Goby stuff

[Justikanz]

Hi guys, recently saw alot of gobies on sale... Think they are mud skippers but they are being sold under another name... They are being kept in very shallow water and alot of the fish would be resting on the logs provided. They ARE skippers, right? (Sorry, no pics) Would they last long in fresh water, even if resting places are provided, eg. in a viviarium?

Also, another matter on gobies. Where to buy pretty and/or useful gobies? So far only managed to find 2 peacock gobies but I lost them and never see any of them on sale again...

Thanks!

[juggler]

How about Bumble Bee Goby?

[dkk08]

where did u see the "skippers"?

[Justikanz]

where did u see the "skippers"?

At this shop opposite AH and at C328...

Would the bumble bee survive in fresh water long term? What about its diet?

[loupgarou]

bumble bee will eat frozen bloodworms. mudskippers are difficult to keep alive. (most die in captivity)...they only eat live food.

[JT]

Hi...Don't be fool by the Mud skipper - They are not freshwater as claim by the Fishshop pple. I bought 3...couldnt last a day...This is the 2nd time i tried in history. Besides, these skippers will crawl out of yr tank when u r not watching...I found 1 skipping around in my living room...haha..caught it n put in back in the tank.

[flyinmysoup]

Mud Skippers need brackish water. Though highly adaptable, they are most comfortable in water with a pinch of salt. Used to have some when I was a kid. Caught them off big drains.

[stormhawk]

If you can provide the mudskippers with brackish water and a land area for them to bask on, then they will survive. In the wild they prefer to live on mud flats close to the shoreline. They spend more time above water than they do in the water.

Feed them with live food only. I'm not sure of their diet but some terrestrial insects might be taken.

[kadios]

I used to keep bumble bee gobies before my planted tank setup. Back then, I added those aquarium salt into my 2ft tank (about 1teaspoonful/water change). They survived and even spawned. However, a thing to note is they get pretty territorial with each other. So you must provide lotsa hiding places for them to claim. Another thing to note it that you can't keep shrimps with them unless you are able to regenerate them continously. They prey on live beings small enough to go into their mouth. Once, I saw a BB goby sneaking up behind a guppy fry to snack on it but was interrupted when I knock on the glass purposely. They simply love live food.

Bioplast once kept them in his 2 footer tank and they looked nice! However, due to its slowness, feeding becomes a problem if you have fast eating surface/mid level fishes like tetra. I was thinking perhaps a good tankmate for them will be shy fishes like liquorice gouramis. Perhaps someone familiar with liquorices can comment on that as I have never kept them before.

Do show us your tank pics if you decide tp keep them in a planted tank. I bet they looked gorgeous in it!

Cheers!

[Justikanz]

I was wondering if the bees can survive in fresh water throughout... Seems not...

What about other gobies besides the skippers and bees? Anyone had any experience with them?

I am also on the lookout for the peacock goby... Literature reports that they do well in planted fresh water tanks.. But my 2 died after a couple of weeks, even though 1 of them was eating... Wanna try them again...

[Kross]

I was wondering if the bees can survive in fresh water throughout... Seems not...

What about other gobies besides the skippers and bees? Anyone had any experience with them?

I am also on the lookout for the peacock goby... Literature reports that they do well in planted fresh water tanks.. But my 2 died after a couple of weeks, even though 1 of them was eating... Wanna try them again...

there is another type: the empire gudgeon. hardy fellows but just refuse to spawn!!

[Justikanz]

Where to buy.... How come I never see pretty gobies for sale one...

[ranmasatome]

choong sua always has some nice blue ones when i go there.. just have to look around loh..

[budak]

when I was a lil' duck, I used to catch mudskippers with my beak. But they always escape and run back to the longkang!!

[Justikanz]

Ok, Tiong Bahru area, right? Thanks. Will go look see after my reservist...

[stormhawk]

Justikanz, Choong Sua is at Bukit Timah. The shops at Tiong Bahru are Wu Hu and Keong Seong down at Blk 22, Havelock Road.

[stormhawk]

Like I mentioned previously, the peacock gudgeon (not goby) is still available at CS. 2 pieces left. They're kept in two small plastic tanks.

Here's an image of my previous dwarf bumblebee goby, Brachygobius xanthomelas. This species grows much much smaller than the 2 more common bumblebee species, aka B. doriae and B. xanthozona.

[Justikanz]

Ooo... It looks cute... Will try them out with my boraras and dario darios later...

Hope CS still have the peacock (not true gobies but they are the sleeping gobies, so the use of the common nick goby)by the time I finished my reservist!... *Cross fingers*...

[stormhawk]

Hi Kanz, the thing is, the xanthomelas is not available anymore. I'm still searching for more but unfortunately all that is available are the usual doriae and xanthozona bumblebees.

[Justikanz]

I think I'd rather use the common ones than rare ones... Less guilty if they kapot and kick their little buckets... But most importantly, they must survive long term in fresh water...