm season, it inhabits shallow coastal waters ( 0.5–20 m ), then migrates to deeper places (down to 60–70 m ) in the winter ( Boldyrev & Bogutskaya 2007 ). Marked for Iran on the minimap in Pinchuk & Miller ( 2004x ), but according to Boldyrev & Bogutskaya (2007) lacked Iranian records, but now has been confirmed in Iran by Abbasi (2017) and by the present study’s examined material. Material examined: ZM-CBSU S006, 1, off Anzali & ZM-CBSU S023, 2, off Chaboksar , Gilan Province , Iran . IUCN: LC ( Freyhof & Kottelat 2008c ).