Hey everyone,
I really need some help — I’m starting to get genuinely worried about my Diamond Goby.
He’s been completely missing for 10 full days now. He used to sift sand all day and kept my substrate spotless, but I haven’t seen any movement, new mounds, or signs of him since he dug his tunnel.
This is a 30-gallon reef tank, over 2 months old, so it’s not like losing a goby in a 100-gallon system — I can see almost every inch of this tank, and there’s really nowhere for him to hide except under the main rockwork where he originally built his tunnels.
Tank details:
• 30-gallon reef (stable and cycled)
• Ammonia 0 / Nitrite 0 / Nitrate ~6.6 / Phosphate 0.20
• Alk 8.9 / Mag 1540 / Calcium high (recent molts)
• All other fish and corals healthy
Here’s what’s confusing me: my Firefish keeps going in and out of the goby’s old burrow constantly, even though that’s not where he sleeps. I’ve tried putting rubble in front of the entrance (leaving gaps for oxygen and flow), but he still manages to squeeze in.
I haven’t seen any new sand movement or tunnels from the goby at all. The burrow runs under the main rock and connects to another exit, but I don’t want to disturb it in case the goby’s still alive.
There’s been no ammonia spike this whole time, so part of me thinks he might still be deep under there — but I honestly don’t know. Could the Firefish hanging around and entering the burrow constantly be keeping the goby from coming out, or do you think it’s unrelated?
At what point should I assume the worst? I’d really appreciate any advice or personal experiences
I really need some help — I’m starting to get genuinely worried about my Diamond Goby.
He’s been completely missing for 10 full days now. He used to sift sand all day and kept my substrate spotless, but I haven’t seen any movement, new mounds, or signs of him since he dug his tunnel.
This is a 30-gallon reef tank, over 2 months old, so it’s not like losing a goby in a 100-gallon system — I can see almost every inch of this tank, and there’s really nowhere for him to hide except under the main rockwork where he originally built his tunnels.
Tank details:
• 30-gallon reef (stable and cycled)
• Ammonia 0 / Nitrite 0 / Nitrate ~6.6 / Phosphate 0.20
• Alk 8.9 / Mag 1540 / Calcium high (recent molts)
• All other fish and corals healthy
Here’s what’s confusing me: my Firefish keeps going in and out of the goby’s old burrow constantly, even though that’s not where he sleeps. I’ve tried putting rubble in front of the entrance (leaving gaps for oxygen and flow), but he still manages to squeeze in.
I haven’t seen any new sand movement or tunnels from the goby at all. The burrow runs under the main rock and connects to another exit, but I don’t want to disturb it in case the goby’s still alive.
There’s been no ammonia spike this whole time, so part of me thinks he might still be deep under there — but I honestly don’t know. Could the Firefish hanging around and entering the burrow constantly be keeping the goby from coming out, or do you think it’s unrelated?
At what point should I assume the worst? I’d really appreciate any advice or personal experiences
