Do diamond gobys burrow

PirateLove · 03/01/2016, 02:32 PM

I only have about an inch of sandbed. Does a diamond goby need a tunnel? I have a watchman and pistol in my other tank with a 3 inch fine sand bed and they live under the rocks. Is this the same with a diamond?

toothybugs · 03/01/2016, 02:37 PM

Mine did. Immensely entertaining watching it dig holes everywhere.

Mount your rocks securely.

Sk8r · 03/01/2016, 02:39 PM

They not only burrow, they BURROW and move the whole sandbed.

roberthu526 · 03/04/2016, 03:46 PM

How deep sand do they need? Is 2" enough?

Dkuhlmann · 03/05/2016, 06:33 AM

If I were going to keep a sand burrower fish I would make sure it had more than enough to make it happy living in my tank. So IMO I would give them at least 3"-4" average in the tank. This way if it wanted a deeper sand place it could move sand to make the sand a good 6" without much trouble. Also make sure you provide plenty of rock and shell rubble so they can line the inside of their den with it. Place the pile close to the burrow hole and if the fish uses it all then provide more.

Also, most important part is to make sure your rocks are on the glass or on eggcrate so your rocks don't come tumbling down if they burrow under the rocks.

Marchillo · 03/05/2016, 06:40 AM

Mine has tunnels everywhere. He has his favorite dual tunnel under a rock structure but is constantly sifting the sand for food. A decent sanded is needed. Also a screen top. They will jump right out!

NySharkBait · 03/05/2016, 09:29 AM

They do, but they'll deal with what they have available. The bigger issue their dietary needs. They filter feed the sand bed, for lack of better phrase. They need a lot of sand to turn to eat well.

PirateLove · 03/05/2016, 01:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NySharkBait

They do, but they'll deal with what they have available. The bigger issue their dietary needs. They filter feed the sand bed, for lack of better phrase. They need a lot of sand to turn to eat well.

But they will eat the mysis when I feed the tank right?

Marchillo · 03/05/2016, 02:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PirateLove

But they will eat the mysis when I feed the tank right?

Yes at least mine will.

I use a turkey baster to feed my tank BECAUSE of my diamond goby. He definitely likes and eats mysis but isn't going to swim to the top to compete with the savages in my tank. So I put some food in to distract the others and then target feed the goby. He loves it but wouldn't get any otherwise.

Tautoga · 03/05/2016, 03:15 PM

Mine has tunnels all over the place. I have about 2 inches of sand and it doesnt seem to phase him at all.

He does feed on mysis readily, however they can be quite shy at first. I started feeding mine with a reef feeder pipette from Kent Marine that I snipped the end off of to make the hole bigger for the mysis. Now he will swim halfway up into the water column to feed. I still use the pipette though to make sure he gets some at each meal time.

They are very active and you need to make sure they are getting enough food. When I first got mine, my tank was still very new (2 months old) so there wasnt alot for him to eat in the sand. I fed him 2x a day with mysis and also sprinkled some small pellets of Marine One around his burrow so he had something to sift through.

Now the tank is about 6 months old and he has grown almost an inch since I got him. Ive cut back to one feeding a day because the tank was getting too much food. Sometimes on the weekend Ill give him an extra sprinkle of pellets.

You need to keep an eye on him. Look at his stomach every day and if it he starts to look sunken in you need to feed him more. Mine had a bit of a sunken stomach when I first got him but he was very active sifting sand at the store so I knew he was healthy just a bit hungry. This is where the pipette really came in handy. He is now fat and happy.

ca1ore · 03/05/2016, 03:29 PM

They're not sand sleepers like some wrasses, but they will dig tunnels under your rockwork if you let them. One trick is that when you set up your tank, put the lowest layer of rock directly on the bottom and build the sand up around it. Though mine will eat all frozen fare, it does not come up to the surface, so you do need to make sure enough food is reaching the bottom. One way to do this is to NOT turn off the pumps when you feed.

03/01/2016, 02:32 PM	#1
PirateLove Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2015 Location: Lexington,KY Posts: 511	Do diamond gobys burrow I only have about an inch of sandbed. Does a diamond goby need a tunnel? I have a watchman and pistol in my other tank with a 3 inch fine sand bed and they live under the rocks. Is this the same with a diamond? __________________ "Pirate love, is what I'm looking for. Pirate love, is what i'm wanted for." Current tank: Cad Lights 42 versa. Kessil AP700. Some Sps and Lps.

