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Pairing pistol shrimp with goby


Phoreiobothrium

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Phoreiobothrium

I have a 10g tank with a deep sand bed that is begging for a goby/pistol shrimp pair. I was wondering if pairing was luck, if some species pair more easily than others, or if they are best purchased already paired? If this last is the case, does anyone know where I might purchase such a dynamic duo?

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I actually just got my first pair a few days ago. I bought an aurora goby and a tiger pistol shrimp that had never seen each other before and they paired up within 48 hours.

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Do some research and make sure you get a shrimp and goby from the same region. I put my yellow watchmen goby in about 2 weeks before my tiger pistol shrimp. I did nothing to hep them pair and for the first two days they inhabited different sides of the tank. On the third day, they saw each other and it was was love at first sight.

 

I would not pay the premium for a matched pair.

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I have an orange spotted goby who was introduced after our first tiger pistol shrimp. It took only five hours for them to pair off. When the shrimp died, we didn't replace him for about a month. When we did, we got another tiger pistol. The pair up time: 1 minute. It was basically instantaneous. The goby saw him, checked him out, then it was to the burrow they went.

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I have a yellow watchman that was by himself for 2 years before I added a pistol shrimp. They hooked up within minutes. Cutest part is watching them build there home.

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I had a randall's goby paired with a tiger pistol shrimp (likely Alpheus bellulus). Another pistol that pairs with shrimp gobies is Alpheus randalli (aka Randall's or candy stripe pistol).

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reefhotspot.com has matched pairs for sale on their site (gobies page 2). I can't say that I've ordered from them, but they seem to be a fairly decent company.

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LiveAquaria was having some pretty good deals on rare gobys w/ pistols in their Diver's Den if you wanted something fancy.

 

 

hijack/ On another note, what else are you thinking of putting in with them?

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I bought a Tangoora Goby and a few weeks later a tiger pistol shrimp. The pistol shrimp just angered me because they would not live together and while he did stir my sand, he really just made huge piles some over 8 inches deep. It has been 5 months and yesterday was the first time I saw them living together. I have seen the tiger shrimp more in the last 24 hours then the last 5 months combined and am finally happy i purchased him.

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bluegrizzlies1

I have a tiger pistol and a yasha goby paired up. I had the pistol first I put the yasha in they stayed at oppisite ends for 2 days.

 

I decided I was getting a candy cane pistol got it home tore my tank apart caught the tiger put the candy cane in a few hr later it was dead.

 

I said screw it threw my tiger back in and the next day they were paired up happy as can be now.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Does anyone know if whether or not a goby will eat the shrimp if it's too small and the goby is too big? I saw a really cool pistol today at the store but I passed b/c my YWG is still pretty small but the shrimp was really really tiny.

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lakshwadeep

No, a shrimp goby will not eat a pistol shrimp. But, you really need to check if the pistol is a species that is known to pair with gobies.

 

Edit: I have seen a YWG with a newly introduced Randall's pistol in its mouth. All I can think of was that the pistol was very small and the goby didn't recognize it as a potential symbiotic partner.

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OK that is good to know, thanks for your help

 

No, a shrimp goby will not eat a pistol shrimp. But, you really need to check if the pistol is a species that is known to pair with gobies.
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I hate to hijack, but where do you guys get pistol shrimps? your lfs? and would they be happy if there was only like 1/2" of sand? or would I need to get some more sand in there? It's a 10g AGA

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lakshwadeep

I got mine already paired with its shrimp goby at the LFS. 1/2" is a little shallow, but even 1-2" is enough. A more important issue is having some rocks lying flat to allow burrows to be formed.

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I got mine already paired with its shrimp goby at the LFS. 1/2" is a little shallow, but even 1-2" is enough. A more important issue is having some rocks lying flat to allow burrows to be formed.

 

That's kinda what I was guessing, my tank unfortunately has a false back wall that covers the back and bottom of the tank and all of my rocks/aquascaping is attached to it, so there is nothing to build a burrow under. They would just try and try to get under the egg-crate with no success :(

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