Bichir Bro
Aquarium Advice Addict
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- Aug 7, 2013
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Submitted by: Bichir Bro
Scientific name: Tateurndina ocellicauda
Synonyms: Sleeper Goby
Common Names: Peacock Gudgeon, Peacock Goby, One Eyed Sleeper Goby & Eyespot Sleeper Goby.
Category (genus): Tateurndina
Family: Eleotridae
Location of Origin: These wonderful little gems originate from Papua New Guinea.
Main Ecosystem: They Inhabit streams, ponds & rivers east of the island swimming in lose schools.
Salinity: Adding salt is not required and they can thrive, and breed, in total freshwater.
Temperament: The Peacock Gudgeon is usually very peaceful and they tolerate a wide range of tank mates. When beginning to breed the males can be slightly "pushy" with the female trying to coax her into the cave if his color does not win her over. When breeding the males will defend their eggs from ANY challengers!!! They will stand up to fish over 4x their size! You will see these fish more the more comfortable they feel, so plant that tank!
Diet: Sinking pellets may sometimes be accepted (mine would occasionally eat them). A very high quality flake is a good staple food. If trying to breed meaty frozen or live foods will be needed. Bloodworms, Brine Shrimp, Daphnia, etc...
pH: The Peacock Gudgeon can tolerate a pH ranging from 6.5 to 7.5
Temperature: A standard tropical temperature will work fine, 72°-79°f.
Hardness: 5-10°H
Maximum size: The males will grow slightly larger than females with males reaching around 3" and females 2.5-2.75".
Water region: They will inhabit the lower parts of your tank very rarely venturing up to the upper regions to eat.
Activity level: The more plants, rocks, caves and wood they have the more comfortable they'll feel and the more you will see them. They are out in the day and not active at night. Also I've found the bigger their group the more you're likely to see them out and about.
Lifespan: With proper care the Peacock Gudgeon can live for up to 5 years.
Color: These fish are Gods' little rainbows and exhibit a very large combo of color! These fish have yellows, blues, black, some reddish pink color & a base tan/cream color.
Mouth: They have a fairly small mouth that cannot harm most fish however fry and fish smaller than an inch may be at risk although I've never heard of them eating another fish.
Sexing: Sexing is easy when in adulthood however tricky when young. Males, when breeding, will be much more colorful than females however I have kept females more colorful than some males so color should not be your go to sexing tool. Males will develop a nuchal hump and are slightly longer than females. Females also exhibit more yellow on their bellies than males that usually lack this trait however I have had males show a tiny bit of yellow, nothing compared to the females however. A useful tool of sexing when young is to look at their anal fin, females will have a jet black line stretching the entire length of the fin with males having a faded halfway line or no line at all.
Acclimation: Like always the drip acclimation method is always superior to floating however is not particularly required with these fish. Carefully floating these fish for 15 minutes then for about 15 to 30 additional minutes slowly adding small amounts of your tank water to the bag until the water is half full of your tank water and the water from the store.
Breeding: Breeding is not complicated however will require a few things out of you and your tank! First off your tank size should be no less than 10 gallons if breeding, 20 is even better and if you wish to keep a larger group of Peacock Gudgeons with other fish and still breed them you will need a 30 gallon or larger. First things first your tank will need rocks, caves, caves made out of rocks, wood, & wood positioned to make a nook. Now not all this is needed however you will surely need caves of some sort as they are cave spawners. PVC pipe works but it's butt ugly and IMO shouldn't be used in a display tank. If you so choose to breed Peacocks in a display tank rock work, tons of plants (they love planted tanks) and lots of caves. If some pre-requisites have been met (temp, meaty diet & good water) then the male will go around the tank inspecting each cave. When in this phase the male will explore ALL possible places of breeding, I'm talking any nook, cranny, cave, leaf and place he feels tucked away and secure! After he's found the perfect area he'll settle down and wait for a female to pass. Once a female goes near he will show off his best coloration (this is where you will notice the nuchal hump kick in) and he will try and coax a female into the cave and lay her eggs. The male may get "pushy" with the female in trying to get her in the cave, it's harmless and will not prove fetal. If the females likes the male and his cave she will enter and lay the eggs usually on the top of it. After she's laid them the male will kick her out and he takes over as the sole parent. He will constantly be near them and always fanning them. At this point it's wise to remove other fish as once they hatch they will be viewed as food (even by dad). The eggs hatch in around one to two days and all brood care ceases at this point. It's wise at this point to remove any and all fish from the tank or place the fry in their own aquarium. They will become free swimming in 2-4 days and from here on out should be easy to care for. They will be large enough to accept Brine Shrimp, Hikari First Bites, microworms, etc...
Last ramblings: I kept a trio of these beauties in a 30 gallon with 12 Serpae Tetras and they all coexisted perfectly, never one dispute. I got the Peacocks to breed twice and both times on totally opposite sides of the tank. They're probably one of my favorite fish and definitely my favorite nano fish. They're awesome fish that have a place in most small community tanks! They can be kept singly or in pairs but they'll be happier and you'll see more out of them if you keep them in a small group (3+). If you want to breed them it's wise to buy a mess of them and allow them to pair off naturally like Seriously Fish.com says. They're peaceful fish that can coexist with lots but remember they will defend their territory when breeding! In groups males may spar with each other but this almost always just flaring fins and such and does not result in a fatality. These are great little fish and if I left anything out or you have any comments or questions please ask!
Sources: seriouslyfish.com
Aquatic community.com
Wikipedia.org
Here's my 30 gallon that the trio bred in, as I'm sure you can see it had a good number of plants and lots of caves and rocks and rock caves.
