Engineer Goby?

[kiransreef]

Hey Everyone,

Have a question.....I know....AGAIN....lol....
I got this fish from the same guy that was moving as the LR & LS. He called it an Engineer Goby I believe. It looks like a Goby head but when I went to look at pictures of an Engineer Goby it had a black body with a white stripe from head to back fin (horizontal). This guy looks almost identical to a snowflake eel. He is black with white stripes VERTICALLY. Long ribbon like body. Does anyone know what this is? I know it is NOT an eel.
I would take a pic of him but he is a little devil! He has burrowed under one of my base rocks and dug out the sand with his mouth. That little sucker made the rocks shift and some collapse on that side of the tank. I guess I can't really blame him if in fact he is an "Engineer" Goby...LMAO
KR

 

[WarDaddy]

Engineer Goby will dig dig dig, and live most of the time in its holes.

I think Mote Aquarium has a nice engineer Goby exhibit. They have a mirror so you can see the tank from the bottom.

Good luck with that guy, of the rocks are unstable, he ill cause them to move.

 

[kiransreef]

OK....I think I figured this mystery out....
I think the juvenile is one stripe horizontal and then change pattern as they grow to adults?
Well...today I am going to get my hands wet and put those base rocks as deep as I can get them in the sand to the bottom to avoid a major avalance. It is fortunate that the base rock on bottom is the heavy stuff and the other is very light weight rock on top of it.
But, this appears that it could be a problem in the future....since he is going to continue to be a DIGGER!
KR

 

[TurboGuru]

My engineer is a constant pain in the rearend, he never stops digging... Yes, they do look like an eel with vertical black and white stripes.

 

[mflamb]

Contact ReefArtist on the club site. She has one.

 

[Bodacious]

I've had one for 4 years and he is about 8 inches long black and yellowish splotches he is one of my favorite fish.They are a engineer goby ,they are white and black when they are small ,when they get to about 4 to 5 inches they starte to change.

 

[weluvfish54]

yes their lines change directions when they get older..and yes they will never stop digging..
i wouldnt suggest them at all.i have about 5 and took them all out of my rock based tank to a smaller tank with just sand!

 

[rrtree]

i have 2 of them and they are great i gave them a pile of rocks in the corner and they stay put and seem to love it

 

[boydx6]

You can always cut up some large pvc pipe the same length as the sand is deep and set the rock on it. Then he can dig all the sand he wants and the rock will stay put.

 

[Boxer_Crab]

Engineering gobies AKA convict worm gobies have a horizontal line that transforms into the classic prision wear with vertical stripes

 

[kiransreef]

I like the idea of the PVC....but, what a mess my tank is gonna be! Taking all the rock and coral out to put the PVC pieces under. I am thinking that I will use that putty that people use for attaching small rocks w/ coral frags. Then I won't ever have to move the base rock again if it happens to shift off of the pvc pieces. What do you think? KR

 

[gatorolsen]

Engineer goby aka convict goby mimic the poisonous convict catfish when they are juvies with the horizontal stripes, the stripes then slowly change to dots then elongate in to a vertical pattern. The transformation is really interesting.

Gatorolsen