The Breeder's Registry© Information contained in this report is taken from submitted observations from aquarist unless noted otherwise (see comments). Information may be reproduced providing the Breeder's Registry is cited.
Breeder ID: GOBOCE-022895-SCHTOD-003 Date received: 2/28/95
Identification: Gobiosoma oceanops (Jordan, 1904) Geographic origin: West Atlantic
Taxonomy:
Kingdom Animalia
Phylum Chordata
Subphylum Vertebrata
Class Osteichthyes Superorder Teleostei
Order Perciformes
Family Gobiidae
Genus Gobiosoma Subgenus Elacatinus
Species Oceanops (Jordan, 1904)
Duration male(yr): 2.0 Size male (mm): 45 Duration female (yr): 2.0 Size female (mm): 65
Broodstock notes: One specimen personally collected off Islamorada, Florida Keys at 2 - 3 meters. Other is tank raised (sex not indicated)
Physical differences: Very little difference
Adult diet: Flake food, Formula 1®. Fed daily
Pre-spawning activity: Female becomes "larger"
Time spawning began: unknowwn Area spawning occurred: Small hole in rock
Frequency of spawning: 14- 28 days Egg description: Clear to silvery in color
Approximate quantity: not indicated Size: not indicated
Egg changes / development: Eggs were on "ceiling" of a very small hole ina large piece of live rock. Difficult to see.
Incubation period: not indicated Time hatching occurred:not indicated
Transfer / removal method: none, no attempt was made to rear larvae. Spawning information only
Spawning tank size (liter):
Lighting & photo period: 40 watt fluorescent, 10 hours
Filtration: Wet / dry, skimmer, undergravel filter
Additives and dosages: none
Water temperature (F): 78 F Specific gravity: 1.022 pH: 8.3 Nitrate: unknown
Comments: Have also spawned on glass or rock. Tank was not covered post-metamorphosis. New water used with each spawn.
First described by David Starr Jordan in 1904 as Elacatinus oceanops. Bohlke and Robins (1968) divided the genus Gobiosoma into 5 subgenera (Gobiosoma, Austrogobius, Garmannia, Tigrigobius and Elacatinus). G. oceanops is commonly called the "neon goby" and is often confused with G. evelynae (Sharknose goby).
Word origin: Gobiosoma comes from the Latin root gobi, =us meaning a kind of fish and the Greek root =soma meaning a body. The genus oceanops comes from the Greek word ocean, -omeaning the ocean and the Greek root op, =s meaning appearance. Thus Gobiosoma oceanopsis a fish body with the appearance of the ocean (the latter possibly refers to the blue coloration).
An excellent reference on this genus is:
Colin, Patrick, The Neon Gobies: The comparative biology of the Gobies of the genus Gobiosoma, Subgenus Elacatinus, (Pisces: Gobiidae) in the tropical western North Atlantic Ocean., 1975, T. F. H. Publications. ISBN 0-87666-450-8, hardbound 304 pages.