Saltwater Fish
Yellow Clown Goby.
The yellow clown goby is a 1.5-inch lemon-yellow nano reef fish that perches in coral branches like a little ornament and gets away with it partly by secreting a toxic skin mucus that makes it unpalatable to predators. Peaceful, reef-safe, and beginner-friendly; a 10-gallon-plus system with branching rock or coral and a tight lid is all it needs.
We keep this species at our Erie store. Come and see it in the tanks, or call (814) 456-9445 and ask what we have in right now.
Sea Cave keeps this species. You will find these in the tanks at 660 East 14th Street in Erie. We never ship live animals.
- Condition
- new
- Fulfillment
- Local pickup — Erie, PA
We never ship fish, coral, or invertebrates — every animal here is one you meet in person. Each one is acclimated and health-checked in-house before it goes out into the display tanks. This is a species we keep, and what is swimming on any given day changes with the deliveries, so please call (814) 456-9445 before you drive in.
Care at a glance
What to know before you take one home.
- Care level
- Beginner
- Temperament
- Peaceful
- Community
- Community safe
- Adult size
- 1.5"
- Min tank size
- 10 gallons
- Diet
- Carnivore
- Scientific name
- Gobiodon okinawae
Good tank mates
A tiny, peaceful goby that suits nano and community reef tanks with other calm fish like firefish, smaller gobies, and clownfish. It mostly perches on branching corals and rock and is reef-safe with most corals, though it may rest on SPS (small-polyp stony) like Acropora and lightly nip or irritate the polyps, so watch placement in an SPS-heavy tank. Keep it away from large or aggressive fish that will eat or bully something this small, and house only one per tank unless you have a confirmed pair.
Good to know
Yellow clown gobies secrete a bitter, toxic skin mucus that makes them unpalatable to many predators, which is part of why such a small, slow fish survives out in the open on coral branches.
What is in the tanks and each animal's temperament vary — call (814) 456-9445 for pairing advice.
Good tankmates
Plays well with.
Species we’d keep in the same tank, with why each pairing works. What is in the tanks and each animal’s temperament vary — call (814) 456-9445 for advice on pairing.
New to stocking a tank? Read our guide on which fish live together.
Royal Gramma
Peaceful toward dissimilar tankmates and explicitly documented as compatible with small gobies. Occupies cave and overhang territory rather than coral surfaces, so it does not compete with or harass a coral-perching Gobiodon. Territorial aggression is directed only at conspecifics or similarly-shaped fish invading its cave, not at a goby sitting on an Acropora colony.
Banggai Cardinalfish
Confirmed peaceful toward gobies and blennies across multiple specialist sources. Conspecific skirmishes exist (male-male) but the fish poses no aggression toward a Yellow Clown Goby. Fully reef-safe, slow-moving, and shares compatible saltwater parameters.
Firefish Goby
Well-documented as peaceful toward all fish outside its own species; conspecific aggression exists but is irrelevant when paired with a Yellow Clown Goby. Reaches about 3 inches, reef-safe, and occupies a mid-water hovering niche that creates no territorial conflict with a coral-perching goby. (Note: the 'naturally very obedient' phrasing in the cited source is poor editorial language, but the underlying compatibility claim is corroborated by SaltwaterAquariumBlog and Reef2Reef community records.)
- T
Tailspot Blenny
Peaceful, reef-safe, and primarily herbivorous. Tops out at 2.5 inches and grazes rockwork rather than competing for coral perching spots. No documented aggression toward gobies; occupies a different ecological niche in the tank.
- Y
Yellowhead Jawfish
Confirmed docile burrower that remains in sandy substrate and poses no predatory or territorial threat to a coral-perching goby. Requires 5–7 inches of mixed-grain sand substrate, but that husbandry need does not create any conflict with the goby. Multiple aquarium sources list small gobies as compatible tankmates.
Visit the store
660 East 14th Street,
Erie, PA.
Mon–Fri 12–6 · Sat 11–4 · Sun closed. Call ahead on livestock — what's on the floor rotates.