Seba's goby
Feia seba
Feia seba is a tiny little marine goby from Papua New Guinea that lives tight to the reef and spends a lot of time perching and darting between cover. Its whole vibe is "blink and you miss it" - super small, super subtle, and really more of a nano reef curiosity than a fish you build a tank around.
Seba's goby features a slender body, with a distinctive pattern of dark spots and bands on a light brown to tan background.
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Quick Facts
Size
about 2.5 cm
Temperament
Peaceful
Difficulty
Advanced
Min Tank Size
10 gallons
Lifespan
2-4 years
Origin
Western Pacific (Papua New Guinea)
Diet
Microcarnivore - tiny frozen foods (cyclops, baby brine), copepods, other small meaty items
Water Parameters
24-28°C
8-8.4
8-12 dGH
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Calculate heater sizeCare Notes
- Give Seba's goby a mature sandbed and lots of tight rock rubble - they like to wedge into little caves and will stress if the tank is too open.
- Keep salinity stable around 1.025-1.026 and avoid big temp swings (roughly 24-26 C / 75-79 F); they are touchy about sudden changes more than slightly "off" numbers.
- They do best in a well-established tank with pods and microfauna, but you still need to target feed - small meaty stuff like enriched brine, mysis, copepods, and finely chopped shrimp works.
- Feed small portions 1-2 times a day and watch the belly - if it stays pinched, step up target feeding because they can get outcompeted fast.
- Tankmates: think peaceful nano-reef fish that will not bully or steal every bite; skip aggressive dottybacks, big wrasses, and anything that camps their hidey holes.
- Cover the tank - they can hop when spooked, especially right after introduction or if a bigger fish rushes them.
- If they start fading out or hiding nonstop, check for too much flow blasting their perch and for food competition; they like calmer spots where food can actually reach them.
Compatibility
Good Tankmates
- Small, peaceful sand-sifters like other tiny gobies (Trimma, Eviota, clown gobies) - Seba's is usually chill as long as everyone has their own little patch of sand and a few hiding holes
- Firefish (Nemateleotris) - mellow, shy vibes match well, just give both plenty of rock crevices so nobody feels exposed
- Neon gobies (Elacatinus) and other cleaner-type gobies - they stick to perches and rock faces, so they do not bulldoze the sand area Seba's likes
- Small, non-pushy wrasses like possum wrasses (Wetmorella) - active but not usually mean, and they will not camp on the bottom and hassle the goby
- Peaceful clowns (ocellaris or percula) - generally fine in a community reef as long as the clowns are not the hyper-territorial type guarding a whole corner
- Calm, reef-safe cardinals (Banggai or pajama) - midwater hangers that will not compete for the same hiding spots down in the sand
Avoid
- Dottybacks (like royal dottyback) - they act like they own the rockwork and will absolutely pick on a small, peaceful goby that tries to tuck into the same caves
- Hawkfish (flame hawk, longnose) - they are perch-and-pounce hunters and will harass or straight-up eat tiny gobies if the size difference is there
- Big or aggressive wrasses (sixline that turned into a jerk, melanurus in a small tank, etc.) - constant chasing and food bullying keeps Seba's hiding and starving
- Triggers and most puffers - even the ones that seem 'ok' will nip, investigate, and stress a little bottom goby to death sooner or later
Where they come from
Seba's goby (Feia seba) is one of those little Indo-Pacific reef gobies that shows up around rubble zones, sandy patches, and the bases of reefs. They spend a lot of time tight to cover, picking at tiny foods in the sand and rockwork. They are not a "open water" fish at all, which is why they can look invisible in a bare tank and totally confident in a well-built one.
Setting up their tank
If you want this fish to settle in, build the tank for a small, nervous bottom-dweller: lots of broken line-of-sight, a sandy area, and a bunch of tight little caves. I have had the best luck when there are several spots that look like "goby apartments" so it can choose and move if it feels pressured.
- Tank size: bigger is easier long-term, but footprint matters more than height. Aim for a tank with decent bottom space and stable parameters.
- Substrate: fine sand is your friend. They will hover low and pick at the sand. Coarse crushed coral can irritate them and makes natural feeding harder.
- Rockwork: small caves and crevices near the sand line. Think rubble piles and overhangs, not one big boulder.
