How to Breed the Knight Goby

The Knight Goby is a brackish fish, which thrives in an environment that is a mix of freshwater and saltwater. The gray and often speckled fish, which is native to India and Indonesia, grows to 3 inches long and has a life span of four to six years. In an aquarium environment, the Knight Goby should be surrounded with hiding spaces such as caves, driftwood and plants, especially if it is sharing the tank with others, because it is a territorial and aggressive fish. Owners can breed Knight Goby pairs by setting the ideal conditions in the tank.

Things You'll Need

  • Tank
  • Aquarium salt
  • Sandy substrate material
  • Hydrometer
  • Clay pot or plastic aquarium cave
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Instructions

    • 1

      Set the tank temperature to between 75 and 82 degrees F. Make sure you have a male and female fish. Males tend to have longer fins. Females generally will have a lighter yellowish coloration.

    • 2

      Set the tank's water salinity by adding aquarium salt to create a low-salinity brackish environment. This is defined as containing a specific gravity of between 1.002 and 1.005 as measured by your aquarium hydrometer. Add 1 to 2 tbsps. of marine salt per gallon of water in the tank to attain the appropriate environment.

    • 3

      Line the bottom of the tank with a sandy substrate material. Use a species tank, or an aquarium where only one species is kept; in this case, the Knight Goby.

    • 4

      Place a pot into the aquarium in an inverted position to simulate a cave. Gobies lay their eggs on the roofs of their shelters. A breeding pair eventually will produce hundreds of eggs. The offspring, or fry, can feed on brine shrimp. These can be purchased live or frozen from an aquarium supplier or pet store.

      The eggs and fry will be protected by the parents, especially the male, within the tank.