Dracula Goby / Pistol Shrimp

[djbetterly]

How often does this pair come up? I'm on the hunt! If anyone knows of a good place to look I'd appreciate it.

[larcomak11]

Just keep an eye out on divers den, I just saw one on there I think it was 2 days ago but I honestly don't know how long it's been since there had been one before

[MacWilliams]

You might want to think about going to your LFS and talk to them and see if they can order you a pair. I know mine does that for me if i want something they normally dont get in. Good luck.

[djbetterly]

I've asked already and they don't seem to want to offer. I've been emailing with bluezoo and they are going to try and pair a shrimp and goby for me. What is your LFS?

[MikeandNicole]

Honestly you don't really need to look for a dracula that comes with a shrimp. They are not like the white caps that have a specific shrimp that they pair with in the wild. We have paired them with tigers and candy canes with no problems. I would find a good dracula goby and go from there.

[djbetterly]

Really? I would love some insight on this. Originally I was told the same thing with my yasha haze and pistol and they never paired up. In fact the pistol ended up the yasha haze about a month ago. I got rid of the pistol so I'm starting from scratch.

[dg3147]

Live Aquaria Diver's den has them once every copuple weeks.

[djbetterly]

They actually aren't as hard to find as one would think. I just don't want to jump into buying one unless I know I can properly pair it as I'd like to. Ideally I'd buy a paired goby and shrimp, but from what I'm being told I may not need to. I just want validation, and an understanding, of how I pair and that they will pair in the tank.

[J2T]

Really? I would love some insight on this. Originally I was told the same thing with my yasha haze and pistol and they never paired up. In fact the pistol ended up the yasha haze about a month ago. I got rid of the pistol so I'm starting from scratch.

what kind of pistol? Just like not all gobies will form a symbiotic bond with pistols, not all pistols will pair with globes. You shouldn't have to pay a premium for a pair

[MikeandNicole]

If you get a tiger pistol or a candy cane they are shrimp that pair with gobies. There are a lot of pistol shrimp that do not pair with gobies.

[djbetterly]

Buy them both at the same time or should I buy one before the other?

I read some where about putting them together in a breeder cage for a while before releasing them into the tank. Any thoughts?

I'm sorry for the barrage of questions, I just want to make sure I'm making the right decision by buying them unpaired.

[MikeandNicole]

A lot of the stores around me will put them together in a breeder box with some sand and rocks to let the burrowing start and help them pair up.

What size tank are they going into?

[djbetterly]

I have a 34 solana with a deep sand bed.

[MikeandNicole]

That is a good sized tank and will make it easier to keep together. Make sure you have a cover, Dracula gobies are big time jumpers.

[djbetterly]

Oh yes, I have a well sealed lid.

[MikeandNicole]

There is a dracula with goby on DD right now.

[djbetterly]

Thank you Thank you!!! I got it!!

[djbetterly]

When I introduce them, do I need to do anything special since they are together or will they just stay together?

And is there anything I can do to coax them to going to a specific place in the tank?

[Fish Corral]

In the past, I place them both together in a plastic cup w holes upside dow. Where I want them to burrow n they usually make there home there. Hth n good luck. Take pics n post wen u get them.

[dixiedog]

When I introduce them, do I need to do anything special since they are together or will they just stay together?

And is there anything I can do to coax them to going to a specific place in the tank?

In the past, I place them both together in a plastic cup w holes upside dow. Where I want them to burrow n they usually make there home there. Hth n good luck. Take pics n post wen u get them.

I've been wondering about this too. I have a new goby in the QT right now and I'm hunting for a shrimp. I don't think there's room for the plastic cup trick in my tank. What if I dug a little burrow under the side of a rock and released the shrimp into it, might he just go ahead and stay there?

Then release the goby in the immediate vicinity of the burrow a few days later?

[djbetterly]

I read a great write up about creating a small borrow in the sand and putting some small pieces of rubble around it so the shrimp has rubble to build with. Once you do that introduce them as close to that pile as you can.

