Description 

A slender goby growing to 7.5 cm in length. The body is pale brown and the whole of the area from the mid lateral line to the back, including the back of the head is covered in dark irregular spots. Five or six dark brown longitudinally elongated oval patches lie along the mid-lateral line. The last spot is on the base of the caudal fin followed by a black median streak on the fin. 

Head design

The background colour is pale brown. This may be decorated with pigmented patches but these are not always present. When present they consist of three horizontal rows of three dark brown patches that tend to coalesce into three horizontal lines. There is a dark spot at the upper part of the gill cover and frequently a reflective orange patch below this. The anterior nostril is visible as a short tube above the upper lip.

Fin design

The first dorsal fin is a tall triangle and is translucent to faintly covered with long, brown, pale-edged spots. There are two to three distinctive white-edged black spots on the trailing margin.  The second dorsal fin has a pattern of red-brown spots on a translucent background. The caudal fin is lanceolate, very long, pale with a brown midline stripe, having a black spot at its base. The pelvic fin is yellow with black streaks centrally. The anal fin is translucent with darker enhancement of the rays. The pectoral fins are transparent with a conspicuous white origin and are reflective along its rays. There is a black spot on the body at the origin of this fin.

Diagnostic features

The best feature is the first dorsal fin, it is brown-spotted with two to three white-bordered black spots on the trailing edge. The body has five or six dark brown, longitudinally elongated oval patches lying along the mid-lateral line.

Similar species

It is easily confused with the Lanceolate Shrimpgoby Tomiyamichthys lanceolatus. 

Taxonomy

Type description Randall & Chen 2007 Tomiyamichthys tanyspilus, a new shrimp goby from Indonesia Zoological studies 46 651 2007. Described from a male-female pair found in 4 metres in silty sand.

Etymology This species is named tanyspilus from the Greek tany meaning long, and spilus for spot, in reference the elongate shape of the 5 midlateral dark brown spots on the body