All fish / Gobiidae

Golden Malili Goby

Mugilogobius rexi

Also known as golden sulawesi goby, yellow goby, malili goby, rexi goby, golden goby, gobi malili

No free-to-use photo of this fish yet. Took one yourself? Send it to us and we will credit you.

A small goby from the ancient Malili lakes of Sulawesi, with mature males turning bright golden yellow and showing dark bands in the fins, while females are paler and greyish. It is kept for its striking colour, interesting perching behaviour and suitability for small, hard water tanks, often alongside Sulawesi shrimps.

Care at a glance

Care level

Moderate

Temperament

Semi

Adult size

4 cm

Temperature

26 to 29 °C

pH

7.5 to 8.5

Smallest tank

40 litres

Keep as

A male and female pair, or one male with several females in larger tanks

Diet

Carnivore: small frozen foods such as bloodworm, brine shrimp and daphnia, plus sinking granules once accepted

Swims

Bottom of the tank

Lifespan

2 to 4 years

Water

Freshwater

Wild range

Lakes Towuti and Mahalona (Malili lakes), Sulawesi, Indonesia

Breeding

A cave spawner: the female sticks eggs to the roof of a cave or under a stone and the male guards them until they hatch. Spawning happens fairly readily in a mature tank, but raising the tiny fry takes very small live foods and is harder.

Good to know

Males defend territories and may fight in small tanks, so provide plenty of caves. It is endemic to a few lakes under threat, so choose captive-bred stock where possible, and note that it may eat very small shrimplets.