Do gobies and blennies change sex?

iamwhatiam52

New member
Do gobies and blennies change sex like many of our other reef fish?
Is there a general answer, or does it depend on the species?

I've seen it mentioned in Saltcorner.com that Eviota gobies change, but is this true of other gobies?

If I have two of the same species in a tank, will they become male and female and pair up?

I want to pair up:
Tail Spot Blenny (Ecsenius stigmatura)
Yellow Clown Goby (Gobiodon okinawae)
 
Bump.

What about experiences with pairing up blennies and gobies?

I've had a few pair up (yellow clown, black clown, High Fin Redband and Tiger gobies) but I don't know if the fish have changed sex, or if I have just been lucky and gotten one of each sex.
 
I can't say for sure if they can do their change, but I've had 2 tailspot blennies in my tank for about 3 months. They stay separated at their own individual bolt holes. They don't fight though. I'm continuing to monitor them so you never know. :)
 
There's an experienced member on the large tank forum with a pair of Starry Blennies that spawn. I asked him about pairing them and he said they are born into one sex and stay that way. Now I don't remeber if he was referring to all blennies or the algae blenny species but I believe it was blennies in general.

Does anyone know which member I am referring to?
 
Thanks danch!

Looks like the book could answer lots of dumb questions and save some wear and tear on the forum.

My goal by the way, is not to breed fish and raise babies, but to keep as many fish as possible in mated pairs. I believe they are "happier" this way, their behavior is interesting to watch, and if they are spawning I know they are healthy.
 
Hey, I have that book! It is a great book; I highly suggest it. Although I refer to my Borneman and Scott Michael books a bit more frequently, it is a close third.

The book doesn't mention any Ecsenius spp. specifically. As far as sexual dimorphism, it can often be determined by the fish's genital papilla (you may need a magnifiying glass to really get a good look.) Apparently, a male's genital papilla is long and tapered while the female's is short and blunt (and this is easier to discern if you have the two to compare.) I only skimmed the blenny chapter; it seems as though blenny gender allocation is not yet known but at least the genus Meiacanthus (the fang blennies) are believed to be gonochorists (born w/ a predetermined sex.) Despite this, the book states that "outside the spawning season" males tolerate the presence of other males.

I have read over the chapter on gobies multiple times. For most sex can be determined by using a hand lens to examine the genital papilla (female's is short and blunt, "roughly equal in length and width" while the male's is elongated and tapered.)
Given that the family is so large, the gender allocation types are all over the board, even within the same genus. Apparently, the various neon gobies (Elacatinus spp.) are gonochorists, yet the greenbanded goby (Elacatinus multifasciatus) is a protogynous (female to male) hemaphrodites. The information on Gobiodon spp. is based on G. histrio (as it is the most commonly studied), but it is believed to be valid for all the "coral" gobies. They have been found to be protogynous with the protential for bi-directional sex change. Apparently, they are naturally found in social units much like a clown fish, although they are controlled by a dominant male (instead of a female) and their coral head is their anemone. Only the dominant female is functional and spawns, and she moves up the chain of command if something happens to the male. According to the book, if two males are isolated on a coral head, the submissive one reverts to its female sexual function.

Interesting stuff; the book is a good read.
 
WOW! Lots of information to digest.

Sounds like at least with the clown gobies I can get a pair just by buying any two.

BUT--------- A little knowledge is a dangerous thing.
Got thrown out of a fish store yesterday when I showed up with a magnifying glass and asked them to pull out each blenny so I could turn them upside down and examine their genital papilla............................
 
Back
Top