Diamond Back/Pretty Prawn Goby

Joined
5 Oct 2007
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Cape Town
Does anyone know where I can get to read more about this fish especially behaviour and breeding habits.
 
Species Name: Valenciennea puellaris
Size: Up to 5 inches (12 cm)
Natural Environment: Inhabit sandy bottom areas on coastal reef slopes and inner reef areas
General Husbandry: Has a temperature range of 72 - 79°F (22 - 26°C). Natural diet consists mainly of benthic invertebrate. They are a major sand sifter, picking up large mouthfuls of sand and expelling it through the gill covers, sifting out anything edible. They also take a wide variety of frozen or flake food. Small sinking enriched shrimp meal pellets are an excellent way of keeping them well fed. Some seem to waste away no matter how well fed, which could be a sign of intestinal worms. These fishes are burrow dwellers, and will normally seek protection under low overhanging rocks or actually burrow underneath rock to form a secure home. They should be housed in aquariums with a sandbed of at least two inches in depth and not housed with aggressive fishes such as groupers, dottybacks, triggerfishes or aggressive angelfishes. Usually, they starve to death in closed systems unless there are few competitors for their food supply, or they may simply jump out of the aquarium. Even though they mate for life in the wild, pairs can form in the closed system. Should be maintained in pairs if at all possible.
 
Thanks Mekaeel, I have had a pair for a while now but yesterday they started with strange behaviour. They have always had a home in the sand under the LR that they escavated. Last night for the first time the female closed the male in the nest by closing the entrace with substrate.He stayed in there the entire night and today and only dug out a feeding time tonight. They then both went in and escavated out some substrate. He then went back in and she cosed him up again. Last night was the first time she slept outside under the rocks and it looks like she is again going to do the same tonight. I was looking for a link or something where I could read up about their behaviour.
 
yes, I just found a piece on this behaviour on WWM. Now I need to find some info on feeding and raising the youngsters if there are any.
 
Don't get your hopes up, the fry will more than likely get devoured by the other inhabitants in your tank.

I must say it's all happening for you Alfie, first the fungia now your gobies :)
 
Thanks Viper, yes been all types of activity in the tank lately. As far as the Gobies are oncerned I actually believe they might survive as they are under the subtrate and racks and the other fish don't have access to them. I should also be able to isolate the section with some eggcrate as it is in the one corner of the tank.
 
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