Yellow watchman goby with blackray shrimp goby?

CPdude · 06/23/2017, 12:59 AM

Hi everyone, I currently have a yellow watchman goby who most of the time spends it day under a rock on the left side of my tank. I really want a pistol shrimp for him but I can't really seem to find one. So recently I went to my LFS and saw a black ray shrimp goby and a tiny randall pistol shrimp(about half an inch) pair for sale. I was really interested but the thing is, they are both small and the yellow watchman is probably able to eat them both if they were to encounter each other. I also have other inhabitants like banded serpent star and 2 pyjama cardinal that may go after the tiny pair. One thing about my YWG, he is actually quite friendly, he shares the rock with my lawnmower blenny and does not mind my shrimps, glass cleaner and longnose shrimp no matter how near they are. Should I try to release the pair into an area with more liverocks and away from the YWG if i ever get them? Any advice? Thanks!

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ThRoewer · 06/23/2017, 03:05 PM

The larger gobies like YWG should be paired with Tiger pistol shrimps (Alpheus bellulus). I have a wideband goby in a tank with plenty of randalli shrimp (2 pairs and one single) but the goby doesn't really hang out with them much. My Stonogobiops nematodes on the other hand live with them inside the burrow and hardly ever leave. I only see the wideband goby near the burrows in the morning. It seems that the nematodes allow it in or don't have the strength to fight it. Though, I never see any hostility between the two species. I could imagine the same behavior with a YWG.

The Tiger pistol shrimps should be fairly easy to get, you may just have to tell your LFS to get you one. The downside with the tigers is that they are more active ground movers and less social than the randalli. The good thing with the tigers is that they can be easier sexed to make pairs. With the randalli I found it easiest to just add a bunch and let them pair up on their own.

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06/23/2017, 12:59 AM	#1
CPdude Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2017 Posts: 96	Yellow watchman goby with blackray shrimp goby? Hi everyone, I currently have a yellow watchman goby who most of the time spends it day under a rock on the left side of my tank. I really want a pistol shrimp for him but I can't really seem to find one. So recently I went to my LFS and saw a black ray shrimp goby and a tiny randall pistol shrimp(about half an inch) pair for sale. I was really interested but the thing is, they are both small and the yellow watchman is probably able to eat them both if they were to encounter each other. I also have other inhabitants like banded serpent star and 2 pyjama cardinal that may go after the tiny pair. One thing about my YWG, he is actually quite friendly, he shares the rock with my lawnmower blenny and does not mind my shrimps, glass cleaner and longnose shrimp no matter how near they are. Should I try to release the pair into an area with more liverocks and away from the YWG if i ever get them? Any advice? Thanks! Sent from my LG-H650 using Tapatalk

06/23/2017, 03:05 PM	#2
ThRoewer Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2015 Location: Fremont, CA Posts: 9,555	The larger gobies like YWG should be paired with Tiger pistol shrimps (Alpheus bellulus). I have a wideband goby in a tank with plenty of randalli shrimp (2 pairs and one single) but the goby doesn't really hang out with them much. My Stonogobiops nematodes on the other hand live with them inside the burrow and hardly ever leave. I only see the wideband goby near the burrows in the morning. It seems that the nematodes allow it in or don't have the strength to fight it. Though, I never see any hostility between the two species. I could imagine the same behavior with a YWG. The Tiger pistol shrimps should be fairly easy to get, you may just have to tell your LFS to get you one. The downside with the tigers is that they are more active ground movers and less social than the randalli. The good thing with the tigers is that they can be easier sexed to make pairs. With the randalli I found it easiest to just add a bunch and let them pair up on their own. Sent from my XT1254 using Tapatalk __________________ Pairs: 4 percula, 3 P. kauderni, 3 D. excisus, 1 ea of P. diacanthus, S. splendidus, C. altivelis O. rosenblatti, D. janssi, S. yasha & a Gramma loreto trio 3 P. diacanthus. 2 C. starcki Current Tank Info: 200 gal 4 tank system (40x28x24 + 40B + 40B sump tank + 20g refugium) + 30x18x18 mixed reef + 20g East Pacific biotop + 20g FW +... Last edited by ThRoewer; 06/23/2017 at 03:11 PM.