My very fat female watchman goby

[RJ Harris]

Wow!! That's totally cool. I love blue strips. I'd love a pair but I don't have enough to pod production to support them and my mandarins at this time even tho they're eating frozen they still forage all day

 

[Paul B]

I know what you mean. I let my fish mostly tend to themselves. I am just here so they have something to make fun of.

 

[RJ Harris]

Haha. I often think that's what my puffers doing when he's watching me through the glass and then says feed me slave by spitting at me

 

[tj w]

I love seeing spawning fish in home aquaria. Great job.

 

[RJ Harris]

Hey thanks there definitely happy little buggers

 

[Eva Rose]

Love the post on breeding watchman gobies especially! Please keep the photos and updates coming.
My YWG is 2 years old and one of favorite fish. She had a mate but I lost him a year ago. She sometimes swims over to snuggle with my jaw fish. You you think I should try to find her a mate or keep her solo - @RJ Harris & @Paul B ?

 

[RJ Harris]

I think a mate would do her well. No my experience with fresh water German blue Rams will waste away after they lose a mate. I had a pair and the male got stuck behind a deco in the tank and the female got stressed and ate all her eggs and that point forward I could never get her to eat or anything. May or may not be the sort of the same with saltwater pairs. What do you think Paul b?

 

[RJ Harris]

The hard parts going to be finding a male I couldn't personally tell ya the difference accept I think the female is usually bigger but that doesn't help if there babies

 

[Paul B]

I have never heard of a watchman gobi wasting away if her mate died, but I don't know every watchman gobi so I can't say it won't happen.
Here are mine when they were just kids.


Here is my current one with a couple of his friends.

 

[Eva Rose]

Here is a old pic of them together. She is the gray in this pic. And yes she was bigger. She would change colors from gray to partly yellow to bright yellow. Now she only shows gray areas if she stressed.
So I would have to confirm if she is still a female (or if they switch sex once they lose the male like some other species)??
Here is her current pic

 

[RJ Harris]

Yeah you would have to confirm sex but I don't think they switch sex

 

[Eva Rose]

I might try to find a smaller yellow ywg in hopes that it is a male. You are corect about the stress over losing a mate. She went on a hunger strike for over a week after I lost the male. My YWG pair would sit 'side by side' or 'tail to tail' to eat.
Cool story -I did not think she was going to make it. I tried everything. Then my pixy hawk started sitting with her tail to tail @feeding time. Cool part is he did eat not then, he would hold 'guard' till she ate (like her mate did). I always feed my pixy 1st in the tank (he is king). Then he would swim over and stay till ywg was fed. The pixy eats anything but never ywg's food. After a week she started eating on her own.
Awful pic but that is my pixy hawk getting my YWG to eat.
Oh -here's an article on raising YWG fry. Apologies if someone already sent this.
http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2005-12/ft/index.php

 

[RJ Harris]

That's a pretty cool story. I've never heard anything like that.
That's actually the article I was referring to earlier in this thread. It's a very interesting read

If you do get another ywg I'd watch them for a bit just in case it is another female, the original might show a bit of aggression toward her. The might also show some aggression towards a new male too but just not as severe

 

[Eva Rose]

That's a pretty cool story. I've never heard anything like that.
That's actually the article I was referring to earlier in this thread. It's a very interesting read

If you do get another ywg I'd watch them for a bit just in case it is another female, the original might show a bit of aggression toward her. The might also show some aggression towards a new male too but just not as severe

 

[Eva Rose]

I've thought about letting her grow more so I could try out a much smaller juvi specimen and as you said see how it goes. Thanks for your help! Please keep us all updated on your pair. It's so inspiring to read about tanks like yours that have spawning pairs.

 

[revhtree Verified Admin]

Very cool!

 

[RJ Harris]

Well she has laid. I jus can barely see them. If I can get a good shot I'll post a pic or a video

 

[RJ Harris]

 

[RJ Harris]

That's the male circulating fresh water over them

 

[RJ Harris]

So they hatched sometime in the night. I can't find them so either the mother has them or they've dispersed through the tank. Which means they will be food once the lights come or be subjected to the awful things in the sump.