[dixiedog]

My goby lives in a short piece of 1/2" pipe right now in the QT. I'm pretty sure I can just reach in there, cover the ends with my fingers, carry him in the pipe to the display and release him precisely where I want to, including right into the shrimp's burrow, if it exists ahead of time.

At least that's what I'm hoping .... :)

[J2T]

You can place them where you want them but ultimately they'll decide where they want to be

[djbetterly]

Well the pair came today, I decided to let them do what they want. I did make some areas with hopes the shrimp would go there, but I didn't have any luck.

For now they remain unseen.

[dixiedog]

Following along. Keep us posted!

[djbetterly]

I've been out of town for six days and I can't seem to find any sign of either the goby or the shrimp. I'm going to stick my go pro in there today and see if I can find any sign in area's of the rock that I cannot see into.

[djbetterly]

Uggg...this has me so anxious!!

[djbetterly]

found the goby, its bunked up with my yellow head jawfish and peppermint shrimp. Quite the threesome I must say...

[djbetterly]

So here's the latest update for any followers. The dracula is just fine, eating and all. However I'm pretty sure the shrimp may have been eaten by my flame hawkfish. The shrimp was sooo tiny, probably 3/4in or less. Initially I would hear it snapping, now I haven't heard a snap in almost two weeks.

Honestly I'm not sure how a shrimp that small could dig a hole big enough for the dracula anyway.

So now I need to find a new pistol shrimp. Any suggestions? I know better than to get a japanese pistol this time.

I'd like one larger than the last so as not to have the same issue. Also this time I think I'll place a breeder cage over top of them until the shrimp can get situated.

[MikeandNicole]

Any pistol shrimp that readily pair with the gobies is probably going to be food for the flame hawkfish. Tiger pistols are bigger and are indcredible diggers, but I don't that they would be any match for a flame hawkfish.

[djbetterly]

So, if you had to choose, would you get rid of the flame hawkfish and get a small pistol? Or keep the hawkfish and go for a more aggressive japanese pistol?

My last experience with a japanese pistol wasn't so good, but if you, MikeandNicole are confident I could pair one with the dracula, then I'm willing to try.

I'm also no opposed to getting rid of the hawkfish, but they are a really cool fish except for their aggressive eating habits.

[MikeandNicole]

I have no experience with the Japanese pistols so I really can't give you any advice there. As far as flame hawk vs pistol that is really your call. The Dracula will be fine without a pistol so if you wanted to keep the hawk fish you still can. I like the tiger pistol if you want to try something a bit bigger than a candy cane.

[Fish Biscuit]

I currently have a large tiger pistol, pushing 4 inches in size, paired w/ a Randall. I've had the pistol for 2 yrs & the Randall for just over a year. I'm debating giving up the pistol as I've seen him pop at the goby about 3 times in the last few months. I'm suspecting that is what happened to the Yasha he was previously paired with. The Randall seems to put up with much less & I witnessed him pushing a snail shell into the shrimp lol.

I had a conversation with a friend about this last night & he said the goby would be fine w/o a pistol if I decide to go that route. His only suggestion about the pistol was he could be hungry so I have bumped up the feeding of algae wafers. If the goby's already paired with the jawfish he might not care if you add a pistol.

I just find the pistol behavior a little odd since he never bothered my tailspot blenny or any of my other shrimp. I'm hoping the upgrade to the 40 breeder will keep him busy building or the goby has more room & can ditch the shrimp if he decides to.

[djbetterly]

Just out of curiosity, if my dracula were to be in my sump area (i have a solana 34) how long could it survive? I've already found it in there once. I thought I had the whole thing covered but realized today that I missed an area. I'm going away tomorrow and will be back Saturday AM. Just want to make sure if it is in there that it will be ok.

[MikeandNicole]

As long as there is no pump for it to get sucked into, it will be fine.

[djbetterly]

Well its been a few weeks and I have my tank completely sealed up for this little jumper. I haven't seen him in a long time. The dracula did like to hide out with the yellow head jawfish, but I never see it come out to eat. Definitely a bit nervous as to its condition. I have some time this week, finally, so I can investigate getting a new shrimp and possibly getting rid of the flame hawk. Not sure what to do at this point.

[AnglerAddict882]

Well what happened next?