FOTM-July '09-Pearly Jawfish

Submitted for the 3reef gods



Pearly Jawfish AKA Yellowhead Jawfish

Latin Name: Opistognathus aurifrons

Reef Safe: Yes, not known to pick at any corals or harass inverts.

Temp: 78*-82* Fahrenheit

Will they breed: They are mouth brooders, with the male holding the eggs in his mouth until hatching. While spawning is possible I don't know how likely raising the fry would be.

SG: 1.020-1.024

Diet: A zooplankton feeder but will also frozen meaty foods, flake and pellet.

Size: Will not get much above 2"-3"

Temperament: Peaceful if territorial. Will not harass fish but will chase intruders away from the den. Two males can pose an issue but as long as space is sufficient they will be fine.

Range: Tropical Western Atlantic, Caribbean

Minimum Aquarium: A single fish is an excellent choice for a nano 10g or larger. If you are keeping a non-mated pair provide plenty of room. They are known to be prolific jumpers(Although not as bad as the blue spotted cousin) so a tight cover is recommended.

All in all, these are AWESOME fish. Completely reef safe, peaceful and a ton of personality. They need at least 2"-3" of a fine substrate as they are tunnelers. Make sure all of your rock work is well secured and on the bottom to minimize the risk of an avalanche.
At first shy once comfortable they open up and are hilarious to watch. My pair pop out of there dens to watch me whenever I am in the room. They are also relatively hardy fish if poor shippers, so make sure you let them hang out in a dealer tank for a little while first. Pearly Jawfish should not be kept with any aggressive fish, while territorial they will get stressed out and bullied easily.

Pictures!

 

Jawfish are my favorite fish. Really SWEET...

 

ty for the info larkin. well done

 

Should note that 2 males WILL be very territorial sometimes and fight (although only lasts a few seconds usually). In my tank the dominant one actually takes over the others burrow for a while, kicks him out and a few hours later goes back to his original kicking the other out again (does that make sense?? ) Gotta love these fish though - always entertaining!!

 

Whoops! Thought I was more clear on that but I must have missed it. Spot on, info. With enough room(A 20g long or better) there are few issues, but two males do tend to be resentful of each other.

 

Mine are in a 65G, have burrows on opposing ends and still go at it sometimes - crazy to watch and i'm waiting for the submissive one to finally kick the dominant's a$$ one day!!

 

Good article, madlarkin.

 

This is the goby we had, but I think he was chased out. these guys are good fish and are so colorful when the lights hit them. I cant wait to get hood. nice article and you are supposed to tell everyone to post there pix and why they like them. LOL thanks

 

Where can I buy one

 

They are pretty common, at one point I have seen them at 3 of the 5 LFS around here. Two of those routinely carry them in stock and I think most major online livestock retailers should have them.