Male and Female green-banded gobies

[c est ma]

When I got my first gbg, Ann on this forum mentioned that she had a breeding pair of them. I asked how to tell the sexes apart, and she told me that the male had a first dorsal spine nearly twice as long as the female's.

 

I began to look at gbgs in dealer tanks but noticed no real dorsal spine length difference. Many months later I picked up a second gbg anyway. When I compared both fish the dorsal spine lengths were similar.

 

Within a month, though, the pair were exhibiting mating behavior. The original, smaller fish turned out to be male, while the newer, larger fish was female.

 

A bit later I noticed that the newly identified male had indeed grown a much longer first dorsal spine, and today I was finally able to get some pictures that show the difference.

 

This is a shot of the gravid female--notice her first dorsal spine is only a tiny bit longer than the following ones:

 

 

A few seconds later the male posed in nearly the exact same spot, at an angle that showed off his dorsal spine:

 

 

And the spine showed up well in this shot, too:

 

 

Just for the heck of it, here's another shot of the gravid female:

 

 

And one of the two of them together, while the male was courting the female. He's a little blurry because at these times he's pretty much in constant motion:

 

 

I have since learned that these gobies are hermaphroditic, and that if you start with any couple of young fish you are very likely to end up with a pair. I thought some of you might like to know that, if you didn't already.

 

--Diane

[PieNinja]

They are an awesome looking pair of fish you have. You must be doing something right if they are paired up and mating.

How often does your pair of green-banded gobies spawn and does the occurance repeat frequently? Have you ever thought of trying to raise the babies?

[c est ma]

They spawned once a week for 8 weeks--have lately seemed to take a holiday vacation, but judging by tonight's activity, I would say that larvae will be appearing again soon!

 

Yes, at first I was very determined to try to raise these babies...until I looked into it further and realized how much time, effort, and equipment it would take. I may find time & resources to put together the mariculture tanks it would take, but it will be a slow process. Meanwhile I have resigned myself to just being happy to see the adults realize the full spectrum of their breeding behaviors...

 

This is actually the 3rd thread I've started about my gbg's, recently. Have not had much time for forums lately, but had to post about this event. If you're interested, there are some larval pictures here, along with more adult pics and some vids:

 

http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?...=6&t=102634

 

http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?...=6&t=105663

 

--Diane

[reefone]

did u get them local? they r sweetfish

[c est ma]

I got the first one from an lfs in Grand Rapids; the second from an lfs in Lansing.

 

In doing a little searching online about hermaphroditism, I found out that a lot of gobies have this characteristic.

 

I remember reading on every Drs F & S fish description page, including their gbg one, how important it was to not get 2 males or they'd fight to the death...I think perhaps we need to take that sort of info with a grain of salt...the breeder on Reef Central seems to think that any two will end up as a pair...

 

One of the online articles about another species of goby mentioned some agressive behavior at first, which then resolved into a mated pair.

 

BTW, this pair lives happily in a 5.5g (the only fish, of course, in the tank).

 

--Diane

[PieNinja]

Thanks for the other links Diane. It's awesome that you took reference pics of the pregnant female to share with the community. I'm hoping to buy a pair of these cute fish in the future (maybe not for my current tank, but an upgraded tank!) and see if they fare as well as your pair.

 

I browsed through the other two threads and I don't think you mentioned what you were feeding them... if at all! I'd love to know. Thanks!

[c est ma]

Well, I think you're right, I didn't mention feeding...

 

For one thing, I've been pretty lax lately, what with the holiday rush & all, and they've been getting mostly prepared foods. Most frequently, NutraFin "Slow Sinking Morsels." These float at the surface for a while and, surprisingly, the gobies have learned to dart to the surface and grab them before they sink. They also like the occasional broken-up Hikari algae wafer...

 

Also, any frozen food I've ever offered, which is most often Cyclopeeze. The male learned quickly to rise to the pipet whenever I was feeding Cyclopeeze--it's so cute. Of course, now he tries to feed from anything I stick into the tank--siphon tube, forceps, etc.

 

I used to feed him only 2-3 times per week, but I've been feeding a tiny amount pretty much every day since they started breeding. It seems like a huge output of energy for them, and the female, esp., always appears ravenous.

 

They're easy feeders, obviously...but they are very tiny, so Mysis, etc., need to be chopped.

