Discord goby

Sicyopus discordipinnis

Also known as Discordipinnis goby

FreshwaterFish

Discord goby (Sicyopus discordipinnis) — The Wet Spot Tropical Fish · Used with permission

Care at a glance

Temperature: 73–81°F (23–27°C)
pH: 6.5–7.8
Adult size: 1.4 in (3.5 cm)
Minimum tank: 14 gal (54 L)
Temperament: Peaceful
Social behavior: Social
Swim level: Bottom
Difficulty: Difficult
Breeding: No record
Rarity: Rare
Origin: New Guinea streams
Family: Oxudercidae

Overview

This is a tiny, quick stone-hopping goby that looks like an algae grazer but feeds as a small carnivore, so treat it as a micro-predator. Peaceful and social by nature, it wants a small group over cobbles and boulders in a fast tank, with males given room to hold a stone and display. It stays low in the current and takes small meaty foods, so offer frozen and live items such as cyclops, baby brine, and finely chopped bloodworm worked into the flow. Keep only calm, small tankmates that will not out-compete it for such fine foods. Around 54 liters with brisk current and high oxygen makes a good home for a group.

In the wild

In the wild it holds fast, clear stream stones across New Guinea, including northern drainages and nearby islands, in warm, oxygen-rich water spilling over rock. Reproduce that with strong current from a powerhead, rounded boulders and cobbles for perching and cover, and very clean water changed often. Run it warm at 23 to 27 C with a pH from slightly acidic to slightly alkaline, around 6.5 to 7.8, and keep a tight lid, since these gobies climb.

Good to know

Sicyopus discordipinnis is a member of the family Oxudercidae, described by Watson in 1995 from Papua New Guinea. It is small, reaching about 3.5 centimeters, and males show a bright red rear body and tail. As in other Sicyopus species it is a carnivore that hunts tiny invertebrates rather than grazing algae. It is amphidromous with marine larvae, and there is no record of it being bred in aquaria.

Did you know

The name discordipinnis means discordant fins, a nod to fins that do not match. First found in New Guinea, it has since turned up much farther west in Sulawesi, a hint of how far these sea-drifting larvae can travel.