Pistol/YW Goby Hiding

[doch]

If they get too hungry, they'll figure it out. At this stage of the game, IMO there's not much that you can do but cross your fingers and hope for the best. I think you'll be fine. I've had AWOL fish for well over a month... assuming that they are dead, and then they pop up.

[sumpfinfishe]

This action is perfectly normal, I have had two mated pairs of ywg in the past. I have also just setup a new reef with another pair and there trio shrimp.

When the gobies and shrimp bond which is almost instantly they begin a life of building the perfect burrow. This takes much work by all three members of the trio and sometimes it can be weeks before you see any of them in an about the tank. Gobies are sand sifters so they will not starve simply because there not coming out to eat when you feed. They have the ability to live months in an established reef because they will sift food from the sandbed.If you go riping apart your reef to find them you will not only stress them out but you could possible injure them from being crushed under a rock and such-just leave them to do there thing.

Most pistols are also nocturnal so now that the three are hanging out together the gobies may only leave the burrows when the shrimp does, which might be when your sleeping or when the lights are off.
The shrimp and gobies will also use anything they can get a hold of to help build there new burrow, my last pair used snail/hermit shells, bits of coral, and even a small piece of airline tubing that fell into my tank as construction materials-so don't be afraid if some of your hermits go missing lol, most of the time they can crawl back out tho it is kind of entertaining to watch a goby or a shrimp play fetch with a hermit crab

[linz8392]

cool! ok just to clarify its just the DUO of the shrimp and ywg.....the pink spot goby is at the other end of the tank most of the time, although he ventures around a bit

hopefully ill see them in action some time

[sumpfinfishe]

Here's a recent pic of my two watchmen, the larger female has just started coming out of the burrow again, i hadn't seen this fish for over a week after i introduced the pistol shrimp. The female has gotten darker in color due to all her time building the burrow with the shrimp. Don't worry and don't disturb, all is good!!!