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Citron Clown Goby
Goby

Citron Clown Goby

Gobiodon citrinus

A tiny, coral-perching goby — a lemon-yellow body marked with fine electric-blue lines on the face — that spends its life nestled in the branches of SPS colonies. It is peaceful, nano-friendly and invert-safe, with the usual clown-goby caveat: it grazes on Acropora mucus and polyps in the wild and may nip SPS in the tank, so it earns a reef-safe-with-caution rather than a blanket no. Keep one unless the tank has several coral heads to spread out territory, and expect it to be shy about prepared food at first.

Temperament
Peaceful
Max size
2.2"
Min tank
10 gal
Reef-safe
Reef safe with caution
Diet
Planktivore
Zone
Rockwork
Keep just one per tank — two will fight.
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Tankmates

How Citron Clown Goby gets on with the rest of the reef, checked pair by pair by the same engine as the live pre-flight.

Best kept apart

A real clash — aggression, predation or a same-genus fight.

Maroon ClownfishMaroon Clownfish (aggressive) is much larger than the peaceful Citron Clown Goby and may harass it.Purple TangPurple Tang (aggressive) is much larger than the peaceful Citron Clown Goby and may harass it.Coral HawkfishCoral Hawkfish (aggressive) is much larger than the peaceful Citron Clown Goby and may harass it.Yellow Clown GobyCitron Clown Goby and Yellow Clown Goby are the same genus (Gobiodon) and will fight — keep only one.Green Clown GobyCitron Clown Goby and Green Clown Goby are the same genus (Gobiodon) and will fight — keep only one.Antennata LionfishAntennata Lionfish has a big enough mouth to eat the much smaller Citron Clown Goby.Picasso TriggerfishPicasso Triggerfish (aggressive) is much larger than the peaceful Citron Clown Goby and may harass it.Domino DamselDomino Damsel (aggressive) is much larger than the peaceful Citron Clown Goby and may harass it.Marine BettaThe tiny citron clown goby is easily small enough to fit in a marine betta's expandable mouth; small gobies are named prey for this nocturnal ambush predator.Dragon WrasseDragon Wrasse has a big enough mouth to eat the much smaller Citron Clown Goby.Volitans LionfishVolitans Lionfish has a big enough mouth to eat the much smaller Citron Clown Goby.Zebra Dwarf LionfishZebra Dwarf Lionfish has a big enough mouth to eat the much smaller Citron Clown Goby.Fuzzy Dwarf LionfishFuzzy Dwarf Lionfish has a big enough mouth to eat the much smaller Citron Clown Goby.Snowflake MoraySnowflake Moray has a big enough mouth to eat the much smaller Citron Clown Goby.Zebra MorayZebra Moray has a big enough mouth to eat the much smaller Citron Clown Goby.Chainlink MorayChainlink Moray has a big enough mouth to eat the much smaller Citron Clown Goby.Golden Dwarf MorayGolden Dwarf Moray has a big enough mouth to eat the much smaller Citron Clown Goby.Rectangle TriggerfishRectangle Triggerfish (aggressive) is much larger than the peaceful Citron Clown Goby and may harass it.Clown TriggerfishClown Triggerfish (aggressive) is much larger than the peaceful Citron Clown Goby and may harass it.Miniata GrouperMiniata Grouper (aggressive) is much larger than the peaceful Citron Clown Goby and may harass it.

Keep an eye on these

Usually fine, but worth watching in a smaller tank.

Yellow TangYellow Tang (semi-aggressive) is much larger than the peaceful Citron Clown Goby and may harass it.Sailfin TangSailfin Tang (semi-aggressive) is much larger than the peaceful Citron Clown Goby and may harass it.Powder Blue TangPowder Blue Tang (semi-aggressive) is much larger than the peaceful Citron Clown Goby and may harass it.Red Coris WrasseRed Coris Wrasse (semi-aggressive) is much larger than the peaceful Citron Clown Goby and may harass it.Convict TangConvict Tang (semi-aggressive) is much larger than the peaceful Citron Clown Goby and may harass it.Emperor AngelfishEmperor Angelfish (semi-aggressive) is much larger than the peaceful Citron Clown Goby and may harass it.Regal AngelfishRegal Angelfish (semi-aggressive) is much larger than the peaceful Citron Clown Goby and may harass it.Achilles TangAchilles Tang (semi-aggressive) is much larger than the peaceful Citron Clown Goby and may harass it.Naso TangNaso Tang (semi-aggressive) is much larger than the peaceful Citron Clown Goby and may harass it.Scopas TangScopas Tang (semi-aggressive) is much larger than the peaceful Citron Clown Goby and may harass it.Keyhole AngelfishKeyhole Angelfish (semi-aggressive) is much larger than the peaceful Citron Clown Goby and may harass it.Queen AngelfishQueen Angelfish (semi-aggressive) is much larger than the peaceful Citron Clown Goby and may harass it.Blueface AngelfishBlueface Angelfish (semi-aggressive) is much larger than the peaceful Citron Clown Goby and may harass it.Chevron TangChevron Tang (semi-aggressive) is much larger than the peaceful Citron Clown Goby and may harass it.Mimic TangMimic Tang (semi-aggressive) is much larger than the peaceful Citron Clown Goby and may harass it.Powder Brown TangPowder Brown Tang (semi-aggressive) is much larger than the peaceful Citron Clown Goby and may harass it.Square AnthiasSquare Anthias (semi-aggressive) is much larger than the peaceful Citron Clown Goby and may harass it.Engineer GobyThough generally peaceful, a large adult engineer goby is a threat to very small thin fish and will eat small fish on occasion; a tiny citron clown goby could be at risk in the same tank.Blue-Throat TriggerfishBlue-Throat Triggerfish (semi-aggressive) is much larger than the peaceful Citron Clown Goby and may harass it.Crosshatch TriggerfishCrosshatch Triggerfish (semi-aggressive) is much larger than the peaceful Citron Clown Goby and may harass it.