I recently obtained a baby fish in Port Aransas, a goby-like fish of some kind. His side fins are a bit large for a goby, though, they're stiff and wide kind of like on a sea robin. His pectoral fins- I'm not sure if they're 'legs' like on a sea robin or just fanned out wide under him. I know he's probably too small to ID (he's barely over half an inch), but I'm looking for a list of photos or names of what he could be. I know we have sea robins of several kinds, though I don't know what species exactly, and we also have gobies. Are there any blennies? Anything goby-shaped that crawls around on the bottom? Anyone got photos?
Goby-like fish in Gulf, Port Aransas area- need list of species.
- Thread starter Betta132
- Start date
Mike Ordner
Active member
Got a picture? Did the fish come off the rocks at the jetty or on the sand? Could be a small toadfish although I have never seen one that small. Does it eat anything? And yes, there are lots of blennies at the jetties. Not knowing what it eats will probably be the end of a fish this small.
Yep. I agree.
I know normally you don't want to take anything unidentified home, but I do have some reasons:
1: He was in a clump of seaweed to hide and would have most likely been washed up on shore to dry out and die or be eaten by a gull.
2: If he'd managed to stay in the water, he's so delicate-looking and bottom-based that I didn't think he'd survive long, and he definitely couldn't fight the surf. Therefore, his best chance of survival was probably with me.
3: I was fairly sure he was a goby at the time, and most gobies are good tank fish.
I normally research my fish before I obtain them, but it wasn't like I could put him back and come back in a few days to get him.
He was found in some sargassum seaweed in the surf zone. My guess is the sargassum was for hiding and not actually his house. That or I just happened to scoop him up as he was swimming near it.
And I do actually know what he eats. Bugs, basically. I gave him copepods and he quite happily ate them, and he's now eating Cyclop-Eeze if it lands on the bottom near him. He's strictly a bottom-feeder and doesn't appear to notice food over him.
I have some pictures, but all they show is a faintly fish-head-shaped grey spot and the bases of his wide fins. What are the fins that are really big on a sea robin? Not pectorals, those are the underbelly fins- right?
He's a bit over half an inch long, and he has a goby's tail, a goby's long second dorsal fin, and a goby's anal fin. Not sure if he has a small front dorsal fin like a goby. His head, fanned side fins, and the organ area of him were black when I got him. They're now a soft stone grey, I suspect just to better match his habitat. By side fins, I mean the ones he swims with... They're rather large, like in gobies and sea robins.
Below those, his pectoral fins- I can't tell if they're fused like a goby's and fanned out, or if they're those cute 'legs' on sea robins. He's too transparent.
His eyes are bumped up like a lizard's and look to be blue-ish, his mouth is a frown like both of the two, and I think his head is a bit too rounded for a sea robin... His forehead slopes down just a bit from his eyes to his mouth, more like a sea robin than a goby.
He stays on the bottom all the time, not even really lifting off to dart away when I bother him, and he hides in the chaeto clump most of the time. He doesn't perch in it, though, he just sits under it. He eats kind of like a dragonet... He'll spot food and, if it's too far, he'll hopscoot closer until he can grab it. The only time he swims away from the bottom is to chase after runaway copepods.
Do we have dragonets, by any chance?
I'm doing some research into Gulf oddball species.
Anyone know what a baby stargazer looks like? Stargazers are weird goby-looking fish that can deliver a mild shock.
What about midshipman fish? Related to toadfish, I think.
Oh, and I found three baby pufferfish, smaller than beans. Two of them puffed up when I had them in my holding tank. SO CUTE!
Don't worry, the pufferbabies deflated properly before I let them go. I checked.
1: He was in a clump of seaweed to hide and would have most likely been washed up on shore to dry out and die or be eaten by a gull.
2: If he'd managed to stay in the water, he's so delicate-looking and bottom-based that I didn't think he'd survive long, and he definitely couldn't fight the surf. Therefore, his best chance of survival was probably with me.
3: I was fairly sure he was a goby at the time, and most gobies are good tank fish.
I normally research my fish before I obtain them, but it wasn't like I could put him back and come back in a few days to get him.
He was found in some sargassum seaweed in the surf zone. My guess is the sargassum was for hiding and not actually his house. That or I just happened to scoop him up as he was swimming near it.
And I do actually know what he eats. Bugs, basically. I gave him copepods and he quite happily ate them, and he's now eating Cyclop-Eeze if it lands on the bottom near him. He's strictly a bottom-feeder and doesn't appear to notice food over him.
