My New Oddballs

[Fella]

So it turns out the fish I bought yesterday are Stiphodon atropurpureus, a goby native to hong kong.

I'm trying to find out as much as I can about them on the internerd, and I'm struggling a bit.

Four pairs of this beautiful and locally rare goby were seen for sale in a shop, which has a regular supply of locally collected fish and other aquatic animals (including metamorphosing Hong Kong Newt Paramesotriton hongkongensis). This tiny animal, measuring no more than 5 cm in total length and 5 grams in weight, was priced at $550 Hong Kong Dollar for a pair!

I'm hoping that relates to the newt

cloud79 16-06-2003 12:33 AM
The uncle claimed that it can change to 3 colours. Maybe someone can id it and tell us bout this mysterious goby!!

stormhawk 16-06-2003 12:52 AM
yeah it does change colours. when it's in full colouration the whole body turns into a neon-blue colour with red edges to the dorsal and adipose fins. when it's in fright colouration, the body colour turns into a pale grey colour and the neon blue head stripe turns pale blue. the middle colour stage is when the fish has a dark greyish body with a bright blue headstripe.

That sounds really cool, I noticed before I went to bed last night that the fish I have (all females) had a very neon blue stripe appear on their cheeks, I assumed they were just settling in.

http/www.leiocephalus.de/ZAquarium/Grundeln.htm

That site has some pictures of a male and female pairs at the very bottom, very cute.

These are 2 females.

Anyone know anything else about them? I only have females but I know wildwoods has males in (not cheap ) so I might grab some from there. Anyone got experience with these?

Many thanks!

 

[bunjiweb]

Decent water flow, low heating (18-22) and lots of rocks with sand and they'd be in heaven. They should enjoy a meaty diet of bloodworm, mussel and shrimp of some sort (mysis, brine shrimp or gamma shrimp).

Ben

 

[Fella]

Decent water flow, low heating (18-22) and lots of rocks with sand and they'd be in heaven. They should enjoy a meaty diet of bloodworm, mussel and shrimp of some sort (mysis, brine shrimp or gamma shrimp).

Ben

That's quite cool, I'll stop dropping in the algae wafers then! Although they are definitely eating algae off the sides, they love it!

The tank they're in at the moment is just sand with slate in it. The slate is lying flat and they dig themselves under it, and then close the front of it so that they're totally concealed! after a while they burrow their frog faces out though.

I figured they were fast current fish as they are so flat, and I'm gonna have to get a powerhead for them I think, and see how they get on. These are great fish though, do you ever get them in at your store?

 

[bunjiweb]

We had them in about 8 months ago, they occasionally appear on the import lists. We sold them from the coldwater tanks as "temperate" fish and they sold really well. They may well eat algae discs as there is much more than just algae in those wafers. However i'd try something more meaty and see how they get on with it.

Ben