Redlight Goby: Named for the Spot on Its Tail

The redlight goby is a small, pale, lightly speckled fish with one standout feature: a dark spot at the base of its tail, like a little red light. It perches on sand and rubble at the edge of the reef, blending in until it darts. Here's how to spot one snorkeling near Jacó, plus five fun facts.

Redlight Goby · Coryphopterus urospilus

How to spot the redlight goby near Jacó

Look on open patches of sand, rubble, and low rock near the reef's edge. The redlight goby rests right on the bottom, its pale, speckled body blending with the sand — then a short dart gives it away. The dark spot at the base of its tail is the quickest way to put a name to it.

5 fun facts about the redlight goby

• Named for its 'tail light'. A dark spot at the base of the tail gives the redlight goby both its name and the easiest way to tell it from other small gobies.
• A master of blending in. Its pale, speckled body matches the sand and rubble it rests on, so it often goes unnoticed until it makes a quick dart.
• A bottom-percher. Like other gobies, it rests directly on the bottom on its fins rather than swimming above it, moving in short hops.
• Stays near shelter. It never strays far from a hole or crevice, ducking for cover the instant a shadow passes overhead.
• A small but common neighbor. Little and unassuming, it's one of the more common gobies along the Eastern Pacific coast, right at home in our waters.

The redlight goby is just one of many characters down there. See the whole cast in our Snorkel Jaco fish directory, or read real guest photos and reviews on the Snorkel Jaco reviews.