Butidae is a

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

of sleeper gobies in the order

Gobiiformes The Gobiiformes are an order of fish that includes the gobies and their relatives. The order, which was previously considered a suborder of Perciformes, is made up of about 2,211 species that are divided between seven families. Phylogenetic rel ...

. The family was formerly classified as a

subfamily In biological classification, a subfamily (Latin: ', plural ') is an auxiliary (intermediate) taxonomic rank, next below family but more inclusive than genus. Standard nomenclature rules end subfamily botanical names with "-oideae", and zoologi ...

of the

Eleotridae Eleotridae is a family of fish commonly known as sleeper gobies, with about 34 genera and 180 species. Most species are found in the tropical Indo-Pacific region, but there are also species in subtropical and temperate regions, warmer parts of th ...

but the 5th Edition of

Fishes of the World ''Fishes of the World'' by the American ichthyologist Joseph S. Nelson (1937–2011) is a standard reference for fish systematics. Now in its fifth edition (2016), the work is a comprehensive overview of the diversity and classification of the ...

classifies it as a family in its own right. Molecular

phylogenetic In biology, phylogenetics (; from Greek φυλή/ φῦλον [] "tribe, clan, race", and wikt:γενετικός, γενετικός [] "origin, source, birth") is the study of the evolutionary history and relationships among or within groups o ...

analyses have demonstrated that the Butidae are a

sister clade In phylogenetics, a sister group or sister taxon, also called an adelphotaxon, comprises the closest relative(s) of another given unit in an evolutionary tree. Definition The expression is most easily illustrated by a cladogram: Taxon A and t ...

to the

clade A clade (), also known as a monophyletic group or natural group, is a group of organisms that are monophyletic – that is, composed of a common ancestor and all its lineal descendants – on a phylogenetic tree. Rather than the English term, ...

containing the families

Gobiidae Gobiidae or gobies is a family of bony fish in the order Gobiiformes, one of the largest fish families comprising more than 2,000 species in more than 200 genera. Most of gobiid fish are relatively small, typically less than in length, and the ...

and Gobionellidae and that the Eleotridae is a sister to both of these clades. This means that the Eloetridae as formerly classified was

paraphyletic In taxonomy (general), taxonomy, a group is paraphyletic if it consists of the group's most recent common ancestor, last common ancestor and most of its descendants, excluding a few Monophyly, monophyletic subgroups. The group is said to be pa ...

and that its subfamilies should be raised to the status of families. The species in the Butidae are largely restricted to tropical and sub-tropical waters of Africa, Asia, Australia, and Oceania. They are especially diverse in New Guinea, Australia and New Zealand where they can be important components of brackish and freshwater

ecosystem An ecosystem (or ecological system) consists of all the organisms and the physical environment with which they interact. These biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and energy flows. Energy enters the syste ...

s. They are mostly quite small species but the

marbled goby ''Pomatoschistus marmoratus'', the marbled goby, is a species of goby native to the eastern Atlantic from the Bay of Biscay down around the Iberian Peninsula through the Mediterranean Sea, the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov. It is also found in ...

(''Oxyeleotris marmorata'') is a freshwater species of Buitdae from Southeast Asia that can grow to long and is an important food fish.Riehl, R. & Baensch, H.A. (1996): ''Aquarium Atlas'' (Volume 1). Voyageur Press. p. 992.

Genera

The following genera are classified within the family Butidae: * ''

Bostrychus ''Bostrychus'' is a genus of fishes in the family Butidae mostly native to eastern Asia to Australia with one species being found along the Atlantic coast of Africa. While some of these species are restricted to freshwater, most can be found in ...

'' Lacépède, 1801 * ''

Butis ''Butis'' is a genus of fishes in the family Butidae found in fresh, brackish, and marine waters from the Indian Ocean coast of Africa through Southeast Asia to the Pacific islands and Australia. Species The recognized species in this genus are: ...

'' Bleeker, 1856 * ''

Incara ''Incara multisquamatus'' is a species of fish in the family Butidae known from brackish waters along the coasts of India and Australia. This species grows to a length of . This species is the only known member of its genus Genus ( plural g ...

'' Visweswara Rao, 1971 * ''

Kribia ''Kribia'' is a genus of sleeper gobies from the family Butidae which are endemic to freshwater habitats in West and Middle Africa. Species The recognized species in this genus are: * '' Kribia kribensis'' (Boulenger Boulenger is a surname. Nota ...

'' Herre, 1946 * ''

Odonteleotris ''Odonteleotris'' is a small genus of fishes in the family Butidae native to tropical marine waters of the western Pacific Ocean and fresh and brackish waters of southern Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical reg ...

Gill A gill () is a respiratory organ that many aquatic organisms use to extract dissolved oxygen from water and to excrete carbon dioxide. The gills of some species, such as hermit crabs, have adapted to allow respiration on land provided they are ...

, 1863 * ''

Ophiocara ''Ophiocara'' is a genus of fishes in the family Butidae native to tropical waters of Indo-Pacific. Species The recognized species in this genus are: * '' Ophiocara macrolepidota'' (Bloch, 1792) * '' Ophiocara porocephala'' (Valenciennes Val ...

'' Gill, 1863 * ''

Oxyeleotris ''Oxyeleotris'' is a genus of sleeper gobies mostly restricted to Australia and New Guinea, though some (''O. marmorata'', ''O. siamensis'', ''O. urophthalmoides'' and ''O. urophthalmus'') are found in Southeast Asia. They are found in a wide ra ...

'' Bleeker, 1874 * ''

Parviparma ''Parviparma straminea'' is a species of fish in the family Butidae endemic to the Philippines. This species is the only known member of its genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living ...

'' Herre, 1927 * ''

Pogoneleotris ''Pogoneleotris heterolepis'' is a species of fish in the family Butidae endemic to the marine and brackish waters of Malaysia. This species is the only known member of its genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biol ...

'' Bleeker, 1875 * ''

Prionobutis ''Prionobutis'' is a genus of fishes in the family Butidae native to Borneo and Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tp ...

'' Bleeker, 1874

References

Gobiiformes Ray-finned fish families {{Gobiiformes-stub