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Related FAQs: True
Blennies, Combtooth Blennies 2,
Blenny Identification,
Blenny Behavior, Blenny Compatibility,
Blenny Selection, Blenny
Systems, Blenny Feeding,
Blenny Disease, Blenny
Reproduction,
Algae-eating Blennies,
Ecsenius
Blennies, Saber-Tooth
Blennies, Blennioids & their Relatives,
Tube/Pike/Flag Blennies/Chaenopsidae,
Related Articles: Blennioids
and their Relatives, Algae
Eating Blennies,
Ecsenius Blennies, Sabertooth
Blennies, Family Blenniidae/Tribe Nemophini, Algae Control,
Triplefin Blennioids,
Tube/Pike/Flag Blennies/Chaenopsidae,
Regional Accounts:
Blennioids of Indonesia,
/The Conscientious Marine Aquarist
The True/Combtooth
Blennies, Family Blenniidae
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By Bob Fenner |
Istiblennius zebra |
Family Blenniidae, the Combtooth Blennies;
are mostly marine and tropical, Atlantic, Indian, Pacific. They have scaleless bodies with large blunt
heads that bear their namesake comb-like teeth; maximum size to eighteen inches, but most
under six.
These are the Blennies to many.
There are some six tribes, fifty three genera with about three hundred fifty species.
Atrosalarias, Ecsenius, Meiacanthus, Petroscirtes, Ophioblennius,
Cirripectes, Parablennius,
Istiblennius, Salarias are the genera whose members are most often offered to the hobby.
<To save download time, the Sabertooth Blennies
are treated elsewhere>
Blenniids include several mimetic species,
that look and behave like other fishes, including other blennies, to gain advantage.
Mullerian, Batesian and aggressive mimicry are all involved. We will mention some of this
below.
A Least Favorite Blenny, The False Cleanerfish
| Aspidontus taeniatus Quoy & Gaimard 1834, the
False Cleaner. Mimicking Labroides dimidiatus
in both color, markings and behavior, the False Cleaner sneaks up on
unsuspecting victims and takes a bite out of their flesh or scales. This
fish is discernible from its wrasse look-alike mainly by its sub-terminal
(underslung) mouth. As you might guess, rarely offered (by accident) in
the trade/hobby. Nuka Hiva, Marquesas image on left, Labroides on
right. |
 
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Favorite Combtooth Blennies/Groups
The family Blenniidae has several stalwart
species that are perennially offered to aquarists. The Caribbean Red Lip Blenny Ophioblennius
atlanticus is surely one; and a ready "poster child" example of the family,
skittering about with its comb like dentition and prominent "eyebrow" cirri. Please
see the pertinent negative press and image of the "Leopard" or Sailfin
Blenny, Exallias brevis, posted in the FAQs on Blennies... this obligate
corallivore occasionally makes it into pet-fish markets, and shouldn't (thanks
to Bruce Carlson, Waikiki Aquarium for this heads-up).
Genus Atrosalarias: Monotypic (one species).
Cirripectes is another popular aquarium
genus with a handful of its twenty one members offered off and on to the trade. Their
all-seeing eyes are large and protruded even by blunt blenny head standards. Also
conspicuous are the groups fleshy lips and "eyebrows" (orbital cirri). Cirripectes
are more cryptic than Ecsenius but just as attractive and comical.
| Cirripectes castaneus (Valenciennes 1836), the
Chestnut Blenny. Indo-Pacific; Red Sea to Tonga. To five inches in length.
Found on reef flats of moderate to high current. Females with a barred
appearance anteriorly. This male in the Red Sea. |
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| Crossosalarias macrospilus Smith-Vaniz & Springer
1971, the Triplespot Blenny. Western Pacific; east to Tonga. To 8.2 cm.
This one off of Queensland, Australia. |
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| Cirripectes variolosus (Valenciennes 1836), the
Red-Speckled Blenny. Pacific Plate: Palau to Johnston, Marquesas,
throughout Micronesia. Usually found in association with Pocillopora
corals. To four inches in length. Nuka Hiva, Marquesas photos. |
 
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Genus Ecsenius:
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The genus Ecsenius deserves
special attention in the family Blenniidae; with forty seven species these are delightful,
small (to four inches) fishes that do superbly well in peaceful fish, invertebrate and
reef systems.
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The Coral Eater: Exallias (one species, thank goodness)
| Exallias brevis (Kner 1868), Leopard Blenny.
Indo-Pacific; Red Sea to Hawaiian, Marquesas Islands. To almost six inches
in length in the wild. Obligate feeders on live coral polyps. Definitely
NOT reef safe. Still offered on pet-fish markets on occasion. A male in Oahu,
Hawai'i female at a marine wholesalers in L.A. starving... |
 
