Yellow coral goby
| Yellow coral goby | ||||||||||||
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Yellow coral goby ( Gobiodon okinawae ) |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Gobiodon okinawae | ||||||||||||
| Sawada , Arai & Abe , 1972 |
The yellow coral goby ( Gobiodon okinawae , also Okinawagrundel ) is a saltwater fish from the order of the goby-like . Their distribution area is in the West Pacific and extends from southern Japan to the southern part of the Great Barrier Reef . Due to its beautiful color and peaceful behavior, the yellow coral goby is a popular aquarium fish.
description
Yellow coral gobies reach a total length of 3.5 cm. Her body is bright yellow except for a pale region on her cheek. Another species, Gobiodon citrinus , has a similar appearance, but the yellow coral goby lacks its blue and white facial markings.
In general, the animals are not aggressive, although they can actively defend their territory against their conspecifics. Their main defense against predators is a toxic, bitter slime on their skin that makes them inedible.
habitat
Coral reefs and protected lagoons form the habitat of this species. In contrast to most gobies that burrow, they live and sleep on the branches of corals of the genus Acropora in groups of 5 to 15 individuals.
food
Their diet consists mainly of plankton . However, they are not active hunters, but wait for the prey to come to them. Then they shoot forward, grab the prey and immediately return to their coral.
Multiplication
Species of the genus Gobiodon are hermaphrodites that begin their lives as females. When a couple has found each other, one of the partners changes sex if necessary. If there are two females, the larger one becomes a male. If there are two males, the smaller one becomes the female.
The up to 1000 eggs are placed in ribbons around the branches of the coral. The male immediately fertilizes the eggs and guards them until the young hatch, which happens about five days later.
Aquarium keeping
The yellow coral goby is a fish in marine aquariums , especially for coral reef aquariums. Due to its small size, it is also suitable for smaller aquariums. In order to avoid territorial disputes in the aquarium, it should be kept alone or as a breeding pair.
swell
- Gobiodon okinawae on Fishbase.org (English)
- "Fish Tales" Henry C. Shultz III, Reefkeeping Magazine , October 2002