Blue Spot Jawfish

Bluespot Jawfish

SCIENTIFIC NAME: Opistognathus rosenblatti

Overview
Reef Compatible: YES
Diet: Carnivore
Temperament: Docile
Origin: West Americas

The blue-spotted jawfish (Opistognathus rosenblatti) is a captivating species native to the Gulf of California. Let’s dive into some intriguing details about this remarkable fish:

• Appearance:

  • Jawfish, as a group, have a standard broad head tapering down into a thinner body. Their powerful jaws are adapted into “scoops” to shift sand, coral, shells, rocks, and other debris along the substrate to form their burrows.
  • Blue-spotted jawfish break with tradition a little. Their dens extend straight down, rather than taking a more diagonal pathway. The burrows can reach anywhere from 4 to 9 inches deep, 9 inches wide, and a minuscule 2.5 inches in height.
  • You can easily spot a blue-spotted jawfish by the vivid blue spots covering an otherwise unremarkable body. Even females and juveniles have these bright blue spots. A youngster will have more of a yellow background, and females have larger spots than males.
  • During spawning displays, the front half of a male turns white, while the back half turns black, but those distinctive blue spots remain ever-present.

• Lifespan:

  • Blue-spotted jawfish set up patrols roughly five feet above their burrows in the wild, giving them an unobstructed view. If there are obstacles, they may only lift their heads out of the den entrance to preserve a sense of safety.
  • Their lifespan stays about the same in captivity—between 3 to 5 years.

• Habitat:

  • Blue-spotted jawfish inhabit reefs where they form large colonies at depths of around 12 meters (39 feet).
  • These fascinating fish hide in their burrows at night, completely sealing the entrance. Every morning, they diligently rebuild the burrow entrance.

Next time you’re near the coast of Baja Mexico, keep an eye out for these animated burrowers—they’re like living gems beneath the waves!