dead goby

[anthonys51]

have a question. i bought a sleep banded goby the other day, put it in my 29 gallon reef tank. tank set up for 6 weeks, fully cycled. have 2 sally. 10 turbo snails, 6 nessiar snails, 1 other crab (forgot) black and eats alage all day long, a pom pom crab. no other fish havent feed the tank since no fish in, have 30 lbs of live sand and about 30-35 lbs of live rock. so the next day i moved a rock , not sure if i hit the goby or not, but right after that i noticed scales missing on one side, almost like something ate one side of him. dont think i dropped the rock on him . would the mark only be on one side. do you thing the sally got to him,. your opinions

 

[anthonys51]

also 3 big red legged hermits. also noticed 2 little holes on goby stomach . he died later that night

 

[Betta132]

My guess would be the sally lightfoots. They're predators, gobies aren't safe around them. Remove them.
However, sleeper gobies need large, established tanks with plenty of sand to sift through. Your tank is too new and too small to support one.

 

[anthonys51]

i ask the guy at my lfs , told me it would be fine, but now i know i shouldn't listen to them anymore. i wanted to buy 2 clown fish and maybe paj cardinal . you think they will be fine.

 

[J2T]

i ask the guy at my lfs , told me it would be fine, but now i know i shouldn't listen to them anymore. i wanted to buy 2 clown fish and maybe paj cardinal . you think they will be fine.

Yep, hard lesson to learn. A lot of LFS will say whatever to make a sale.

What kind of clowns? Some pairs can get quite aggressive and once matured and spawning may take up that entire tank. Oscelaris would probably be your best bet as far as least aggressive pairs.

 

[anthonys51]

was going to buy a pair of snowflake clowns. lfs store had a nice pair for only 150. didnt want them to be the first fish in my tank, in case my water wasnt prefect, so bought a goby first. plus i figure clowns can get nasty at times, but they wouldnt bother a goby since he was on the bottom. so what fish would you put in with a pair of clowns

 

[Betta132]

Watchman gobies are good. In that size tank, you could keep one watchman goby, one pistol shrimp to go with the goby, and the snowflake pair with no issues. You could probably also a pyjama cardinal, they aren't active. They just kinda hang in midwater.
Do NOT add those all at once, though. Wait a week, minimum, after you add the goby. Ask the LFS if they'll reserve the snowflakes for you.
I'd remove the other crab, the black one. Even if it's something along the lines of an emerald, it's opportunistic, it'll kill anything that presents itself as a target. The pom-pom crab is fine because he only eats tiny food.

 

[anthonys51]

it is an emerald crab. thanks. wow its going to be hard catching those 3 crabs, any tips besides pulling all the rock out

 

[Betta132]

Get a bottle with an opening large enough for the crab to fit through. Cut about the top quarter off, shove it in backwards, and bait with a piece of meaty food. Put it on the bottom at night, near where the crabs hang out, and you should get them. Well- that will definitely work on the sallies. The emerald is slow, just reach in and grab him out.

 

[anthonys51]

thank you so much betta

 

[anthonys51]

do i have to worry about my 3 Halloween hermit crabs (if so i am going to kill the guy at my lfs for selling me a killing crew)

 

[Betta132]

Hermits are usually safe with fish, but they may kill snails for shells. Make sure they have plenty of shells.
Also, keep in mind that the LFS guy makes money if he tells you that you can keep something in your tank. Research first and always, especially since he sold you the goby and the sallies.

 

[anthonys51]

thank you so much, now i know and knowing is half the battle. thank you for your help. before i buy andthing from now on i will post t on here first.

 

[anthonys51]

came home last night. looks like both of my sally molted this morning i took both of the skins out. one smelt. Is it possible one was my other sally. will a sally kill another sally. sorry for all the questions

 

[Coelli]

My guess would be the sally lightfoots. They're predators, gobies aren't safe around them. Remove them.

There are two crabs called Sally Lightfoot, the big-clawed red ones (definitely predators) and the Nimble Spray crab, which is much smaller and less predatory. Not sure which the OP has but the Nimble Spray is reef-safe-ish (or as LA would say, reef safe with caution). FWIW I got mine from Vivid Aquariums; their staff is pretty knowledgable and not out to make a quick buck on an $8 crab.

 

[anthonys51]

yes mine is the 2nd one. no idea what reef safe with caution means. i mean maybe since my tank is new and he was in it a month he was starving and killed the sleeper goby

 

[Betta132]

The nimbles still make me a bit nervous. They're very fast, very agile, and armed. I don't trust crabs in general, aside from porcelains and pompoms. Them and acropora crabs- too small to hurt anything.

 

[anthonys51]

will one crab kill another during molting. or did it die during molting. just a question

 

[snorvich]

The nimbles still make me a bit nervous. They're very fast, very agile, and armed. I don't trust crabs in general, aside from porcelains and pompoms. Them and acropora crabs- too small to hurt anything.

I agree. I only keep a variety of snails rather than hermits and avoid all crabs except porcelains, pompoms, and acropora or pocillipora crabs. Never, blue eyed crabs for sure!!

 

[snorvich]

However, I do not think a golden headed sleeper goby will work well in the tank size of the OP. They tend to deplete the sand bed of beneficial organisms, then starve. But for me, the worst issue is they make a mess blowing sand over my corals.