Trying to decide on first fish

[mothra]

My wife and I have been taking things pretty slow on our 75g which is a few months old right now. So far the only inhabitants are a pair of fire shrimp and cleanup critters. For our first fish we were thinking about:

- Yashia goby (or pair) and possibly a pistol shrimp
OR
- Midas blenny

I think personality wise I'd rather have the blenny but I'm curious if it would be ok to add first? Do you think it might want to become the boss of the tank as a first fish and harass future additions? I don't know how active the gobies are, though they def. have the cool factor, especially if they will hook up w/ a shrimp. These are all the other fish I would like to add eventually (in order):

Pair of Ocellaris
Golden Dwarf Angelfish
Mandarin

[TippyToeX]

I love the Yasha Goby (http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-01/hcs3/index.htm). They may well be my favorite fish. So I am compelled to recommend them. :) Follow that link to be sure you have all that they require.

[onefin]

Great looking golby, my vote is for a pair of black perc's.

[mothra]

Amy - thanks I have read the article which is what got me interested initially in them. Care to share any about the behavior of your Yasha?

onefin - thanks for your comments, but I'm sticking to the fish on my list in the first post.

[TippyToeX]

My pair are a joy to watch! They are constantly working on their little burrows. Yet they are out in the open swimming often. Big time eaters (just about anything I put in they take).

Mine are paired up with a pistol shrimp. Watching them interact with the pistol is always great entertainment. They both tend to each other well. :)

[guitarfish]

I don't have a pair of clowns, but wish I did ! Can't beat the personality.

[raven14601]

Found the discussion interesting. I read the article and am thinking about adding a goby/shrimp pair to my 75 gallon tank. Current fish would all be compatible (butterfly, foxface rabbit, pair of pajama cardinals, tomato clown, pair of firefish, scooter blenny, lawnmower blenny and coral banded shrimp). A deep sand bed of 4-5 inches. It seems that it is best to obtain a goby & shrimp that are already "buddies", any suggestions on where to find some?

[mothra]

Amy, the Yashas sound really cool for sure. A couple more q's for ya... what type of pistol do you have with them? I've been looking around for a Radalli but no luck finding one. Other thing I was wondering is about your sandbed, is it a dsb? I thought that I read 2-3 inches would work if pvc pipes or other 'man made burrows' are added to the tank? I've only got about 2 - 2 1/2 inches of sand so that might not work out.

[mothra]

Guitarfish - Every time I see clowns gettin all squirlely in an anemone it cracks me up!.. or those classic shots people post of them sticking their heads out to see whats going on. I like em a lot despite the Nemo factor that's why I gotta have a couple of them too.

[mothra]

Hey raven, welcome to RC. Sounds like you have quite a few fish in your tank already, you might want to consider getting an opinion or two as to how fully stocked you currently are.

Aside from that I don't know where to find a goby & shrimp collected pair, I think that is pretty rare. You might want to check the RC Sponsors link for a pretty good list of fish stores on-line that you could check with.

[DensityMan]

Raven14601: Be careful with the cardinal-fishes. They eat small fish as part of their diet in the wild and once they get big enough, could pose a threat to the Stonogobiops species... ;)

Mothra: Your list of inhabitants looks like a winner with the yasha', I'd recommend getting them in threr and happy before adding the more territorial and rowdy fish (the midas blenny, clowns and angel).

Regarding the shrimps:in the wild I have read that the Stonogobiops species only pair with Alpheus randalli shrimp (AKA - "Candy-striped pistol shrimp"). My experience has also been that you do not need to find a fish and shrimp already paired. I don't see how it could hurt, it just may not be necessary. I've also never kept them in any sand less than 5 inches deep at home. In the LFS though I've observed them with some regularity in 1 to 2 inch beds. The shrimp in these situations never really settle down and can continue to pil up sand, shells and rubble until they can create at least a tiny one bedroom apartment. The firefish may also 'share' the burrow (many dart-fish do).

Without a shrimp I have observed these gobies living in holes or under rocks... they just never seem as comfortable.

You can do a few things to try to ensure the fish and shrimp are happier (IMO):
- add/mix into the sand some crushed coral/shells and rubble to the area you want them to establish the burrow. Add the PVC to this area as well with one end exposed and protected from back-filling if so desired.
- make certain all rockwork is braced underneath (to prevent rock-slides)
- acclimate the fish and shrimp together (if possible) in a fresh ziplock (or other brand) 'disposable' bowl with a lid. After acclimating/matching waters place the lid loosely onto the top and invert the bowl under water. Get it to the sandbed and carefully/slowly remove the lid while attempting to keep the fish and shrimp together in the area with the rubble. When the pistol starts digging reove the bowl entirely.

Hope that helps some... it is late here and I can't think of anything else... :D

[mothra]

DM, thanks a lot.

If I add a Yasha, or pair they will be the first fish. I was thinking that the Midas Blenny might harass them it seems like I read somewhere that they may harass small gobies, so I was thinking if I added the gobies the blenny would be off the list. Although I think blennies do have a lot of personality, sort of like clowns in that respect but more so from what I've seen they tend to be much more 'aware' of whats going on in the tank.

All my rock is on the glass so no worries there. I actually have begun a small rubble area also with a cup of large grained aragonite all mixed into the south down. It is right in the middle of the tank next to some rocks so I was hoping that any burrowing fish/shrimp would discover it and call it home. We'll see how it goes.

My goal was to select mainly peacful fish. To my understanding the Golden Angels are very peaceful, almost reclusive even, and tank raised Ocellaris clowns from what I've been told are also easy going. Am I off base here?