Desert Gobies

[GobyMaster11276]

Hi, I'm planning to eventually have a desert goby tank setup, starting sometime this year. Just wondering what people have to say about water parameters, filtration, tank mates, etc. Thanks.

 

[Baccus]

Depending on which exact species of desert goby you get I know they can tolerate pure fresh water but would probably do best in slightly hard water. I had some for a time and they are quick to recognise you as the food provider, they are also total gluttons and it is easy to over feed these puppy like fish that always come to beg for food.
Any fish that is not going to also want the floor of the tank or bully the desert gobies out of their tubes/ breeding hollows and are not small enough to be eaten by the gobies would be the best fish to mix with them. If wanting to breed these great fish I would only keep the gobies since anything else is going to very tempted to eat the fry once they leave the fathers "nest" area.
Depending on tank size you could possibly look at keeping rainbows with the desert gobies or even Pacific Blue Eyes. A company called Aquagreen has a few species of desert rainbow species which might be worth checking out and comparing water parameters with the desert gobies. You could also quiz Dave Wilson from Aquagreen on any fish he recommends.

 

[GobyMaster11276]

Thanks for the advice so far. I might just do a species tank, if that's the case. I've been reading that they're annual, so I definitely want breeding. My tank size I am still considering, probably 70l+ (about 20g). What do you recommend as a good male to female ratio? I am currently looking at Chlamydogobius eremius, and probably slight brackish water. Main problem is that Melbourne water is very soft, and obviously they don't like that. Should I get GH raising products?

 

[Zante]

If you're talking about chlamydogobius eremius, they're tough little buggers.
They will thrive in water from slightly hard to twice marine salinity, from cold water to 40 Celsius, and even in very low oxygen environments.

You can make your soft water slightly brackish with salt for marine aquariums. That will make your gobies very happy.

I've been trying to get a few, but they're not easy to find.

 

[GobyMaster11276]

Thanks for everything so far. So you don't think it will be necessary to adjust GH before adding water?

 

[GobyMaster11276]

I'm thinking of having 1 male to 3 females. Is that overstocking for a 20g?

 

[GobyMaster11276]

What hardness do they require? My tap is around 15-20ppm (quite soft). I can't find a commonly accepted figure.

 

[Zante]

I'd say you should be fine with that stocking.

You can't find a common acceptable figure because they're so adaptable. I'd go with 5g of marine salt plus 1g of bicarbonate of soda for each litre of water (sorry, I don't speak imperial very well). It doesn't need to be precise, so if you find a measure of teaspoons per gallon that suits you, go for it.

 

[Zante]

That of course means also the water for changes.
It's obvious, but I'd rather state the obvious, just in case. I've seen some hair-raising threads on here...

 

[Baccus]

Because I hate mucking about with gH with every water change I try to stick to my local water supply. That said I have added shrimp mineral balls to a couple of my tanks that house shrimp and fish. These balls seem to have really helped my nerite snails, and the shrimp now show little or no interest in the mineral balls. After I first added the balls the shrimp where all over them. The balls are designed to gradually release minerals, this will of course be influenced by the softness of the water they are being placed in and possibly the frequency and size of water changes.
You could look at using these mineral balls to gradually change the gH of your tank water.

 

[GobyMaster11276]

Yes, I would be adding it in with water changes. Don't worry about using the metric system, it is my preferred one (though I mainly use imperial on here because it is easier for most users). For water in lesser amounts? Just asking because the salt wouldn't evaporate, so most, if not all would theoretically still be there, right?

 

[GobyMaster11276]

I will have a look at mineral balls. How expensive are they, and how long do they last?

 

[Baccus]

They are relatively cheap, I got mine of Ebay from memory off Boss Aquaria. Generally you add x number of balls (they also come in different sizes) to so many litres of water. SKF Aquatics an Australian Shrimp keeping forum I believe has some right ups on shrimp mineral balls, this is also the best site I believe for finding which mineral balls are in Australia and which ones might be the best quality.