The Orange Diamond Sleeper Goby, a.k.a. Orange-Dashed Goby, is a Sleeper Goby that spends its day sifting sand and resting on the bottom. These splendid fish are pale in color with a double row of diamond shaped orange spots covering its side. The Orange Diamond Goby likes to use its large head to dig into the substrate and sift the sand through its mouth for food, then discarding the sand out its gill coverings. The Orange Diamond Goby will burrow a hole in the substrate that it will use as its home; they make tremendous additions to established reef tanks. These fish are also jumpers, so precautions should be taken to secure openings at the top of the aquarium. Keep only one per tank, and this fish should not be kept with other Sleeper gobies or Jawfish.Gobies compose one of the largest family of fish in the ocean. These small fish live around reefs or on sandy flats. Many of the Gobies are known for their burrowing behavior. These fish use burrows in the sand for safety. Some of the Goby species are known to share their burrows with Pistol Shrimp; behavior that can be duplicated in the home aquarium. Most Gobies have cupped ventral fins that nearly join just below their gill plates that serve as perching mechanisms so the Goby can always be on the lookout in a resting position. The Goby is a tremendous addition to the home aquarium.Photo by Saltwaterfish.com member, ElitePhoto: Jay Hague
