question about goby shrimp pair

[TRe]

ok i just got a yellow watchman goby and im planning on getting a tiger pistol shrimp for it to pair up with my question is do i have to put them in there at the same time???? i havnt bought the pistol shrimp yet but they have one at a lfs right down the street for $15 thats already paired up with another goby but they wanted $60 for the pair so i walked out and went down the street where i found this watchman goby *thumbsups
does it matter if i get the pistol shrimp right now or if i wait???

 

[Joe Fish]

There is no guarentee that they will pair up. It's their choice you could say.

 

[Lotus]

I just bought a pistol shrimp and an orange spot goby today. The LFS owner said that he's never had a problem with the two pairing up. I guess I'll know in a few days

I asked how much the pair was, and he said he doesn't charge more for a pair. I guess I got off light on that one.

 

[Joe Fish]

I have been trying to find a pistol shrimp for months. I can never seem to find them.

 

[TRe]

well they have a couple of them at my favorite lfs and there all paired up ..... if there so easy to pair up i dont understand why they charge double but what ever ... i didnt end up getting the pistol shrimp yesterday but i did come home with a pair of clowns i already spent way too much money this week so ill have to wait till next week on that one but ill let you know how it wurks out

 

[Joe Fish]

They charge that much becuause some people will pay it.

 

[TRe]

yea at first he said $80 and i told him he was crazy so he said $60 and i still didnt go for it but i said cant i get them seperate?? he said yeah and he never had a problem with them pairing up... the one i was looking at actually had 2 gobies paired up with one pistol srimp it was pretty cool

 

[Lorna]

two gobies and one shrimp??????now that is weird unless the gobies were a mated pair. Now that would be something.......

My pair were paired in the store and were only $45 for the pair......but I have heard that you get a couple of pieces of pvc and bury them in the gobie's territory and then introduce the shrimp which should go directly for the pvc.........and then voila they should pair up.......good luck......

(mine are a wheelers gobie and tiger pistol shrimp and they are a great fun to watch pair, never apart more than a couple of centimeters)

 

[TRe]

yea it was really crazy and the gobies were differant types (not really sure wich types) and they would sit side by side and the pistol shrimp was digging a hole right behind them.... the goby shrimp pair is for my 10 gallon... in a tank this small do u think ill still need to use pvc????

 

[Dadstank]

I find it odd that two gobies are in one tank. Most gobies can't stand to be around another unless you can create two "territories" for each to claim.
As for the pistol taking to a goby.... odds are pretty good. I would love to get one for my watchman but none of the LFS's ever have any, and to order one is more spendy thru the LFS than online....
The main reason why I haven't got one is because they are known to tunnel under LR and topple your structures unless you use PVC which isn't something I really care to get into doing.... I barely have time to pop in here-MFT.net. 3 kids, school, and 20 hrs OT a week keep me pretty busy

 

[Lorna]

Well that is very strange......especially two different species. Maybe they look different enough, though you would think they wouldn't get along.

One thing for the pistol shrimp is to get a whole bunch of rubble and put it on the sand near where the gobie hangs out. The shrimp will then use the rubble to make his tunnels. Believe me you won't find one piece of rubble on the sand after a day or so. They use it to shore up their undersand homes. Like a miner shores up his tunnels so do they. I put about 2lbs of rubble in my 20 and haven't seen it since. They are constantly remodeling their home. The pistol shrimp moves sand from one place to another all day. The wheeler gobie unlike my orange spot doesn't sift sand at all....just hangs out watching all day, guarding the current opening. I am sure if you introduce a shrimp they will pair up in no time at all. Good luck and send out pics once you get them.

 

[TRe]

ill be picking up the pistol shrimp this weekend and ill try to find out what kind those 2 gobies were while im there..... and you know ill be posting pics asap

 

[Lotus]

Our LFS has two gobies that paired with one shrimp in their display tank. They found a goby in the overflow, figured it had jumped from the tank and put it in the tank, only to discover later that it wasn't the goby from that tank. They share the shrimp, but are on opposite sides of a small rock.

They're orangespotted gobies, which is what I got.

 

[Lorna]

well orange spot gobies/ diamond gobies are sand sifting gobies and are probably just hanging out with the shrimp. I am not sure that they really act like a watchman type.....though I am probably wrong. I have an orange spot in my 75 who moves sand around constantly, my wheeler watchman doesn't sift sand at all but just sits guard over the pistol shrimp all day. Different interests.....so who knows. The pair in the lfs are not a mated pair are they?

I have seen orange spots attack another in an adjacent tank in the lfs once they spotted each other.....through the glass......

 

[Lotus]

Sorry, the orangespotted I was referring to is the Amblyeleotris guttata. Pic here: Orange Spotted Shrimp Goby (Amblyeleotris guttata)

 

[TRe]

well its been raining all day so i havnt been able to go to wurk today i think im guna go to the lfs and see if they still have the pistol shrimp they had last weekend

 

[TRe]

question since i got the watchman last week he hasnt really come out so i take a closer look and i can only see him by looking in the reflection in the back of the tank does this mean thats where his burrow is??? and if so does this mean he will always be in the back and when i introduce the pistol will they both just always be hiden in the back is there any way to try and get them to burrow in sight like say the front???

 

[TRe]

ok just got back lfs with my pistol shrimp hes a Randalli i belive ill post sum pics as soon as hes in the tank

 

[Joe Fish]

My watchman is extremely shy. Barely ever comes out of is 'home'.

 

[Lorna]

cool, can't wait for the pictures. Do you already have a gobie? If so do they know the other exists yet?