EuphyllinOHk
Active Member
Hello Reef2Reef Fellows,
About a month ago, I went to my LFS to pick up the traditional watchman goby and pistol shrimp combo. They didn't have a yellow watchman, but the LFS owner keyed me in on a more shy cousin of the classic watchman: the Randall's Prawn Goby. I couldn't find too too much about the Randall's specifically, so I figured I'd collect my scattered thoughts here for the next reefer to find. I am fairly new to the saltwater hobby, and this is a sample size of one, so this isn't meant to be authoritative, conclusive, or comprehensive. Behold, the fish:
First is quarantine. In the planning phase, I had only ever considered getting a pair, and so copper treatment is out of the question. My quarantine plan was to observe for thirty days and either, treat with two doses of praziquantel, or remove the shrimp and treat with copper, should ich or velvet show on the Randall's. I am glad to say that, while not indicative of certainly being free of them, I have observed no instance of these diseases. The upside of this "copperless" method is that I am free to use rock and sand, which seems to be to my benefit in creating a nice hotel for my new critters. My observation tank is a 20g long - I've loosely measured out the purposefully low (no jumping!) water level to be 15.25g, before putting in sand, rocks, etc.. For heat, I have a nice 200W heater with a thermostat, set at 79F. For filtration, I have a sponge filter that is pumped with a doubleheaded air pump, which also pumps an airstone, positioned opposite of the sponge filter. I performed a slow acclimation process based on vetteguy's process, in the dark basically - no issues. Behold, the QT:
The big question was whether the shrimp and the Randall's would pair, and if so, how long until they would. These weren't a pair when I got them, but my LFS assured me "they'll find each other." Initially, I had though that they had bonded instantly! This video was taken minutes after acclimation:
"Great!" I thought. But, shortly after, I returned to see how they were doing and saw that the pair were actually two. The goby was peeking out of a cave and the shrimp was in a tiny cave, halfway up the larger rock. The shrimp looked at me and crawled back in, not to be seen for weeks. I genuinely thought that shrimp had crawled into the rock and died. That was the theory until I observed the Randall's scooting along the outer rim of the sand dish. I caught a glimpse of red in the bottom of the tank. I realized that the dishes I had were not completely flat and had little channels, running the diameter of the dish; small, but big enough for a plucky pistol shrimp. I thought "well, good, it's still alive." It was more than still alive, I had found one day. I flipped the lights on, and the goby, hugging the outer rim of the dish, started flaring his dorsal fins and wagging his pectoral fins, mouth agape. I thought I had stunned him, until I saw the reflection of the shrimp again. After seeing this behavior a few more times, I came to believe that they had paired and the Randall's was "defending" his shrimp. I believe they have officially paired as I observed the Randall's escorting his shrimp, out in the open, last night:
Cool stuff. As for the fish itself, I quite enjoy it. The Randall's Prawn Goby is fairly timid. It will dart away to hide, if startled (and it's startled easily), and won't come out easily. It is a very wary and suspicious creature. I've found that it always is watching me closely, when it doesn't hide away. If you get close and watch, you will notice that it constantly is assessing and reassessing you. You will notice it's fan-like dorsal fin, with the eye spot. This is not always fully extended. One moment, it will tuck in its dorsal fin and, in the next moment, it will extend it, and the next... tucked away again. As far as fish go, it's "thoughtful" - always on the lookout. I've noticed that, after acclimating to the new tank, I've found it roaming the tank as often as I've found it peeking out of its burrow. It can be quite active, if it feels comfortable, gliding across the floor of your tank. The Randall's Prawn Goby is an interesting contrast to my snappy, floppy clowns.
I've tried a handful of different foods - TDO pellets, PE mysis, Probiotix pellets, frozen mysis, live copepods. I have no idea if it's been picking at the copepods, if they're still around. TDO and Probiotix pellets were a bust (the clowns will be pleased). Frozen mysis was the first food I got it to eat, but it wasn't enthusiastic. PE mysis is the go to - it's the only food that the Randall's has eaten in front of me. The Randall's isn't the most picky eater (relatively), but it is a nervous eater. It will graze on pellets and scraps that sit on the bottom of the tank, but it won't jump up into the water column for food, in my experience.
I'm not sure what else to add or cover, but that's been my experience so far. I'm attached to the tiny pair and I think they've been a great addition to my dive into the hobby. If you get a chance to get one, I'd definitely recommend it!
