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Tag: jawfish

  • Pearly Jawfish – Complete Care Guide

    Pearly Jawfish – Complete Care Guide

    Pearly Jawfish Facts

    The Pearly Jawfish (Opistognathus aurifrons), sometimes called the Yellowhead Jawfish, is a gorgeous fish kept in the fishkeeping hobby. This fish has a white/blue body and a yellow head. These colors are not commonly seen on fish. It is a burrowing species of fish that can be very timid, especially when first introduced. However, they are very peaceful fish and spend most of their time in and around their burrow.

    Opistognathus aurifrons grow to be about 4 inches when they are fully grown. Although they do not require an incredibly large fish tank, they still require a deep substrate which we will cover later. The Pearly Jawfish is reef safe, but may “spit” sandy substrate onto coral that are around its burrow. This article will go further into detail and also discuss Pearly Jawfish care, aquarium requirements, diets and more. If you’re curious about jawfish, check out the Blue Spot Jawfish Care Guide as well!

    Aquarium Requirements

    If you are looking to keep a single Pearly Jawfish, it does best in aquariums that are 30 gallons or larger. Be mindful because there may be aggression between Jawfish and gobies for real estate in your fish tank. Yellowhead Jawfish also do best with sand beds that are at least 4 inches deep but more is always better! CaribSea Fiji Pink Sand is a great Pearly Jawfish substrate. I would also recommend providing rock rubble around the fish tank because I have seen Pearly Jawfish use small pieces of rock to help stabilize their burrow.

    To my knowledge, all Jawfish are known to be excellent jumpers. A tight-fitting lid is incredibly important if you are trying to prevent your fish from jumping to its demise.

    Food and Diet

    Pearly Jawfish are primarily carnivorous animals. Regardless, I have seen them happily eat pellet food as well. It is good to provide an assortment of food for your Jawfish. I would feed mine Mysis Shrimp, Brine Shrimp, Krill, and New Life Spectrum Marine Formula. When I first introduced a Pearly Jawfish into my aquarium, I would use a long turkey baster, like this one, to feed it. I sucked up the food into the syringe and tried to get as close to its burrow. I would then release the food. I did this because at first my Jawfish was incredibly skittish and would disappear into its burrow during feeding time.

    Tank Mates

    I would recommend keeping your Pearly Jawfish in a fairly peaceful aquarium. It does great with fish such as Clownfish, Tangs, Dwarf Angelfish, Chromis, Firefish, Hawkfish, and many other community fish. There may be some territorial disputes with gobies, but in a large enough aquarium each should find their spot. I would avoid keeping your Jawfish with larger fish like Lionfish, Pufferfish, Groupers, and other fish that may consider a Pearly Jawfish food.

    In a large enough aquarium, you may be able to keep multiple Pearly Jawfish together. I would personally start considering keeping multiple in 75 gallon aquariums. Be sure you provide deep sand beds for your Jawfish.

    Pearly Jawfish and Pistol Shrimp

    Unfortunately, the two fish will not share a hole. The good news is, that they should be able to co-exist in a fish tank. Check out Watchman Gobies if you are looking for a fish that is compatible with a Pistol Shrimp.

    Breeding

    It is possible to successfully breed Pearly Jawfish. You can’t tell the difference between males and females of this species by appearance. If breeding is successful, males will hold the eggs in their mouths. I have not ever attempted to breed this fish species, but I can imagine it being incredibly difficult to separate the eggs from its parents. If you have had any luck, let me know!

    Final Notes

    Pearly Jawfish are beautiful saltwater fish with very interesting personalities. If you have the proper setup, I would highly recommend giving them a try! They’re very fun to observe, especially around feeding time when they dart out of their burrow to grab some food.

  • The Alien Like Pearly Jawfish

    The Alien Like Pearly Jawfish

    The pearly jawfish sometimes known as a Yellowhead Jawfish is a very unique marine fish. The white coloring on the body, yellow head, and enormous black/blue eyes make this fish a wonder in a saltwater aquarium. It acts a little different from a goby but is quite a wonderful sand-sifting animal.

    Jawfish Requirements

    Like many burrowing fish, the pearly jawfish tends to miraculously jump out of the saltwater aquarium. Having a well-sealed aquarium is recommended for this fish due to its acrobatic skills.

    When first introduced into the aquarium this fish is quite shy and may get out-competed for food. To guarantee it was eating, I used a long pipette to spot-feed the Yellowhead Jawfish in my home aquarium. At first was timid with the instrument but realized that food came out of it. A Jawfish that is eating is a good sign!

    A minimum of 30 gallons is recommended for this fish as well as having a deep sand bed because they love to burrow deep into the sand. The sand should be very fine so they can put it into their mouth to move around. It is also very recommended to have your live rock touching the bottom glass/acrylic of your display tank. This is important because depending on how the jawfish burrows it can cause the rock to shift which can lead it to fall or crushing the jawfish underneath.

    These fish are fairly hardy and should take to eating and will happily eat any food provided. A mixture of pellet food, flake food, and meaty food should be given. They will sometimes bolt out of their burrow, grab food, and swim back into their den. They have quite a unique personality.

    It will grow to be about a max size of 4″ which is why they require to have a deep sand bed of no less than 4″. This jawfish is a very passive fish and will not bother any other fish. It may get bullied by other burrowing fish so be aware.

    Pearly jawfish are perfectly reef safe and will not any coral. Be aware of any coral that may be in your sand bed because there is a chance this fish will completely cover it with sand. There have been many occasions where I had to dig out coral from a 1/2″ of sand because my jawfish decided sand belonged there.

    Jawfish Hi-jinx

    One funny thing this fish does is it will sometimes build a “fortress” around its burrow. It will collect small pebbles and snail shells and build a small wall. It will try to fight off hermit crabs and snails that may try to get into its home. It will take mouthfuls of sand, swim a few inches away from its burrow, and spit it all back out. They’re a very enjoyable fish to observe and a great addition to a reef aquarium.

    Final Thoughts

    This fish in my opinion is an incredible addition to anyone’s saltwater aquarium. They have a very unique appearance, they are pretty hardy, and they have incredible personalities. They will eat anything and do a pretty good job of keeping your sand clean because of their sand-tossing abilities. Besides keeping it from jumping and making sure it eats, you can’t go wrong with a pearly jawfish!