Rainbow Stiphodon
Stiphodon ornatus
Gobiidae
No photo of this species yet
Got one of your own? Send it and your name goes under it.
About
The rainbow stiphodon is the largest goby in its genus you are likely to meet, and the one whose identity took longest to settle. It reaches 65–70 mm standard length where most of its relatives stop at 40–50 mm, and it wants an 80 × 30 cm footprint rather than the 60 × 30 cm the rest of the genus gets — so a fish sold as a nano species needs the floor of a metre-class tank. It has been traded as Stiphodon sp. 'rainbow', 'gold fin' and 'gold cheek', it was among the more widely available members of the genus long before anyone could name it, and its identity was not settled until 2013. It was originally described as a subspecies of Stiphodon elegans. Two habits of the genus make shop identification worse than it looks. The sexes are so unalike that suppliers routinely offer them as two species: females of every Stiphodon are near-identical pale fish with dark longitudinal stripes, and telling them apart by species is close to impossible. Males, meanwhile, change colour with mood — base colour runs from pale olive to dark brown and can switch to a much darker patterning in seconds, while the cheek shows anywhere between orange, gold and vivid blue, and flash photography distorts all of it. The whole animal is built around one food and one journey. It is a sicydiine goby from short, clear coastal streams, its pelvic fins fused into a suction disc, and it eats aufwuchs — the film of algae, diatoms and micro-organisms on stone — with extrusible, self-renewing teeth. It also cannot be bred in fresh water. Nobody has yet raised fry of any Stiphodon in captivity, and the reason is structural: a female lays as many as 10,000 eggs half a millimetre across, the larvae hatch in under a day with no mouth, no anus and no working eyes, and they must reach the sea inside the three or four days their yolk sac lasts. They then drift as plankton for 78 to 146 days before climbing back up the river as juveniles. That is why every one of these fish in every shop is wild-caught, and it is the most useful thing to know before paying for one.
Care
Never put this fish in a new tank. It needs stable water and eats biofilm, so an immature set-up is not a slow start but a death sentence — and a tightly fitting cover is required, because it climbs glass. What it wants is a mature, brightly lit tank whose stones are already furred with green algae and diatoms; on a spotless rockscape it starves however much food goes in. Lighting is therefore part of the diet: strong enough to grow algae, with algae allowed on every surface except the viewing pane. Water 20–28 °C, with extra surface agitation at the top of that range, pH 6.5–7.5, 36–215 ppm hardness, and clean and oxygen-rich at all times — an oversized filter, extra powerheads, flow pumps or airstones, plus 30–50 % weekly changes. This species belongs to the taller-first-dorsal group that lives in slower stretches and does not climb waterfalls, so it needs oxygen and turnover more than it needs torrent. Floor of gravel, sand or both under water-worn rocks and pebbles, with the large rocks resting directly on the tank base: males burrow into the substrate to sleep and spawn, and will undercut anything stacked on sand. Hardy plants — Microsorum, Crinum, Anubias — are welcome and useful, because their leaves grow the algae the fish eats. Buy a single male with two or more females; males are loosely territorial and several will share a tank given space and food. Tankmates: Tanichthys, Microdevario, small danios above, Gastromyzon and similar hillstream loaches below, dwarf shrimp are fine. Avoid greedy feeders such as most Schistura, and avoid stocking other algae eaters that will strip the rocks faster than the goby grazes them. Do not buy a hollow-bellied specimen out of pity unless there is a competitor-free tank waiting to nurse it back.
Diet
Specialised aufwuchs grazer: benthic algae, diatoms and their attendant micro-organisms rasped off stone. Sinking dried food and frozen bloodworm only irregularly — the gut is built for vegetable matter. If the tank cannot grow enough, run a second lit container of rocks and rotate them in.
Tankmate compatibility
Gets along with (106)
Possible with care (265)
Avoid (47)
Computed by the AquaSage engine for a spacious reference tank — always check the full verdict for your exact setup in the calculator.
Telling males from females
What works for this species, most reliable first.
- Colour and patternA hint only · from about 6 months, and only on a settled fish
In rainbowfish, killifish and several barbs the male carries the colour — deeper and more saturated, intensifying further when he displays.
Also in these lists
Similar species
Same category and the closest water parameters — if this species isn't quite it, start here.
Sold in Lithuania
These Lithuanian shops listed this species in their public catalogue (checked August 8, 2026). Stock moves — ask before you travel.
These links are unpaid: we get nothing for them and ask for nothing.
Frequently asked questions
- What tank size does a Rainbow Stiphodon need?
- A Rainbow Stiphodon needs an aquarium of at least 72 litres (19 US gallons) with a footprint at least 80 cm (31.5 in) long — for this species, swimming length matters as much as raw volume.
- What water parameters does a Rainbow Stiphodon need?
- Rainbow Stiphodon does best at 20–28 °C (68–82.4 °F), pH 6.5–7.5 and a general hardness of 2–12 °dGH.
- What group size does a Rainbow Stiphodon need?
- Rainbow Stiphodon is a social species — keep a group of at least 3 so natural behaviour emerges and stress stays low.
- Is the Rainbow Stiphodon suitable for beginners?
- Rainbow Stiphodon is a demanding species best attempted with some experience — it needs stable, closely watched conditions to thrive.