Clingfishes, belonging to the family Gobiesocidae, are small, bottom-dwelling marine fish known for their unique ventral sucking disc, which allows them to adhere to rocks and other surfaces in intertidal and shallow coastal habitats. While clingfishes are not a major target of large-scale commercial fisheries, they are occasionally harvested as bycatch or for local consumption in some countries. The term "Top Clingfishes Not Elsewhere Included" refers to statistical groupings used by organizations like the FAO to account for minor or less-commonly reported species in global fisheries data. Countries such as China, Japan, and some Southeast Asian nations are known to report small catches of clingfishes, mainly for local markets or as part of mixed-species artisanal fisheries. The fishing industry for clingfishes is typically small-scale, with most harvests occurring in coastal regions where these fish are abundant, but they are not a significant contributor to national seafood exports or global fishery production.
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Data from FAO. 2025. Global Capture Production. In: Fisheries and Aquaculture.