I have some pictures, but all they show is a faintly fish-head-shaped grey spot and the bases of his wide fins. What are the fins that are really big on a sea robin? Not pectorals, those are the underbelly fins- right?
He's a bit over half an inch long, and he has a goby's tail, a goby's long second dorsal fin, and a goby's anal fin. Not sure if he has a small front dorsal fin like a goby. His head, fanned side fins, and the organ area of him were black when I got him. They're now a soft stone grey, I suspect just to better match his habitat. By side fins, I mean the ones he swims with... They're rather large, like in gobies and sea robins.
Below those, his pectoral fins- I can't tell if they're fused like a goby's and fanned out, or if they're those cute 'legs' on sea robins. He's too transparent.
His eyes are bumped up like a lizard's and look to be blue-ish, his mouth is a frown like both of the two, and I think his head is a bit too rounded for a sea robin... His forehead slopes down just a bit from his eyes to his mouth, more like a sea robin than a goby.
He stays on the bottom all the time, not even really lifting off to dart away when I bother him, and he hides in the chaeto clump most of the time. He doesn't perch in it, though, he just sits under it. He eats kind of like a dragonet... He'll spot food and, if it's too far, he'll hopscoot closer until he can grab it. The only time he swims away from the bottom is to chase after runaway copepods.
Do we have dragonets, by any chance?
I'm doing some research into Gulf oddball species.
Anyone know what a baby stargazer looks like? Stargazers are weird goby-looking fish that can deliver a mild shock.
What about midshipman fish? Related to toadfish, I think.
Oh, and I found three baby pufferfish, smaller than beans. Two of them puffed up when I had them in my holding tank. SO CUTE!
Don't worry, the pufferbabies deflated properly before I let them go. I checked.
Last edited:
Mike Ordner
Active member
The larval fish associated with sargassum is a long list. The amount of weed that has been coming in lately is making fishing hard as the currents are not lining it up. Check out this article as to what someone found with the mats. Throw you a chunk of sargassum in there as its natural food source is in the weed also.
http://procs.gcfi.org/pdf/gcfi_56-21.pdf
http://procs.gcfi.org/pdf/gcfi_56-21.pdf
Robb in Austin
New member
I don't have any sargassum with me, and I'd be worried about putting some in there if I did. There's all kinds of things hiding in there, including crabs that are nearly impossible to see (even on very close inspection) until they let go. I have him eating, so food is covered.
According to that guide, I probably either have a stargazer, a toadfish, or a midshipman. Or, if I try a slightly different mouth type (not sure which is right), he's a blenny, goby, or scorpionfish.
Also, I have no guarantee he actually belongs in sargassum. He could have just been hiding in a piece because he ended up in the wrong environment, or he could have been free-swimming and I scooped him up without realizing.
According to that guide, I probably either have a stargazer, a toadfish, or a midshipman. Or, if I try a slightly different mouth type (not sure which is right), he's a blenny, goby, or scorpionfish.
Also, I have no guarantee he actually belongs in sargassum. He could have just been hiding in a piece because he ended up in the wrong environment, or he could have been free-swimming and I scooped him up without realizing.
He caught it while fishing. I just moved in and found that Sea Robin has been in a tank for about a month. He is recycling with water from the sea. I agree with ya'll that animals are not a disposable commodity, I have done various types of animal rescue/education/advocacy for years.. no experience w fish. The situation infuriates me but it's not a battle I'm going to win within the family. My options are turn it loose or bust my tail to get educated. Will returning it to the ocean at this point shock the fish? Could use any sort or references or sources to kick start my fish rescue/ family education process. THANK YOU
IMO, if it was caught fishing and you plan to release the fish to the same body area where he was caught, then I would say let it go. If you are using water in the tank directly from the ocean, I don't think releasing it without acclimating will be a problem.
HOWEVER, Do not return the fish to the ocean if he wasn't caught in that area of the ocean where you plan to release it. We do not need to have another "Lion Fish" outbreak where the fish didn't originate from that geographical area but was dumped into the body of water because "someone didn't want it".
HOWEVER, Do not return the fish to the ocean if he wasn't caught in that area of the ocean where you plan to release it. We do not need to have another "Lion Fish" outbreak where the fish didn't originate from that geographical area but was dumped into the body of water because "someone didn't want it".
