Redbelly Dwarfgoby

Eviota nigriventris

Also known as Yellow Nano Goby, Red Neon Eviota, Red Neon Eviota Goby, Red-and-Black Eviota

SaltwaterFish

Redbelly Dwarfgoby (Eviota nigriventris) — (c) jeyre, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY

Care at a glance

Temperature: 72–79°F (22–26°C)
pH: 8.1–8.4
Adult size: 1.2 in (3 cm)
Minimum tank: 10 gal (38 L)
Temperament: Peaceful
Social behavior: Social
Swim level: Bottom
Difficulty: Easy
Breeding: Medium
Rarity: Common
Reef safe: Reef safe
Origin: Indo-West Pacific (Andaman Sea to New Caledonia)
Family: Gobiidae

Overview

It is peaceful and at its best in a group of three to six, which keeps individual fish bold enough to hover in the open. Offer small pellets, Calanus, cyclops, and baby brine shrimp in several small feedings, and a mature tank with a standing copepod population fills the gaps. Choose tankmates carefully, because even mid-sized fish can swallow one whole.

In the wild

This dwarfgoby lives in small groups that hover among the branches of Acropora and Seriatopora corals on western Pacific reefs. In the aquarium a branching coral, or a twiggy piece of rock standing in for one, gives the group a base to hover over and dive into. Pick a calm corner, since it feeds and displays in gentle flow.

Good to know

Louis Giltay described the species in 1933 from the Banda Islands of Indonesia, and the name means black belly in Latin, for the dark patch below the red and yellow body. The name later became a catch-all, and both Eviota atriventris and Eviota brahmi were separated from it after closer study. Biota reported rearing it in 2015 as one of the first Eviota ever bred in captivity, starting from larvae about two millimeters long.

Did you know

Wild Eviota lives are usually measured in months, but one captive pair of this species was reported still living after more than four years, among the longest runs noted for the genus.