Territorial Engineer Goby?

About 3 days ago i got a saltwater tank. I got an engineer goby and a few hermit crabs and snails. The next day i got two firefish, i got them settled into the tank but the Goby is very territorial near his rock. Whenever one of the firefish go near his rock/tunnel opening he tries to attack them or just lunges at them. I'm not sure what to do, would it be best to transfer the goby into my parents' larger tank? Is this behavior normal for engineer gobies? Also, can this turn into something more aggresive as the goby gets bigger?!

 

i have two engineer gobies that share the same holes and they never bother anything else in my tank.By the way someone's probably going to give you a hard time about saying you have a three day old tank with fish in it.

 

Was this setup previously or is this a brand new setup? You never supposed to add fish that quick to a SW tank.

 

3 days ago you got the tank? We need the history here – even an established tank that you move might need a mini-cycle. You could be headed for troubles. Please tell us everything about your tank and then we can discuss your goby

BTW, Welcome to 3Reef !

 

Engineer Gobies protect their burrows. What size tank is this as that is waaay to fast to add 3 fish if it was new.

 

It was a brand new tank but i just got those fish to help with the cycling, as i was told that it is good to have a few fish during cycling. The tank is 29 gallons I also have some live rock and live sand. The goby is only about 1.5 inches but once he gets bigger i plan on moving him to my parents 75 gallon tank.

 

You are cycling your tank with an engineer goby, crabs, snails and two firefish ? is this post a joke or serious? You said your parents have a “larger tank” so I assume there would be some expertise in the family to prohibit you from making these mistakes.

 

Unfortunately they gave you bad information. A tank does not need any fish to cycle correctly. In a 29 gal system you are likely to see an ammonia spike that could very likely kill all fish. If you can return the fish or re-home to a system that is already cycled.

If you need assistance with with how to cycle a tank easily and what to expect please feel free to seek advice here on the forum, that goes for all potential purchases as well.

Welcome to 3reef.

 

Start reading here:

Reef Tank Parameters:
Reef Aquarium Water Parameters by Randy Holmes-Farley - Reefkeeping.com
Randy’s tank basics:
Part I: The
Part II: The
Part III: The
Part IV: The

 

Okay, i will try to find them a new home while it is being cycled. Thanks Everyone!