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Istiblennius: Twenty four nominal species
| Istiblennius zebra (Vaillant & Sauvage 1875), the
Zebra Blenny. Oceania, a Hawaiian endemic. Males to nearly eight inches in
length, females under five. This one at Shark's Bay in O'ahu. |
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Ophioblennius: ten described species. Can be territorial terrors.
| Ophioblennius atlanticus (Valenciennes
1836), the Atlantic The Red-Lipped Blenny. Tropical Eastern and Western
Atlantic. To more than seven inches in the wild. Aquarium images. |
 
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| Ophioblennius steindachneri Jordan & Evermann
1898, the Largebanded Blenny. Tropical Eastern Pacific. To a bit over
seven inches in length. At right off of Cabo San Lucas, Mexico's Baja.
Below, a juvenile and adults in the Galapagos. |
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| Omobranchus zebra (Bleeker, 1868) is known as the Zebra
Blenny or Vietnamese Freshwater Blenny in the aquarium trade. It is found in
mangrove and brackish waters fringing the Indian and Western Pacific Oceans from
India through to Philippines, though oddly enough not from Vietnam, despite the
common name! Maximum length is about 2.5". Hard, alkaline water with some salt
added (SG 1.005+) seems to be essential to the long-term health of these fishes
though they seem to tolerate maintenance in freshwater adequately well for short
periods. They can also be kept in marine aquaria. Zebra Blennies are distinctly
territorial and need to be given plenty of space is kept with their own kind or
with other, potentially competitive fishes, such as gobies. They are predatory
and will attack surprisingly large prey, including shrimps almost as large as
they are! They also enjoy bloodworms and other such foods. Do not seem to eat
algae. This species is very pretty, with a greyish body marked with bold dark
grey and off-white approximately vertical bands that are strongest on the head
but become fainter towards the tail. Other brackish water species of
Omobranchus may turn up in the future, and these will likely require similar
care. |
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Blenny photos 3/21/07
Hello Robert,
Courtesy of Bob Edwards, here are some photos of Omobranchus zebra:
It's a brackish/marine species, so may have use in the marine blenny article as
well as the FW/brack one.
Hope they're useful.
Cheers, Neale
<Will post with credit to BobE, noted re the marine habitat. B> |
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.jpg) |
Petroscirtes: 23 valid species, 31 nominal.
| Petroscirtes mitratus Ruppell 1830, the Floral
Blenny. Indo-Pacific; Red Sea, eastern Africa to Micronesia. To two and
three quarters inch total length. This one in a typical setting hanging
off a mooring line with algae about it. |
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Salarias, Lawnmower Blennies. Much-loved by aquarists as algae
groomers. Seven nominal species.
| Salarias ceramensis Bleeker 1852, the Seram Blenny.
Western Central Pacific, Indonesia, Philippines and PNG and northern
Australia. To six inches in
length. This one in an aquarium. |
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| Salarias fasciatus (Bloch 1786), the Jeweled Blenny
to science, super-popular Lawnmower Blenny to aquarists. Indo-Pacific;
Africa and Red Sea to Micronesia. To five inches in length. Aquarium and
Australian waters images. |
 
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Genus Stanulus:
| Stanulus talboti Springer 1968, Talbot's Blenny.
Pacific; GBR to S. Japan to the Society Islands. To about 2.5 inches in
length. Nuka Hiva, Marquesas, Polynesia pic. |
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Bibliography/Further Reading:
Baensch, Hans A. & Helmut Debelius.
1994. Marine Atlas, v. 1. MERGUS, Germany.
Brown, Gregory W. The Combtooth blennies,
from the kelp forests to the world's coral reefs. Discover Diving 3,4/92.
Burgess, Warren E., Herbert R. Axelrod
& Ray E. Hunziker. 1990. Atlas of Aquarium Fishes, v. 1. Marines.
T.F.H. Publ. NJ.
Dakin, Nick. 1992. The Book of the Marine
Aquarium. Tetra Press.
Howe, Jeffrey C. 1995. Original
descriptions; Cirripectes alleni, Ecsenius randalli. FAMA 10 & 11/95.
Hunt, Philip. 1993. The midas touch. TFH
2/93.
Kahl, Burkhard. 1972. Blennies of the
Mediterranean. Aquarium Digest International 1:2(72).
Nelson, Joseph S. 1994. Fishes of the
World, 3d ed. John Wiley & Sons, NY.
Parker, Nancy J. 1976. Piscatorial clowns.
Marine Aquarist 7(4):76.
Pyle, Richard L. & A. Privitera. 1990.
The Midas Blenny Ecsenius midas Starck.
Ranta, Jeffrey A. 1996. Bicolor Blennies. TFH 12/96.
Robertson, Graham C. 1975. North Sea
blennies. Marine Aquarist 6(1):75.
Thresher, R.E. 1984. Reproduction in Reef
Fishes. T.F.H. Publ., NJ.
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