Sent from my iWishiHadaPhone using Aquarium Advice
Scientific name: Tateurndina ocellicauda
Synonyms: Sleeper Goby
Common Names: Peacock Gudgeon, Peacock Goby, One Eyed Sleeper Goby & Eyespot Sleeper Goby.
Category (genus): Tateurndina
Family: Eleotridae
Location of Origin: These wonderful little gems originate from Papua New Guinea.
Main Ecosystem: They Inhabit streams, ponds & rivers east of the island swimming in lose schools.
Salinity: Adding salt is not required and they can thrive, and breed, in total freshwater.
Temperament: The Peacock Gudgeon is usually very peaceful and they tolerate a wide range of tank mates. When beginning to breed the males can be slightly "pushy" with the female trying to coax her into the cave if his color does not win her over. When breeding the males will defend their eggs from ANY challengers!!! They will stand up to fish over 4x their size! You will see these fish more the more comfortable they feel, so plant that tank!
Diet: Sinking pellets may sometimes be accepted (mine would occasionally eat them). A very high quality flake is a good staple food. If trying to breed meaty frozen or live foods will be needed. Bloodworms, Brine Shrimp, Daphnia, etc...
pH: The Peacock Gudgeon can tolerate a pH ranging from 6.5 to 7.5
Temperature: A standard tropical temperature will work fine, 72°-79°f.
Hardness: 5-10°H
Maximum size: The males will grow slightly larger than females with males reaching around 3" and females 2.5-2.75".
Water region: They will inhabit the lower parts of your tank very rarely venturing up to the upper regions to eat.
Activity level: The more plants, rocks, caves and wood they have the more comfortable they'll feel and the more you will see them. They are out in the day and not active at night. Also I've found the bigger their group the more you're likely to see them out and about.
Lifespan: With proper care the Peacock Gudgeon can live for up to 5 years.
Color: These fish are Gods' little rainbows and exhibit a very large combo of color! These fish have yellows, blues, black, some reddish pink color & a base tan/cream color.
Mouth: They have a fairly small mouth that cannot harm most fish however fry and fish smaller than an inch may be at risk although I've never heard of them eating another fish.
Sexing: Sexing is easy when in adulthood however tricky when young. Males, when breeding, will be much more colorful than females however I have kept females more colorful than some males so color should not be your go to sexing tool. Males will develop a nuchal hump and are slightly longer than females. Females also exhibit more yellow on their bellies than males that usually lack this trait however I have had males show a tiny bit of yellow, nothing compared to the females however. A useful tool of sexing when young is to look at their anal fin, females will have a jet black line stretching the entire length of the fin with males having a faded halfway line or no line at all.
Acclimation: Like always the drip acclimation method is always superior to floating however is not particularly required with these fish. Carefully floating these fish for 15 minutes then for about 15 to 30 additional minutes slowly adding small amounts of your tank water to the bag until the water is half full of your tank water and the water from the store.
Breeding: Breeding is not complicated however will require a few things out of you and your tank! First off your tank size should be no less than 10 gallons if breeding, 20 is even better and if you wish to keep a larger group of Peacock Gudgeons with other fish and still breed them you will need a 30 gallon or larger. First things first your tank will need rocks, caves, caves made out of rocks, wood, & wood positioned to make a nook. Now not all this is needed however you will surely need caves of some sort as they are cave spawners. PVC pipe works but it's butt ugly and IMO shouldn't be used in a display tank. If you so choose to breed Peacocks in a display tank rock work, tons of plants (they love planted tanks) and lots of caves. If some pre-requisites have been met (temp, meaty diet & good water) then the male will go around the tank inspecting each cave. When in this phase the male will explore ALL possible places of breeding, I'm talking any nook, cranny, cave, leaf and place he feels tucked away and secure! After he's found the perfect area he'll settle down and wait for a female to pass. Once a female goes near he will show off his best coloration (this is where you will notice the nuchal hump kick in) and he will try and coax a female into the cave and lay her eggs. The male may get "pushy" with the female in trying to get her in the cave, it's harmless and will not prove fetal. If the females likes the male and his cave she will enter and lay the eggs usually on the top of it. After she's laid them the male will kick her out and he takes over as the sole parent. He will constantly be near them and always fanning them. At this point it's wise to remove other fish as once they hatch they will be viewed as food (even by dad). The eggs hatch in around one to two days and all brood care ceases at this point. It's wise at this point to remove any and all fish from the tank or place the fry in their own aquarium. They will become free swimming in 2-4 days and from here on out should be easy to care for. They will be large enough to accept Brine Shrimp, Hikari First Bites, microworms, etc...
Last ramblings: I kept a trio of these beauties in a 30 gallon with 12 Serpae Tetras and they all coexisted perfectly, never one dispute. I got the Peacocks to breed twice and both times on totally opposite sides of the tank. They're probably one of my favorite fish and definitely my favorite nano fish. They're awesome fish that have a place in most small community tanks! They can be kept singly or in pairs but they'll be happier and you'll see more out of them if you keep them in a small group (3+). If you want to breed them it's wise to buy a mess of them and allow them to pair off naturally like Seriously Fish.com says. They're peaceful fish that can coexist with lots but remember they will defend their territory when breeding! In groups males may spar with each other but this almost always just flaring fins and such and does not result in a fatality. These are great little fish and if I left anything out or you have any comments or questions please ask!
Sources: seriouslyfish.com
Aquatic community.com
Wikipedia.org
Here's my 30 gallon that the trio bred in, as I'm sure you can see it had a good number of plants and lots of caves and rocks and rock caves.
Sent from my iWishiHadaPhone using Aquarium Advice
