yasha hase goby questions

[jojopotato25]

I was wondering if they are sand sifters. I ask because my yasha hase hides with his shrimp all day in a cave. the opening to the cave isnt big enough for him to get out so hes not getting any food. I tried making the opening bigger but the shrimp always makes it smaller again. should i be worried that my goby isnt getting enough food or do you think he is sifting sand for food?

 

[LarryB]

They are not sand sifters. One thing I have learned recently from the super cool dudes at Barrier Reef is that they are most comfortable when their burrow is under an over hang where they can hang out ouside their burrow but still have some cover. I have had a couple and found them to be very skitish, but if the burrow has some cover you will see a lot more of them.

 

[The Apprentice]

Hi
jojopotato25:
I have kept 2 diffrent pairs of these little Guys In my tanks my fist pair is almost 3 years old They do seem to get lost in bigger tanks I to try to target feed them If or when I do see them with their Alpheus randalli
"Randall's Pistol Shrimp". I belive they work together as food scavengers and will also target Pods as they work around the bottom rock work. Do you have yours in sand or crushed coral? I have seem to have more luck with them having a little Crushed Coral for the shrimp to build up a den entrance than with sand. I also agree with Larry B they are not sand sifters,they prefer eating prepaired foods and on accasion I have seen mine eat small amounts of Nori flake.. Also like Larry said If you have any small rubble to place by their entrance to help them feel secure that is a big help they will come out if its a quite tank here the proof...Jeff

I was wondering if they are sand sifters. I ask because my yasha hase hides with his shrimp all day in a cave. the opening to the cave isnt big enough for him to get out so hes not getting any food. I tried making the opening bigger but the shrimp always makes it smaller again. should i be worried that my goby isnt getting enough food or do you think he is sifting sand for food?

 

[jojopotato25]

excellent advice,thanks guys! im going to put some rubble one the left and right side of their den and then glue some rock to make an overhang. Ill try to post pics and tell you if it made a diffrence.

 

[jojopotato25]

so your ideas totally worked. It was an immediate diffrence in boldness. I would say 30 seconds after setting up the overhang and rubble the goby came halfway out. First time ive seen more than an eye since i saw him at the lfs.

 

[Snowboarda42]

Glad to hear it worked!

In my experience, I try to leave the two alone as much as I can. If I see them out around their den, I try to stay away from the tank if possible, and move a little slower if I can since they are easily scared. While the goby is out, however, I've seen him come ~6" from his home to get food that floats by in the column. Most of the time, mine will come out right after I feed the tank and get whatever Mysis, Brine, etc. floats by the burrow. They tend to burrow a few different places, and only a few of them seem to get the most food that floats by, so that tends to be where I see them the most. Another thing to do is get some Formula 1 small pellet and put it right in front of the burrow, or actually in the burrow if its open but the goby and shrimp are inside. I would only do this though if you're sure they're not getting enough food, because eventually, they will come to expect that as their only means of getting food.

Hope that helps a bit bro.