Ward's sleeper goby

Ward's sleeper goby is a marine sand-sifting goby of the family Gobiidae, native to the western Pacific and eastern Indian Ocean. It has a pale body marked with a series of dark blotches and bright blue speckles, along with yellow highlights on the face. It is a carnivore that continuously sifts mouthfuls of sand to extract small crustaceans, worms, and other microfauna, cleaning and aerating the substrate in the process. It is usually seen in pairs working an area of open sand. In the aquarium it is peaceful and useful for keeping a sand bed clean, but it depends on a rich supply of live microfauna in a deep, mature sand bed, which can be hard to sustain. It needs a well-established tank with fine sand, plenty of substrate, and supplemental feeding of small meaty foods. A secure lid is advisable, as sleeper gobies may jump when startled.