Barber Goby

Geographic Origin and Biotope: Tropical Southwestern Atlantic. Endemic to the coasts of Brazil, where it inhabits coral reefs and rocky areas rich in life between 3 and 20 meters.

Taxonomy and Morphology: Belongs to the family Gobiidae. Reaches about 3-3.5 cm. Elongated cylindrical body with pelvic fins fused to form a suction cup to adhere to rocks or glass.

Social Behavior: Active and peaceful cleaner goby. Establishes cleaning stations where larger fish position themselves specifically to have external parasites removed.

Coloration and Sexual Dimorphism: Glossy black body with two brilliant yellow longitudinal stripes running from the eyes to the tail. Light throat and belly. No obvious sexual dimorphism.

Aquarium Setup: Also suitable for small nano reef aquariums (from 40 liters / 10 gallons). Requires plenty of live rock with small crevices and caves for shelter.

Diet and Feeding: Carnivore. In captivity, it feeds on mysis, brine shrimp, lobster eggs, and finely crushed dry foods. Complements its diet by cleaning other fish.

Water Quality: Maintain temperature at 24-27°C (tolerates 22-28°C), pH 8.1-8.4, specific gravity 1.020-1.025. Requires clean and stable water.

Compatibility and Tankmates: 100% reef-safe. Ideal tankmate for any peaceful small to medium-sized fish. Avoid large predators (groupers, lionfish) that would eat it.

Aquarium Reproduction: Breeds in the aquarium, laying adhesive eggs in crevices. Fry can be raised using rotifers and artemia nauplii.

Risks and Diseases: High jump risk due to its small size. It is essential to keep the tank covered. Sensitive to copper-based disease treatments.