Broadstripe Cleaner Goby

Elacatinus prochilos

Also known as Broadstripe Goby, Broad Stripe Cleaner Goby

SaltwaterFish

Care at a glance

Temperature: 72–79°F (22–26°C)
pH: 8.1–8.4
Adult size: 1.6 in (4 cm)
Minimum tank: 11 gal (40 L)
Temperament: Peaceful
Social behavior: Social
Swim level: Bottom
Difficulty: Easy
Breeding: Medium
Rarity: Rare
Reef safe: Reef safe
Origin: Caribbean, southern Florida to the Lesser Antilles
Family: Gobiidae

Overview

Broadstripe gobies are peaceful, fully reef safe, and comfortable in tanks as small as 40 liters. Captive-bred fish spend much of the day perched in the open on rock or the glass panels and accept pellets and frozen foods without fuss.

In the wild

Found from southern Florida through the Caribbean to the Lesser Antilles, perched on coral heads and sponges down to about 25 m. Some individuals hold small cleaning territories on coral while others live in larger groups on sponges.

Good to know

A 4 cm member of the same genus as the neon goby, with a pale stripe that starts yellow on the head and fades to white along the body. Researchers have documented two distinct lifestyles in this one species, coral dwellers that clean client fish and sponge dwellers that mostly eat parasitic worms.

Did you know

The same species can grow up as a cleaner or as a sponge specialist. Which path a broadstripe goby takes depends largely on where it settles as a juvenile.

Tank mates

Broadstripe Cleaner Goby is a peaceful, social species that keeps to the bottom. These picks match on water type, temperature, pH, size and temperament.