Sicyopus

Sicyopus is a genus with 5 species in this atlas, catalogued in the Gobies & Gudgeons section, recorded from Philippines, Indonesia and Papua New Guinea. Adult sizes run from 1 in to 2.5 in. Every species below links to a full researched profile.

Species in atlas
5
Adult sizes
1–2.5 in
IUCN assessed
5 of 5
Recorded from
3 countries

About the genus

Sicyopus is a genus of small amphidromous gobies closely related to Sicyopterus, found in fast-flowing streams on tropical Pacific islands. The atlas covers 5 species ranging from roughly 1–2.5 in, with records from the Philippines, Indonesia, and Papua New Guinea. Like its sister genus, Sicyopus has pelvic fins fused into a sucker disc used to cling to and climb wet rock in swift current, but its species tend to run smaller and are typically found perching on boulders and rock faces in fast riffles rather than grazing broad open rock sheets.

Sicyopus zosterophorus, the banded rockskipper goby, is the best-known species in the genus, occasionally reaching specialist aquarium keepers drawn to its bold banded pattern and territorial, rock-hugging behaviour, though like other sicydiines it carries an obligate marine larval stage that makes captive breeding essentially unfeasible, so any aquarium specimens are wild-caught. The remaining species, including S. auxilimentus, S. cebuensis, S. exallisquamulus, and S. rubicundus, are known mainly from regional ichthyological surveys of Philippine and Indonesian island streams and have little to no presence in the hobby. With four of the five atlas species not yet evaluated and one rated Data Deficient, almost nothing is documented about the genus's conservation status, a gap typical of small, range-restricted island stream gobies.

IUCN Red List: Data Deficient · 1 Not Evaluated · 4

The 5 species

Every Sicyopus recorded in this atlas. Each card links to a full researched profile — distribution, water parameters, and aquarium care, cited to primary sources.

Watson & Kottelat, 1995

2.5 in TL · NE

Maeda & Tan, 2013

1.5 in SL · DD

Watson, 1996

2.5 in SL · NE

(Herre, 1927)

1 in SL · NE

(Bleeker, 1857)

Banded rockskipper goby

1.5 in SL · NE

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How to cite

Aquarist Atlas (2026). Genus Sicyopus. Aquarist Atlas. https://www.aquaristatlas.com/sicyopus/

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