Starry goby
Asterropteryx semipunctata
Also known as Halfspotted Goby, Star-Finned Goby
SaltwaterFish
Care at a glance
- Temperature
- 73–81°F
- 23–27°C
- pH
- 8.1–8.4
- Adult size
- 2.8 in
- 7 cm
- Minimum tank
- 13 gal
- 50 L
- Temperament
- Peaceful
- Social behavior
- Social
- Swim level
- Bottom
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Breeding
- Hard
- Rarity
- Rare
- Reef safe
- Reef safe
- Family
- Gobiidae
- Origin
- Indo-Pacific, Red Sea to Hawaii
Overview
The starry goby is a small, peaceful nano goby for a reef tank. It is forgiving and easy to keep.
Did you know
The starry goby settles happily on silty lagoon flats and other quiet spots in the wild. Most reef fish avoid those places.
Caring for the starry goby
The starry goby needs a tank of at least 13 gal (50 L) with rock to hide in. For food, it needs either a mature tank with good pod life or several small feedings a day.
Keep the water at 73 to 81°F (23 to 27°C) with a pH of 8.1 to 8.4. It handles a wider range of conditions than most reef gobies.
Starry gobies are peaceful and completely reef safe, and they suit a community of peaceful tank mates. They are a little shy at first. Unlike many nano gobies, they become more outgoing in a small group. Breeding them is hard.
Good to know
The starry goby's genus name, Asterropteryx, means star fin. The species name semipunctata means half spotted, since the pale blue speckling is densest on the front half of the body.
In the wild
The starry goby is one of the widest ranging gobies in the sea. It is found from the Red Sea across the Indo-Pacific all the way to Hawaii, on reef flats and in lagoons. It keeps a burrow or a hole in the rubble and rarely strays far from it.
Weekly picks
Tank mates
The starry goby is a peaceful, social species that keeps to the bottom. These picks share a community profile with it, are safe together in both directions, and overlap on water type, temperature and pH.
Astraea turbo snail
Astraea tecta
Saltwater1 in (2.5 cm) · 11 gal (40 L)72–79°F (22–26°C)
Helfrich's firefish
Nemateleotris helfrichi
Saltwater2.4 in (6 cm) · 20 gal (75 L)73–81°F (23–27°C)
Pederson's cleaner shrimp
Ancylomenes pedersoni
Saltwater1.2 in (3 cm) · 11 gal (40 L)73–81°F (23–27°C)
Lined blenny
Ecsenius lineatus
Saltwater3.5 in (9 cm) · 20 gal (75 L)72–79°F (22–26°C)
Pyramid top snail
Tectus fenestratus
Saltwater2 in (5 cm) · 11 gal (40 L)75–81°F (24–27°C)
Firefish
Nemateleotris magnifica
Saltwater3.5 in (9 cm) · 20 gal (75 L)72–81°F (22–27°C)
Common questions
What size tank does a starry goby need?
A starry goby needs at least 13 gal (50 L). It spends most of its time in the bottom.
What temperature and pH does a starry goby need?
A starry goby is comfortable at 73–81°F (23–27°C) with a pH of 8.1–8.4.
What does a starry goby eat?
A starry goby feeds on the pods in a mature tank. Where pod life is thin, give it several small feedings a day.
How big does a starry goby get?
An adult starry goby reaches about 2.8 in (7 cm).
Related species
2.8 in (7 cm)20 gal (75 L)73–81°F (23–27°C)Link's goby
Amblygobius linki
2.8 in (7 cm) · 20 gal (75 L)
2.6 in (6.5 cm)11 gal (40 L)72–81°F (22–27°C)Citron clown goby
Gobiodon citrinus
2.6 in (6.5 cm) · 11 gal (40 L)
3.1 in (8 cm)20 gal (75 L)73–81°F (23–27°C)Buan's sleeper goby
Amblygobius buanensis
3.1 in (8 cm) · 20 gal (75 L)
3.1 in (8 cm)20 gal (75 L)73–81°F (23–27°C)Hector's goby
Koumansetta hectori
3.1 in (8 cm) · 20 gal (75 L)
3.1 in (8 cm)20 gal (75 L)72–79°F (22–26°C)Rainford's goby
Koumansetta rainfordi
3.1 in (8 cm) · 20 gal (75 L)
2.4 in (6 cm)20 gal (75 L)72–81°F (22–27°C)Hi-fin red banded goby
Stonogobiops nematodes
2.4 in (6 cm) · 20 gal (75 L)