Yellownose Prawn-goby Care Guide
Stonogobiops xanthorhinica is a small western Pacific marine goby with a yellow snout that shares a burrow with pistol shrimp in a mutualistic partnership.
Compiled by Aquairi from published sources · Published · Updated
Overview
Stonogobiops xanthorhinica, the yellownose prawn-goby, is a small marine goby of the western Pacific. It has a pale body crossed by dark diagonal bars, a yellow snout and a tall first dorsal fin. Like its relatives, it lives in association with burrowing alpheid shrimp.
Taxonomy
- Family: Gobiidae
- Genus: Stonogobiops
- Scientific name: Stonogobiops xanthorhinica
Habitat
FishBase records the species from the western Pacific, including Indonesia, New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, the northern Great Barrier Reef and southern Japan. It is reef-associated, occurring over sandy substrates on deep coastal slopes and sand flats at depths of about 3-45 metres, usually between 20 and 45 metres, in waters of roughly 21-27 °C.
Tank requirements
- Minimum tank volume: 80 L
- Temperature: 24-26 °C (75-79 °F)
- pH: 8.1-8.4
- Specific gravity / hardness: reef-typical (carbonate hardness 8-12)
- Substrate: sand for burrowing
- Lifespan: 4-8 years
Diet
The species is a carnivore that feeds on small planktonic and benthic invertebrates near its burrow. In aquaria it accepts small meaty marine foods offered two or more times daily.
Compatibility
Stonogobiops xanthorhinica is peaceful and reef-safe. It hovers just above its burrow, typically in pairs, alongside an alpheid pistol shrimp in a mutualistic partnership where the goby watches for danger and the shrimp maintains the shared burrow. It is best kept with peaceful reef tankmates and away from aggressive predators.
Breeding
The species is an egg-layer; captive breeding is regarded as difficult and is rarely achieved, so most aquarium specimens are wild-collected.
Conservation status
IUCN Red List: Least Concern (assessed 2020), per FishBase.
Stonogobiops xanthorhinica Breeding Guide
Overview
Stonogobiops xanthorhinica Hoese & Randall, 1982 is a small reef-associated goby of the Western Pacific, recorded from Indonesia, New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, the northern Great Barrier Reef and southern Japan (FishBase). It reaches about 6.0 cm standard length and lives over sand or sand-and-rubble bottoms at depths of roughly 3 to 45 m. The species is almost always observed in pairs together with an alpheid (pistol) shrimp, hovering 1 to 4 cm above the shared burrow entrance.
Sexing
External sexing is not reliably documented for this species; FishBase lists maturity data as unknown. In aquaria, sex is usually inferred from pairing behaviour rather than fixed external markings: two compatible individuals that settle into one burrow without persistent aggression are treated as a working pair.
Conditioning
Conditioning relies on stable reef parameters and frequent feeding. As a carnivore, the goby takes small meaty foods such as enriched mysis, brine shrimp and finely chopped marine items, offered roughly twice daily to build condition. A securely paired alpheid shrimp lowers stress because the fish spends less time exposed and more time feeding near the burrow.
Breeding Setup
A breeding-oriented system reproduces the natural burrow biotope: a deep sand or sand-and-rubble bed several centimetres thick, with rock or rubble pieces the shrimp can use as structural support for the tunnel. Pairing the goby with a compatible Alpheus shrimp is central, since the shrimp excavates and maintains the burrow while the goby acts as a sentinel; the two communicate by tactile antennae contact and fin signals (Tropical Fish Hobbyist).
Spawning Behavior & Trigger
Detailed spawning behaviour for Stonogobiops xanthorhinica is not described in the cited references. Like other burrow-dwelling shrimp gobies, eggs are expected to be demersal and laid inside the shared burrow, but specific triggers, clutch size and timing for this species are not documented in FishBase or the cited aquarium literature, so they are omitted here.
Egg & Fry Care
No species-specific account of egg guarding or larval rearing for S. xanthorhinica appears in the cited sources. In shrimp gobies generally the male tends demersal eggs in the burrow, and hatched larvae are planktonic; raising such larvae demands a dedicated tank and very small first foods, which is where most attempts fail.
Common Challenges
The main obstacle is the larval phase rather than getting fish to settle or pair. Tiny planktonic larvae, narrow feeding windows and the absence of a published rearing protocol for this species make captive reproduction uncertain. A jumpy nature also means a tightly fitting lid is needed, as these gobies can leave an open tank.