Decora Goby

Overview

The Decora Goby is a colourful shrimp goby with a pale body marked by bold orange-red bands and blue spotting, making it one of the more eye-catching members of the Amblyeleotris genus. Like its relatives it commonly partners with pistol shrimp, sharing a burrow in a mutually beneficial relationship.

It's a peaceful, fully reef safe fish that suits a wide range of tank sizes, though like most shrimp gobies it can be a little shy and cautious for the first couple of weeks after introduction.

Its colour and interesting symbiotic behaviour with pistol shrimp make it a popular choice for keepers wanting an engaging, low-aggression addition to a sand-based reef display.

Compatibility

Decora Gobies are entirely peaceful and reef safe, ignoring corals, clams, and invertebrates. They pair naturally with pistol shrimp such as Alpheus species, sharing a burrow, though they do fine unpaired as well.

Avoid housing with aggressive or boisterous tankmates that might bully this relatively docile species or outcompete it for food.

Health & quarantine

This species is generally hardy once settled, though it can take one to two weeks to become confident and start feeding reliably in a new tank. A secure lid is important, as with all burrowing gobies, since they can jump when startled. Quarantine of two to four weeks is recommended as standard good practice.