- Flow: moderate is fine, but give them calmer pockets near the bottom so they can feed without getting blasted.
- Lighting: they do not need intense light, but your reef lighting is fine as long as there is shade and cover.
Cover the tank. Gobies are jumpers, especially the first week or two, and especially at night after a scare. A small gap around plumbing is all it takes.
Because this is an advanced pick, I would not add one to a brand-new tank. They do better once the tank has some life in it: pods, microfauna, and that general "seasoned" feel. Even if you plan to feed heavy, having natural snacks around takes a lot of pressure off.
What to feed them
Feia seba is small-mouthed and can be picky in a sterile tank. Mine did best when I treated it like a finicky micro-predator: frequent small meals and the right particle size. If you try to feed like you would a clownfish, you will wonder where all the food went and why the goby is still thin.
- Great starters: live baby brine, live copepods, live or refrigerated cyclops, and small live mysis (if you can find the tiny stuff).
- Frozen staples (once eating well): finely chopped mysis, brine with enrichment, calanus, fish eggs, and small plankton mixes.
- Dry food: sometimes they learn pellets, but do not count on it. If you try, go tiny (nano pellets) and mix with frozen so it gets taken by accident at first.
- Feeding frequency: 2-3 small feedings a day beats one big dump of food.
Target feeding helps a lot. A turkey baster or pipette lets you put a little cloud of food right in their comfort zone without feeding the whole tank.
Watch the belly. A healthy goby should look filled out, not pinched behind the head. If it is hiding all day and you never see it eat, assume it is not getting enough and adjust fast.
How they behave and who they get along with
They are shy, bottom-oriented, and basically allergic to chaos. In a calm tank they will perch, hover, and pick at the substrate. In a high-energy community they can get pushed into permanent hiding and slowly waste away.
- Good tankmates: other peaceful nano fish, small cardinals, firefish (in roomy setups), and calm wrasses that do not hunt the sand all day.
- Risky: fast, aggressive feeders that rush every meal (damsels, some dottybacks), and anything that likes to "inspect" and harass gobies.
- Do not mix with predators: hawkfish, big wrasses, big dottybacks, lionfish, etc. If it can fit it, it can become food.
- With other gobies: depends on space and personality. Provide multiple bolt-holes if you try it.
They are not a "utility" goby like a sand-sifter. They will pick and peck, but they are not going to churn your whole sand bed.
Breeding tips
Breeding them in a typical home reef is possible in the same way a lot of small marine gobies are possible: you might see pairing behavior and eggs, but raising the larvae is the hard part. Most pairs choose a tight cave or crevice and guard a clutch.
- If you want a shot: keep them in a species-focused tank with calm tankmates and lots of caves.
- Conditioning: heavy feeding with small meaty foods, stable temperature and salinity, and a predictable light cycle.
- Spawning site: a small cave with a narrow entrance near the sand line often gets chosen.
- Larvae: expect tiny pelagic larvae that need live foods (rotifers, then copepods) and clean, stable rearing water.
If your goal is raising babies, plan a separate larval setup. In a display tank, larvae usually become coral and filter-feeder food within hours.
Common problems to watch for
Most of the trouble with Seba's goby comes from the same theme: stress plus not eating enough. They can look "fine" right up until they are suddenly not, so you want to be proactive.
- Refusing food after arrival: common. Start with live or very small frozen foods and feed in the evening when the tank is calmer.
- Getting outcompeted: if other fish are vacuuming food, the goby loses. Target feed and/or distract the group with a broadcast feeding first.
- Jumping: especially early on or after a bully encounter. Use a tight lid or mesh cover.
- Skin/parasite issues (marine ich/velvet): gobies are not immune. Quarantine is worth it, and avoid big temperature or salinity swings.
- Thin belly over time: often a sign of too-large food, too-infrequent feeding, or not enough natural microfauna.
If the fish is breathing hard, staying in the open like it is disoriented, or flashing constantly, do not wait it out. Small gobies go downhill fast. Get it into a quiet QT and address the cause.
The win with this species is pretty simple: give it cover, give it tiny foods often, and keep the tank peaceful. Do that, and you will actually see the personality come out instead of just owning a fish you never spot.
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