Description

Peacock Goby (Tateurndina ocellicauda)

The Peacock Goby (Tateurndina ocellicauda), also known as the Peacock Gudgeon, is a small, colourful freshwater fish from Papua New Guinea. Despite its common name, it isn’t a true goby, but its compact body shape and habit of exploring the lower areas of the aquarium explain why the name has stuck.

With its blue-grey body, red markings, yellow-edged fins and distinctive dark spot near the tail, the Peacock Goby is an excellent choice for smaller peaceful community aquariums. Adults usually reach around 5–7cm, with males generally becoming larger and developing a broader, more rounded head.

Peacock Goby for Tropical Aquariums

The Peacock Goby does best in a well-established aquarium with plenty of structure and cover. Plants, bogwood, smooth rocks and small caves help create sheltered areas while still leaving open space for swimming and feeding.

They don’t require a huge aquarium, but good water quality is important. A mature, well-filtered setup with relatively gentle water movement suits them better than a very turbulent aquarium.

Behaviour

Peacock Gobies are generally peaceful, inquisitive fish. They spend plenty of time exploring around plants and decorations rather than simply sitting on the bottom like some goby species.

They can be kept individually, as a pair or in a small group where aquarium space permits. Males may display and become territorial with one another, particularly when breeding, so providing several caves and visual barriers helps prevent one fish from dominating the aquarium.

One particularly interesting behaviour is their cave spawning. A male will claim a suitable cave or hollow and display to females. Once eggs have been laid inside, the male guards and fans them until they hatch.

Tank Mates

Peacock Gobies work well with other peaceful fish of a similar size, including small tetras, rasboras, peaceful rainbowfish and Corydoras.

Avoid large or aggressive species and very boisterous feeders. Peacock Gobies can be relatively deliberate at feeding time, so they may struggle to compete if kept with fish that demolish everything before it reaches them.

They are also best treated with caution around very small ornamental shrimp, particularly shrimplets, which may be regarded as food.

Feeding

Peacock Gobies are carnivorous to omnivorous micropredators and appreciate a varied diet.

Frozen and live foods such as bloodworm, brineshrimp, daphnia and similar small foods are readily accepted and are particularly useful for settling newly introduced fish.

Many individuals will also take good-quality small pellets or granules, although some can initially be reluctant to recognise dry foods. Offering a varied diet rather than relying on flakes alone usually gives the best results.

Why Choose Peacock Gobies?

Peacock Gobies combine striking colour with peaceful behaviour and remain small enough for relatively modest aquariums. They’re also considerably more interesting than their size might suggest, particularly when kept in a planted aquarium where their displaying, cave selection and breeding behaviour can be observed.

They’re a lovely choice for someone wanting something a little less ordinary than another shoal of tetras, without moving into difficult or aggressive species.

If you have any questions about keeping the Peacock Goby, please contact us and a member of our team will be able to advise you.

Why not check out our photos of some of the best livestock we’ve had in store over the years!