Fish Identification

maxsmart

maxsmart

Member
Please identify this fish, if you can...
Here is our little Poseidon! Don't be afraid when you look at the photo, as he is very ferocious! (at least he thinks he is)
1) He has the "eyelashes" typical of a blenny, so we think he's some sort of blenny.
2) He's about 1 inch long, and 1/4 inch wide.
3) His coloration resembles a lawnmower blenny,
4) but the mouth is pointy like a wrasse,
5) and the way he stays in his hole in the rock all the time (except for when there's food around - he darts out and quickly back into his hole) resembles jawfish behavior.
6) He seems to really like frozen brine shrimp and blood worms, but after we had him about a week he started eating the Tetramarine algae flakes (which every other fish except the sixline is addicted to).
7) He sometimes opens his mouth to "growl" at fish who get to close to his hole - just like our lawnmower blenny does to the sixline wrasse when it gets too close, or like I've seen jawfish do.
He was sold to the LFS as part of a blenny assortment. They hadn't identified him, so they weren't supposed to sell him. Plus, he was wedged into the liverock they had in the tank, and they couldn't get him out. (they had several requests to buy him, because he was so cute) My wife fell in love with him, so one day I talked an employee (who thought it was one of the scooter blennies they were advertising) into selling it to me when I noticed he had moved out of the liverock and into a jawfish's former burrow. Couldn't pass up the opportunity! :happyfish
But now we need help identifying him to make sure we're giving him a proper diet and care. Any help would be appreciated!

 
maxsmart

maxsmart

Member
Originally Posted by michael76lll
not sure but i think its a Sailfin/Algae Blenny
Algae Blenny is the same as lawnmower I thought.. it's not that.
I looked up sailfin, he doens't look like that. His fins aren't tall at all.
Thanks for the quick response, though!! :happyfish
 
maxsmart

maxsmart

Member
THat's close, but he doesn't have a tall fin on top - it's VERY short in length. He's also more grey than brown. I'll try to get a better pic. I took some on my camera that are very clear, but I can't find the stupid sync cable to transfer them. :mad:
 
maxsmart

maxsmart

Member
I identified him, he's a Barnacle Blenny.
Aparently, you can keep a whole colony of them in the rocks - that'd be so cute! He darts out and back into his hole when I put food in, and he growls at passing fish - I can't imagine how amazing a whole colony of those would look, all doing that!
 
hot883

hot883

Active Member
Originally Posted by MaxSmart
THat's close, but he doesn't have a tall fin on top - it's VERY short in length. He's also more grey than brown. I'll try to get a better pic. I took some on my camera that are very clear, but I can't find the stupid sync cable to transfer them. :mad:
If the top fin is shorter then it is a different ---.
 
jawfish101

jawfish101

Member
I have a Barnacle Blenny, he's more of a purple color though. He stays in a coco worm tube all the time, except when he come out to eat. Even then he dosn't swim around, he flies out so quick you can barely see him, then goes right back into his tube. (by the way, he kicked the coco worm out so he could have his tube as a home :mad: ) He's about an 1 1/2in. and eats everything he can possibly reach without going too far from his tube. Very cute and personable, he's one of my favorite fish!
Here are some very bad pictures, but that's the best I can get (thats about as far out of his tube he ever gets when not eating)

 
maxsmart

maxsmart

Member
Originally Posted by Jawfish101
I have a Barnacle Blenny, he's more of a purple color though. He stays in a coco worm tube all the time, except when he come out to eat. Even then he dosn't swim around, he flies out so quick you can barely see him, then goes right back into his tube. (by the way, he kicked the coco worm out so he could have his tube as a home :mad: ) He's about an 1 1/2in. and eats everything he can possibly reach without going too far from his tube. Very cute and personable, he's one of my favorite fish!
Here are some very bad pictures, but that's the best I can get (thats about as far out of his tube he ever gets when not eating)
Nice pics! I sympathize how hard it is to photograph the little guys. Does your "growl" at passing fish?
 
jawfish101

jawfish101

Member
Nah, mine sinks into his tube unless he feels like they get too close...in which case he dives forward and pokes them. Very funny
 
maxsmart

maxsmart

Member
I'm very sad to report, I think our little Poseidon may have passed away. He was upside down or on his side in his hole for a few days, wasn't eating, and then yesterday he was gone. Unless he found a new home in the back somewhere, we fear he may have died. I just hope it wasn't the diet we gave him. He seemed to eat anything - flakes, brine shrimp, algae pellets - but he really seemed to like bloodworms. There are lots of tiny living shrimp in our aquarium (mysis shrimp?) too. He was such a cute fish.
 
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