pistol shrimp and goby question

[is_that_a_fish]

im thinking of getting a pistol shrimp and a yellow watchman goby. Will the goby get along with my mandarine. Its a 75 gallon with 130lbs of live rock. Also is there a certain pistol shrimp that pairs with certain gobies or can you mix and match. Another thing is what if they build their little burrow on the other side of my live rock. I wont be able to see them, will i be able to move them somehow? And can a pistol shrimp really break aquarium glass or is that a myth cuz i would hate to come home to flooded house. Thanx

[mg]

It is not a pistol shrimp, but a mantis shrimp (the smashers) that are said to be able to break the glass. As far as the goby and pistol shrimp I don't have much experience with them and will let others offer some info.

[fdokinawa]

had to take all my LR out to get to my pistol shrimp.. and he was still a pain to get.

[ChrisPrusha]

Certain pistol shrimp pair with certain gobies, and some pistol shrimp won't pair with anyone. My pistol shrimp is burrowing constantly, so moving one isn't really an option. And as said, pistol shrimp will not break glass.

The watchman might be upset when the mandarin comes close to home. It is really difficult to say how individual specimens will behave...you might be okay, and you might have trouble. Sorry that I can't be more specific here.

[skeety]

Chris kind of hit on it. If you can get a pistol and goby to pair (best luck with the diamond goby) the goby will only be bothered when others come NEAR his hole(s). ANd he won't do much...just try to shoo them away.

As far as them being behind rocks. They usually (or at least MINE does) dig more than one hole. And their main interest is to dig the hole(s) where they can see what's going on the most. So if most of the action is you walking past the tank, etc...then there's a really good chance they'll make their home facing that direction.

Facinating pair to have and I recommend them. But it may take a while before they find each other and pair up, so don't get discouraged early on.

Also, keep in mind, bigger pistols CAN (most often don't, but CAN) take out some of your smaller fish/hermits.