Randall's Prawn-goby

About

The gold-barred shrimp-goby (Amblyeleotris randalli) is one of the more rewarding gobies to keep if you have a soft spot for natural behaviors. Found across the Western Pacific, from the Moluccas and Palau east to the Solomon Islands, and ranging from the Ryukyu Islands down to the northern Great Barrier Reef, this species makes its home on sandy, rubble-strewn patches of clear-water reefs. In the wild it shares a burrow with a pistol shrimp, a partnership that benefits both animals: the nearly blind shrimp does the excavating and housekeeping while the goby keeps watch at the entrance, retreating inside at the first sign of trouble and taking its partner with it. In the aquarium this relationship is one of the most fascinating things you can watch play out in a reef tank, and the goby will readily pair with compatible pistol shrimp species. The fish itself is a slender, bottom-hugging carnivore that stays relatively small and causes no trouble for tankmates. It does need a deep sand bed and some rubble to feel at home. Keepers should take care that the tank has a tight-fitting lid, since gobies like this one have a habit of finding any gap and using it. A solid intermediate-level species, interesting enough to be a centerpiece in the right setup.