Goby disappeared... :(

**BekChed** · 03-22-2010, 03:32 PM

So I was totally excited about finding my twospot goby at the LFS last Wednesday. I get it home and acclimate it for just over an hour. He's happy yet a little scared for the first bit. He started sifting the crushed coral. Unfortunately the next day I had to leave to my dad's, but my mom was home and is able to take care of the tank. She fed as normal, and noticed that he was starting to dig a little hole.
She saw him everyday while feeding and checking on the tank, so more than twice a day. The last time she saw him was Saturday night. Sunday, she fed them quick but didn't notice him out and about. I got home Sunday night unable to find him anywhere. I can see where he started digging, but there is no actual burrow. I looked through the tank, moved the rock on top to see the back of the tank more... but nothing. I can't find him anywhere....

I checked again this morning, and still nothing. Is it possible that his little burrow caved in on him? I don't see any signs of any other burrows and when I try feeding directly in that area of his 'burrow' he doesn't appear...
I'm really worried that he's dead. It would be quite upsetting to lose his life so soon. I'm worried also that if he's dead, he'll pollute the tank, as I can't even find a body...
Any help??

**rayme07** · 03-22-2010, 11:33 PM

If you have a sump check and see if he is in the overflow or somehow got in the sump. Also check around the tank to see if he may have jumped out. Is there any other fish in the tank? I wish you the best of luck in finding him a live. Hopefully he is just a little stressed and is just not comeing out.

**CarmieJo** · 03-22-2010, 11:57 PM

What he said. ^^

Also, have you checked your ammonia? If he was dead you would probably see a spike.

I hope he is just hiding and all is well.

**BekChed** · 03-23-2010, 03:39 PM

Thanks for the advice. I just have a 12 gallon nano cube. He's my last fish to stick in there, because I already have a pair of ocellaris clowns. They never showed any agression to him, just a little curiousity when he was in the bag and when he first entered the tank. I checked the back chamber of the tank just in case, because I have had snails crawl back there, I thought it was a possibility that he jumped back there... but sadly no. I'm not sure if I should start pulling up some of the rock carefully to see if he's under there somewhere.
Yesterday, I squirted some mysis shrimp back there and around the tank to see if I could coax him out if he was just hiding. But no such luck...
Do you guys think I should try moving the rock?

**Coreyz** · 03-23-2010, 06:50 PM

I would check you ammonia daily and continue to feed the clowns as normal. Like Carmie said if you see a spike then you should check the sand bed under the rocks.

**rayme07** · 03-23-2010, 07:35 PM

I hate to say this but have you checked on the floor around the tank to see if he jumped out of the tank? Also I agree with the above just keep feeding them the way you always do he may just be hiding in a crack in the rocks.

V · 03-23-2010, 09:24 PM

such a pitty, quite a nice species, although they aren't the smallest goby doing the rounds, even with some bottom dwelling habbits, most are quite powerful. Powerful enough to wriggle out of most things.

mate, no offence, but given the tank sizing, the fact i couldn't find him on the floor, the sump, the back & counting out the aspect of a cat, thats the very next thing i would have done, lifted the rocks for inspection. get to it hot rod, & report back. Im assuming its not houdini.

**BekChed** · 03-24-2010, 10:01 AM

Thanks so much guys. I'm checking the ammonia today and I think I'm still going to pull up the rocks a bit. Just in case he is under there and fine, I know for the future.
I know he wouldn't have jumped out because the tank does have a full hood. And if I leave it open, it's for adding supplements and stuff, which I'm always there. I don't leave it unattended with it open... I'm too paranoid.. Haha.
Thanks again guys. I'll post some results later on today.

**BekChed** · 03-24-2010, 05:35 PM

Okay.. so I don't think he's dead... Ammonia levels are 0-0.25, pH is 7.8-8.0, nitrite is 0, and nitrate is 0. I'm not sure where he is still because I didn't have time today to pull up the rock...

**CarmieJo** · 03-24-2010, 11:37 PM

Do you always have ammonia showing in your tank?

V · 03-25-2010, 05:42 AM

Ammonia levels are 0-0.25 ( found him..

)

Id expect everything to be in reverse

**BekChed** · 05-02-2010, 09:34 PM

I never posted my results...
I did pull out all the rock, very carefully. Didn't find him, so I sifted the sand a bit... nothing. It's confusing as to where he could have disappeared to... There's no way he could have jumped out. And my ammonia levels never spiked. I always have a small reading of ammonia. It reads 0-0.25.

**CarmieJo** · 05-04-2010, 08:35 PM

Do you have any feeling where the ammonia is coming from? You shouldn't have that in a cycled tank.

**mysterybox** · 05-13-2010, 01:35 AM

if you are using API as your Ammonia test kit, they read false positive enough to throw them out and get ELOS.

Gobi's can hide very well for a long period of time.

**BekChed** · 06-30-2010, 03:49 PM

Never did find him. The ammonia prob came from my clowns. When I did the test, it was time for a water change. Which I did that night, and when I pulled up the rocks. He simply vanished.

**PapaMcEuin** · 07-07-2010, 03:00 PM

I have a brittle star that can devour any dead fish in one night... Sadly I know this and we now don't get anymore fish for our 20G nano. The clowns we have are the scary kind you see in horror films I guess.

**BekChed** · 09-07-2010, 07:19 PM

Haha. My cousin has some clowns like that. I'm not sure how she's done it, but she's got a great mated pair of perc's and another male in there that just lives there happily. So cute to see the 3 of them, but they are vicious little monsters. They've torn through gloves (like dishwashing gloves) while her hands are in there cleaning and stuff. And they've taken small chunks from her skin as well. They get even worse when they've spawned.

**saltaddict** · 09-12-2010, 09:56 AM

I had a Goby that I could not find for months in a 125g and removing about 300 lbs of rock work really was not an option so I waited it out and would watch the tank with a flashlight during feeding. I found him in a hole in a large rock that faced the back of the tank. He was fine and had just found himself a home that I couldn't see easily.

Best of luck.