All fish / Gobiidae

Neon Goby

Elacatinus oceanops

Also known as neon goby, blue neon goby, cleaner goby, florida neon goby, yes, ネオンゴビー, 霓虹虾虎, 霓虹鰕虎

A tiny, slender goby with an electric blue stripe running along each side of a black back and a pale belly. It works as a cleaner, setting up stations where larger fish come to have parasites removed, and is popular for small reef tanks because it is hardy, reef safe and widely captive bred.

Care at a glance

Care level

Easy

Temperament

Peaceful

Adult size

4 cm

Temperature

23 to 27 °C

pH

8.1 to 8.4

Smallest tank

40 litres

Keep as

Singly or as a mated pair

Diet

Carnivore: mysis, brine shrimp, copepods, fine frozen and pellet foods; also picks parasites off other fish

Swims

Bottom of the tank

Lifespan

1 to 2 years

Water

Marine (saltwater)

Wild range

Western Atlantic: Florida, Bahamas, Gulf of Mexico to Belize

Breeding

Pairs lay eggs inside a cave or tube and the male guards them until they hatch after about a week. It is one of the easier marine fish to breed, and the larvae can be reared on rotifers and then baby brine shrimp, so captive bred fish are common in the trade.

Good to know

Short lived and small enough to be eaten by dottybacks, hawkfish and other predators. Choose captive bred fish where possible, and note that "Yes" is a mislabel rather than a real trade name.