03/01/2016, 02:39 PM	#3
Sk8r RC Mod Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Spokane WA Posts: 34,628 Blog Entries: 55	They not only burrow, they BURROW and move the whole sandbed. __________________ Sk8r Salinity 1.024-6; alkalinity 8.3-9.3 on KH scale; calcium 420; magnesium 1300, temp 78-80, nitrate .2. Ammonia 0. No filters: lps tank. Alk and cal won't rise if mg is low. Current Tank Info: 105g AquaVim wedge, yellow tang, sailfin blenny,royal gramma, ocellaris clown pair, yellow watchman, 100 microceriths, 25 tiny hermits, a 4" conch, 1" nassarius, recovering from 2 year hiatus with daily water change of 10%.

03/05/2016, 06:33 AM	#5
Dkuhlmann Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2015 Location: NW Iowa Posts: 8,823	If I were going to keep a sand burrower fish I would make sure it had more than enough to make it happy living in my tank. So IMO I would give them at least 3"-4" average in the tank. This way if it wanted a deeper sand place it could move sand to make the sand a good 6" without much trouble. Also make sure you provide plenty of rock and shell rubble so they can line the inside of their den with it. Place the pile close to the burrow hole and if the fish uses it all then provide more. Also, most important part is to make sure your rocks are on the glass or on eggcrate so your rocks don't come tumbling down if they burrow under the rocks. __________________ Previous tanks: 200 gal fowlr 9" Emperor Angel and many different butterfly fish 4" maroon clown and several other fish, 50 gal sump, 40 gal mixed reef/fish mostly softies and LPS. Current Tank Info: 40b 750 gph 45 lbs lr, 2"-3" sand, 165w full spectrum dimable LED, 20 gal sump/refugium 30 lbs lr, Bak Pak 2 skimmer, 4" sock temp 79-80, sg 1.026, NH3 0, NO2 0, NO3 <10, ph 8.2, calc 400, mag 1300

03/05/2016, 06:40 AM	#6
Marchillo Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2014 Posts: 1,178	Mine has tunnels everywhere. He has his favorite dual tunnel under a rock structure but is constantly sifting the sand for food. A decent sanded is needed. Also a screen top. They will jump right out! __________________ 80G Frag as DT Proflex Sump Model2 Reef Octopus Skimmer 2xMP10 & 2XR30W Pros I love technology

03/05/2016, 03:29 PM	#11
ca1ore Grizzled & Cynical Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Stamford, CT Posts: 17,319	They're not sand sleepers like some wrasses, but they will dig tunnels under your rockwork if you let them. One trick is that when you set up your tank, put the lowest layer of rock directly on the bottom and build the sand up around it. Though mine will eat all frozen fare, it does not come up to the surface, so you do need to make sure enough food is reaching the bottom. One way to do this is to NOT turn off the pumps when you feed. __________________ Simon Got back into the hobby ..... planned to keep it simple ..... yeah, right ..... clearly I need a new plan! Pet peeve: anemones host clowns; clowns do not host anemones! Current Tank Info: 450 Reef; 120 refugium; 60 Frag Tank, 30 Introduction tank; multiple QTs

03/01/2016, 02:37 PM	#2
toothybugs In Memoriam Join Date: Aug 2013 Location: The smallest county in Illinois Posts: 1,986	Mine did. Immensely entertaining watching it dig holes everywhere. Mount your rocks securely.

03/04/2016, 03:46 PM	#4
roberthu526 Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2016 Location: Atlanta, GA Posts: 290	How deep sand do they need? Is 2" enough?

03/05/2016, 09:29 AM	#7
NySharkBait Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Penn Yan, NY Posts: 159	They do, but they'll deal with what they have available. The bigger issue their dietary needs. They filter feed the sand bed, for lack of better phrase. They need a lot of sand to turn to eat well.

03/05/2016, 03:15 PM	#10
Tautoga Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2015 Location: Long Island, NY Posts: 113	Mine has tunnels all over the place. I have about 2 inches of sand and it doesnt seem to phase him at all. He does feed on mysis readily, however they can be quite shy at first. I started feeding mine with a reef feeder pipette from Kent Marine that I snipped the end off of to make the hole bigger for the mysis. Now he will swim halfway up into the water column to feed. I still use the pipette though to make sure he gets some at each meal time. They are very active and you need to make sure they are getting enough food. When I first got mine, my tank was still very new (2 months old) so there wasnt alot for him to eat in the sand. I fed him 2x a day with mysis and also sprinkled some small pellets of Marine One around his burrow so he had something to sift through. Now the tank is about 6 months old and he has grown almost an inch since I got him. Ive cut back to one feeding a day because the tank was getting too much food. Sometimes on the weekend Ill give him an extra sprinkle of pellets. You need to keep an eye on him. Look at his stomach every day and if it he starts to look sunken in you need to feed him more. Mine had a bit of a sunken stomach when I first got him but he was very active sifting sand at the store so I knew he was healthy just a bit hungry. This is where the pipette really came in handy. He is now fat and happy.