Red lip goby

Sicyopus exallisquamulus

Also known as Exallisquamulus goby

FreshwaterFish

Care at a glance

Temperature: 73–81°F (23–27°C)
pH: 6.5–7.8
Adult size: 2.4 in (6 cm)
Minimum tank: 14 gal (54 L)
Temperament: Peaceful
Social behavior: Social
Swim level: Bottom
Difficulty: Difficult
Breeding: No record
Rarity: Rare
Origin: Halmahera, Maluku Islands, Indonesia
Family: Oxudercidae

Overview

This is the largest of the small carnivorous gobies here, and a settled pair will hold a riffle tank calmly. It is peaceful and social; keep a pair or a small group over cobbles and boulders in a fast tank, and give males room to claim a stone and display. It stays low in the current and feeds as a micro-predator, so offer small meaty foods such as frozen cyclops, baby brine, and finely chopped bloodworm rather than relying on algae. Keep only calm tankmates that will not out-compete it. A 54 liter tank with strong flow, high oxygen, and clean water suits it.

In the wild

In the wild it lives in swift, clear, high-gradient streams on Halmahera in the Maluku Islands of eastern Indonesia, clinging to rock and boulder in warm, oxygen-rich, tumbling water. Recreate that with strong current from a powerhead, rounded boulders and cobbles for perching and cover, and very clean water. Keep the tank at 23 to 27 C and the pH from slightly acidic to slightly alkaline, near 6.5 to 7.8, under a tight lid, since these gobies climb.

Good to know

Sicyopus exallisquamulus is a member of the family Oxudercidae, described by Watson and Kottelat in 2006 from Halmahera. It is one of the larger members of its genus, reaching about 6 centimeters, with lips brushed red. Like other Sicyopus it is a carnivore that hunts tiny invertebrates rather than grazing algae. The odd name exallisquamulus refers to unusual small scales, not to the red lips. It is amphidromous, with no record of aquarium breeding.

Did you know

Its jaw-cracking name has nothing to do with the red lips that name it in English. Exallisquamulus means something close to odd little scales, so the Latin describes the scaling while the common name watches the mouth.