About three months ago, I was lucky enough to be given twelve half-grown specimens of Chlamydogobius eremius, the Desert Goby, through the contacts of Andy Wattam. I believe the wild caught specimens came from somewhere in the vicinity of Alice Springs in the Northern Territory, by vicinity I mean within a few hundred kilometres. When first obtained they all looked the same, a drab mottled brown and grey colour about 45 mm. long.
Desert Gobies grow to about 60 mm. long and are usually mottled brown, grey and olive green in colour. They are bottom dwelling fish which prefer shallow water because they are forced to. The little fellows evolved without a swim bladder, and to remain in midwater they swim constantly in a headup fashion. As soon as they stop swimming they sink back to the bottom.
Dramatic change of colour
When the male Desert Goby decides it is time to find a mate, settle down and raise a family, the colour change is dramatic. They change from their normal colouring to an overall olive green which lightens to yellow on the head. The head grows larger in proportion to that of the rest of the body when compared to the female. The pectoral, second dorsal, anal and caudal fins become black fringed with a narrow border of stark white. The first dorsal fin becomes royal blue and yellow fringed with a narrow border of black. Picasso couldn’t have done better if he had designed the colour scheme, which is truly a magnificent sight.
Water conditions
Water conditions are not important, according to Merrick and Schmidal’s book Australian Freshwater Fishes they will live in distilled water through to marine conditions. Temperature tolerances are from 5 to 41 degrees C and they are often found in artesian springs and bores where the water is so hard you can almost walk, on it. Any creature that makes its home in Central Australia has to be this tough.
The specimens I had were put into an aquarium of 160 litres with aged tap water, about four desert spoons of marine salt and one of Epsom salts. The water was kept at 22 degrees C and they were fed chopped earthworms, frozen Artemia salina (Brine Shrimp), pea and prawn puree, live Daphnia magna, and flake food. They have huge appetites for their size and grow very quickly.
Preperations
Rocks with spaces underneath to form caves were placed in the aquarium and soon some of the fishes, the males, began to change colour. The females’ bellies began to swell and the males’ heads grew larger. Early one morning one of the male’s colours had intensified and he was darting in and out of his cave chasing the other males away. When a female came near his cave entrance, he would try to entice them into his cave by erecting his fins, wagging his whole body then swimming back into his cave hoping that she will follow.
Eggs
After a couple of days of this behaviour, one females would follow him into the cave then swim straight of the back out again. Unfortunately, time didn’t allow me to stay and watch. After eight hours (normal period spent at place of employment) the rock was lifted up and there was a patch of about 150 oval shaped eggs hanging from the ceiling of the cave and attached by little short threads. This first spawning went fungoid and I think it must have been infertile.
The second spawning was taken away from the male after about six days when the eyes were clearly visible and placed in a small 15 litre aquarium. After about eight days they started to hatch. It took about another five days before every egg case was fee of its occupant. The fry were very large and easy to feed. They took Turbatrix aceti (Vinegar Eels) and Anquillula glutinus(Microworms) as a first food and were eating Brine Shrimp within a week. They grew quickly and always seem to be looking for something else to eat.
The male guarding the eggs allows other females to enter his cave and up until the last time I looked, under his rock, there were about 1000 eggs, all in various stages of development.
Conclusion
Anyone with a community aquarium which has some space for a bottom dwelling species should include some Desert Gobies. Their antics and some of the positions they get themselves into will keep you amused. They are peaceful towards other fish, and the males that have a cave to protect only chase fishes that come within a few inches of their home and even then only chase them a very short distance before returning to their cave.
Editor’s Note: Desert Gobies will always hold a special place in my fishy memories. They were the first of nearly a thousand points worth of fish that Julie and I bred, yet I will never forget them. They deserve better than to have been totally forgotten by Canberra’s aquarist community. For those interested, TFH magazine of August 1988 has an excellent article by Deborah and Rodney Ralph, former Society Treasurer and President respectively, which has some photos of Deborah’s of Desert Gobies in various stages of their lives.
Author: David Wilson; from “Tank Talk” Canberra and District Aquarium Society
Source: Aquarticles (No longer available)
Copyright images: Hristo Hristov, imagirlgeek
Thanks Dave. Great read about a very interesting fish