Comparison of three Gobiidæ (Teleostei) life history strategies over their geographical range

This article summarizes the latest knowledge on the ecology of three gobies. The authors compile data published by various scientists who carried out their research under different conditions, using a variety of methods for collecting data and processing the results. The relationship between population structure and different environmental conditions was considered for three goby species Pomatoschistus minutus (Pallas, 1770), P. microps (Kroyer, 1838) and Gobius niger Linnaeus, 1758, in different geographical areas, notably the Mediterranean (Gulf of Lions and Adriatic) and cold temperate Atlantic (north of the English Channel) parts. In the three species, the life cycles in the Mediterranean, favoured by the local hydroclimate, are "contracted" (growth is rapid and reproductive effort emphasized) whereas, in the Atlantic, life cycles are "protracted" with growth and reproduction equivalent or less intense. Irrespective of the geographical location of the species, its reproductive success is very much same. (C) Elsevier, Paris.