About a month ago, I went to my LFS to pick up the traditional watchman goby and pistol shrimp combo. They didn't have a yellow watchman, but the LFS owner keyed me in on a more shy cousin of the classic watchman: the Randall's Prawn Goby. I couldn't find too too much about the Randall's specifically, so I figured I'd collect my scattered thoughts here for the next reefer to find. I am fairly new to the saltwater hobby, and this is a sample size of one, so this isn't meant to be authoritative, conclusive, or comprehensive. Behold, the fish:
First is quarantine. In the planning phase, I had only ever considered getting a pair, and so copper treatment is out of the question. My quarantine plan was to observe for thirty days and either, treat with two doses of praziquantel, or remove the shrimp and treat with copper, should ich or velvet show on the Randall's. I am glad to say that, while not indicative of certainly being free of them, I have observed no instance of these diseases. The upside of this "copperless" method is that I am free to use rock and sand, which seems to be to my benefit in creating a nice hotel for my new critters. My observation tank is a 20g long - I've loosely measured out the purposefully low (no jumping!) water level to be 15.25g, before putting in sand, rocks, etc.. For heat, I have a nice 200W heater with a thermostat, set at 79F. For filtration, I have a sponge filter that is pumped with a doubleheaded air pump, which also pumps an airstone, positioned opposite of the sponge filter. I performed a slow acclimation process based on vetteguy's process, in the dark basically - no issues. Behold, the QT:
The big question was whether the shrimp and the Randall's would pair, and if so, how long until they would. These weren't a pair when I got them, but my LFS assured me "they'll find each other." Initially, I had though that they had bonded instantly! This video was taken minutes after acclimation:
"Great!" I thought. But, shortly after, I returned to see how they were doing and saw that the pair were actually two. The goby was peeking out of a cave and the shrimp was in a tiny cave, halfway up the larger rock. The shrimp looked at me and crawled back in, not to be seen for weeks. I genuinely thought that shrimp had crawled into the rock and died. That was the theory until I observed the Randall's scooting along the outer rim of the sand dish. I caught a glimpse of red in the bottom of the tank. I realized that the dishes I had were not completely flat and had little channels, running the diameter of the dish; small, but big enough for a plucky pistol shrimp. I thought "well, good, it's still alive." It was more than still alive, I had found one day. I flipped the lights on, and the goby, hugging the outer rim of the dish, started flaring his dorsal fins and wagging his pectoral fins, mouth agape. I thought I had stunned him, until I saw the reflection of the shrimp again. After seeing this behavior a few more times, I came to believe that they had paired and the Randall's was "defending" his shrimp. I believe they have officially paired as I observed the Randall's escorting his shrimp, out in the open, last night:
Cool stuff. As for the fish itself, I quite enjoy it. The Randall's Prawn Goby is fairly timid. It will dart away to hide, if startled (and it's startled easily), and won't come out easily. It is a very wary and suspicious creature. I've found that it always is watching me closely, when it doesn't hide away. If you get close and watch, you will notice that it constantly is assessing and reassessing you. You will notice it's fan-like dorsal fin, with the eye spot. This is not always fully extended. One moment, it will tuck in its dorsal fin and, in the next moment, it will extend it, and the next... tucked away again. As far as fish go, it's "thoughtful" - always on the lookout. I've noticed that, after acclimating to the new tank, I've found it roaming the tank as often as I've found it peeking out of its burrow. It can be quite active, if it feels comfortable, gliding across the floor of your tank. The Randall's Prawn Goby is an interesting contrast to my snappy, floppy clowns.
I've tried a handful of different foods - TDO pellets, PE mysis, Probiotix pellets, frozen mysis, live copepods. I have no idea if it's been picking at the copepods, if they're still around. TDO and Probiotix pellets were a bust (the clowns will be pleased). Frozen mysis was the first food I got it to eat, but it wasn't enthusiastic. PE mysis is the go to - it's the only food that the Randall's has eaten in front of me. The Randall's isn't the most picky eater (relatively), but it is a nervous eater. It will graze on pellets and scraps that sit on the bottom of the tank, but it won't jump up into the water column for food, in my experience.
I'm not sure what else to add or cover, but that's been my experience so far. I'm attached to the tiny pair and I think they've been a great addition to my dive into the hobby. If you get a chance to get one, I'd definitely recommend it!
