African algae-eating goby

Parasicydium bandama

Also known as Bandama goby

FreshwaterFish

African algae-eating goby (Parasicydium bandama) — The Wet Spot Tropical Fish · Used with permission

Care at a glance

Temperature: 73–81°F (23–27°C)
pH: 6.5–7.5
Adult size: 2.2 in (5.5 cm)
Minimum tank: 14 gal (54 L)
Temperament: Peaceful
Social behavior: Social
Swim level: Bottom
Difficulty: Medium
Breeding: Medium
Rarity: Rare
Origin: Bandama River, Ivory Coast, West Africa
Family: Oxudercidae

Overview

This is a small West African river goby that grazes algae and picks tiny invertebrates from current-washed rock, so treat it as a specialist rather than a general community fish. It is peaceful and social, and does best in a group of five or six over an open layout of smooth stones that breaks up sight lines, since males hold small feeding patches. Keep it low in the tank, on the bottom in the flow, and choose calm tankmates such as small rasboras that will not race it to the food. It needs brisk water movement, high oxygen, and a mature film of algae on hard surfaces, topped up with sinking foods and a little frozen cyclops or brine. Around 54 liters with plenty of current suits a small group.

In the wild

In the wild it lives in fast, clear, rocky rivers of West and Central Africa, with the first specimens taken from the Bandama River in Ivory Coast. These warm, well-oxygenated waters run over stone, and the fish clings to rock in the current while scraping the algal film. Copy that with a stream-style tank: a strong powerhead, smooth rounded rocks and gravel, and bright light to grow the film it feeds on. Hold the temperature near 23 to 27 C and keep the water close to neutral, about pH 6.5 to 7.5.

Good to know

Parasicydium bandama sits in the family Oxudercidae and was described by Risch in 1980. It is a small goby of about 5.5 centimeters, and it is the only species in its genus, the single African member of the sicydiine algae gobies that are far more diverse across Asia and the Pacific. Like its relatives it is amphidromous: adults live and breed in fresh water while the tiny larvae drift downstream to develop in brackish or marine conditions before returning upriver. It is rated moderately difficult to breed.

Did you know

It is the lone African cousin of the algae-eating stream gobies that fill hobby tanks from Asia to the Pacific. Its genus holds just this one species, and its narrow range leaves it uncommon and, in places, threatened by habitat loss.

Tank mates

African algae-eating goby is a peaceful, social species that keeps to the bottom. These picks match on water type, temperature, pH, size and temperament.