 

I hope you can find some gbgs when you're ready--in addition to being hardy and fascinating, they're also extremely personable. When I look at them, they look at me!

[PieNinja]

Thanks Diane, there's a whole lotta food variety you've been feeding these gobies. Coupled with the fact that you started to feed them more, it's probably giving them extra energy to produce the eggs.

 

I did have a goby once, the yasha haze, and he was also very personable and he was pipette trained. Gobies are probably my fave fish

[ucreefer]

You're fish are so cute! I love gbg's! I should have dedicated my tank to these little guys. Instead I have a six line and a red spotted scooter blenny (both of which i love).

 

post some pics of the entire tank

[c est ma]

Well, your fish sound wonderful, too! We just need enough room for enough tanks...

 

My tank is pretty "dirty" at the moment--lots of algae, lots of flatworms ( ), and the softies need "pruning," esp. the shrooms...but the critters seem to thrive so I'm just keeping up with my water changes and letting things "evolve..."

 

I'm afraid the most recent FTS's I have are from August (I'd take some now but that would involve siphoning, glass cleaning, etc.). But it still looks pretty much the same only fuller:

 

 

There's a goby in this one:

 

[Withers]

Well hullo there Diane! I didn't know you kept fish as well as frogs

[c est ma]

LOL!

 

Gee, Jason, I remember you from n-r...

 

But I can't even keep up with one forum at a time, let alone several. When my 5.5g nano couldn't hold another thing, and my frogs started breeding--well, I just kind of switched to DendroBoard...but then, my gobies started breeding, and I had to post about that (another batch of larvae just appeared today!). I feel guilty for not spending more time here, though...

 

See ya on DB!

 

--Diane

[c est ma]

See new pics of Matt's gbg babies and one of his adults on his Reef Central breeding thread:

 

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.p...mp;goto=newpost

 

(If that link doesn't take you to the right post, look for the 1/11, 11:42pm post...)

 

--Diane

[Marta Newrurk]

1/2 cups chocolate wafer cookie crumbs.

3 tablespoons butter.

1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk.

2/3 cup chocolate-flavored syrup.

2 ripe bananas, mashed.

do not use non-dairy whipped topping.

You can order frozen food online here.

 

Method:

Line a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan with aluminum foil, extending foil above sides of pan; butter foil.

Combine crumbs, sugar and butter; press firmly on bottom and halfway up sides of pan.

In bowl, combine sweetened condensed milk, syrup and bananas. Pour into pan; cover. Freeze 6 hours or until firm.

To serve, remove from pan; peel off foil. Garnish as desired. Freeze leftovers.

10 servings.

[dtfleming]

Holy spam post!

[DCG1286]

1/2 cups chocolate wafer cookie crumbs.

3 tablespoons butter.

1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk.

2/3 cup chocolate-flavored syrup.

2 ripe bananas, mashed.

do not use non-dairy whipped topping.

You can order frozen food online here.

 

Method:

Line a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan with aluminum foil, extending foil above sides of pan; butter foil.

Combine crumbs, sugar and butter; press firmly on bottom and halfway up sides of pan.

In bowl, combine sweetened condensed milk, syrup and bananas. Pour into pan; cover. Freeze 6 hours or until firm.

To serve, remove from pan; peel off foil. Garnish as desired. Freeze leftovers.

10 servings.

 

Where did you get my fish food recipe from?!

[D3monic]

looking at those pics I dont feel so bad about my HA outbreak...thanks.

[DCG1286]

looking at those pics I dont feel so bad about my HA outbreak...thanks.

 

This is an old thread ... she won ToTM a year later.

[Pablo]

1/2 cups chocolate wafer cookie crumbs.

3 tablespoons butter.

1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk.

2/3 cup chocolate-flavored syrup.

2 ripe bananas, mashed.

do not use non-dairy whipped topping.

You can order frozen food online here.

 

Method:

Line a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan with aluminum foil, extending foil above sides of pan; butter foil.

Combine crumbs, sugar and butter; press firmly on bottom and halfway up sides of pan.

In bowl, combine sweetened condensed milk, syrup and bananas. Pour into pan; cover. Freeze 6 hours or until firm.

To serve, remove from pan; peel off foil. Garnish as desired. Freeze leftovers.

10 servings.

That wasnt random at all.

[Needreefunds]

:tears:

 

I thought maybe Diane was back.....

 

*sigh*