Gobies

[2455coop]

Have been wanting a sand sifting goby for a while. I have narrowed my choice between two gobies.

Sleeper Gold Head Goby (Valencienna strigata) Up to 7"
Diamond Watchman Goby (Valencienna puellaris) Up to 6"

Has anyboby had any experiance with these two. What are the pros and cons of this type of fish.

 

[lcstorc]

Sorry, I have several gobies, but not those. Hopefully someone does.

 

[Woodstock]

I have tried those before. Beautiful fish with great personalities but they sift the fine sand constantly. Sifting the sand depletes the pods and creates a constant sand storm.

 

[becki]

they keep the sand stirred ,the water will never be totally clear again ,i have a blue spot watchman and a orange spot sand sifter ,the watchman never does anything ,but sand sifter is the one!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[rdz1]

I agree with them. They get the sand all over the coral and rock and your water never looks clean. They sure move sand!!!!!

 

[prow]

i have tried both of the ones your looking at and i agree with all the above they not only shift the sand but move it all over. i mean all over your rocks corals everything. they make big piles and spots where the bottom of the tank shows.

i know you did not ask but i am going to give what i think are some better choices for sand sifters anyway. these guys will not move the sand all over but they do a real good job of sifting the top layers.

Sleeper Banded Goby (Amblygobius phalaena)-my personal fav. sand sifter.
Two Spot Goby (Signigobius biocellatus)-best in pairs, but still hard to keep.

both these need a mature sandbed or they will starve. the sleeper banded is more forgiving and more likely to accept prepared foods.

 

[craig7220]

I currently have a sleeper banded goby.. this little guy is busy all day sifting sand.. on the downside, I always have sand floating in the water column... these gobys do need a mature sandbed though...

 

[fulinn]

also for personal experience the Diamond gobie, is full of personality and as all the others stated make a mess of the sand bed.

They also LOVE to jump. I owned mine only 4 days before he went carpet surfing and was not found until morning. I miss him as he was very active part of the tank.

So if you can put up with the sand moving, mine dug out huge amounts of sand from under my LR be very sure your tank is securely covered. Mine was fully covered by the "egg crate" and half covered with glass and he still jumped out.

Bonnie