Blue-speckled prawn-goby (Cryptocentrus caeruleomaculatus)
The Blue-speckled prawn-goby (Cryptocentrus caeruleomaculatus) known to tropical fish keeping enthusiasts as the Blue-speckled Shrimpgoby, Green shrimpgoby, Green shrimp goby, Bluespotted Shrimpgoby, or Eight-barred Shrimp-gobyGoby is found across the Indo west Pacific from East Africa to the Marianas, north to Southern Japan, and south to the Great Barrier Reef.
In the Western Pacific their range extends from the Andaman Sea east to Solomon Islands, north to Ryukyu Islands, south to Western Australia and New Caledonia. They are extremely common in silty shallow areas around the Tanzanian coasts.
The Blue-speckled prawn-goby is found in the shallow intertidal zone of the coastal bays and lagoons of their range, usually in areas around runoffs, in close association with alpheid shrimps in depths from 2 to over 50 feet.
The Blue-speckled prawn-goby is most commonly observed in protected shallow water areas with scattered sea grasses where they share their burrows with alpheid shrimp that they have symbiotic relationships with.
The best way to observe Cryptocentrus caeruleomaculatus in the wild is on a low tide in these grassy shallows.
Blue-speckled prawn-goby (Cryptocentrus caeruleomaculatus)
The Blue-speckled prawn-goby has a grayish brown body color with several irregular vertical greenish brown bars with narrow pale spaces in between and large black spots horizontally lined up on sides. There are numerous blue and red to pink spots on head, sides, and lower parts of the body, and red spots on the face that form diagonal lines. Their pelvic fins are united with the presence of frenum. Males and females are indistinguishable.
Cryptocentrus caeruleomaculatus can easily be confused with the morphologically similar Target shrimp goby, which lives in a similar habitat.
The Blue-speckled prawn-goby is best housed in a mature FOWLR or reef aquarium of at least 30 gallon capacity with a sand or fine coralline substrate, plenty of aged live rock and loose coral rubble for them to burrow among, and plenty of free swimming space.
The Blue-speckled prawn-goby can be housed with other peaceful species, however it is territorial with its burrow and except for mated pairs, will fight with conspecifics. In larger tanks, they are less quarrelsome.
Cryptocentrus caeruleomaculatus will form a symbiotic relationship with Tiger Pistol Shrimp (Alpheus bellulus) in the aquarium. The shrimp have limited eye sight and need the goby to alert them of predators. The Blue-speckled prawn-goby stays in close proximity to the shrimp and warns it whenever predators come close to the burrow that they both share.
The Blue-speckled prawn-goby (Cryptocentrus caeruleomaculatus) has not been successfully bred in an aquarium environment. In the wild, mating takes place in a side corridor off the main burrow where the eggs are laid and guarded by the male. The eggs hatch at night and the larvae exit the burrow to become planktonic.
In an aquarium environment, the mated pairs will usually breed readily and frequently. After a short incubation period, the larvae should initially be fed S strain rotifers. After about fourteen days or so they should be switched over to larger L Strain rotifers, and after 28 days, they can be offered newly hatched baby brine shrimp.
In their natural environment, the Blue-speckled prawn-goby feed on benthic organisms in the sea grass and planktonic matter like Amphipods, Copepods, Daphnia salina, Invertebrates, Worms, Zoobenthos, Zooplankton that passes by their burrows.
In an aquarium environment, they can be offered meaty foods including mysis shrimp, enriched brine shrimp, finely chopped table shrimp, frozen carnivore preparations and sinking pellet foods. They should be fed at least two times per day.
Blue-speckled prawn-goby (Cryptocentrus caeruleomaculatus) are occasionally available to tropical fish keeping enthusiasts as wild caught specimens from a variety of online retailers, wholesalers, and transhippers. Easily confused with the Target shrimp goby, they are usually acquired on a special order basis.
Blue-speckled prawn-goby (Cryptocentrus caeruleomaculatus)
Minimum Tank Size: 30 gallons
Aquarium Type: Reef or FOLR
Care Level: Easy
Temperament: Peaceful
Aquarium Hardiness: Hardy
Water Conditions: 71.6 °F – 82.4 °F , dKH 8 – 12°, pH 8.1–8.4, sg 1.020-1.025
Max size: 3.95″
Color Form: Blue, Brown, Red
Diet: Carnivore
Compatibility: Reef Safe
Origin: Western Pacific, Indian Ocean
Family: Gobiidae
Lifespan: 10 years
Aquarist Experience Level: Intermediate
