Blue-spotted Jawfish?

flamehawkfish · #1 12/05/2007, 01:40 PM

hi Everyone

I will start a new reef tank soon, and want to get a blue-spotted jawfish. Do you know anything about them?

I read somewhere that b/c they're found in cooler waters, they're less successful in tropical aquariums (similar to the Catalina Goby). Is there anything to that rumor?

Does anyone have a Blue-spotted Jawfish? If so, can you share with me your experience?

Thanks,

Flamehawk

blackheart · #2 12/05/2007, 01:43 PM

they jump

flamehawkfish · #3 12/05/2007, 02:49 PM

Yeah, but so do the Pearly jawfish (among other reef fish- like flamehawks). I can seal the top of the tank.

Any other advice?

philter4 · #4 12/05/2007, 02:58 PM

I've had them and they did great, lived until I moved from CA to FL and it took a couple of months to reset up my tank. They were in a trop FOWLR and had no issues with trop temps. I collected them myself and the water they came from was mid 70's. In the years I kept them only 2 died, (I collected 7) both jumped through holes I couldn't believe I could have forced them through.
Good luck.

flamehawkfish · #5 12/05/2007, 04:18 PM

hi Philter4

Thanks for the tip. Yeah. They really are notorious jumpers. I'd have to use some fiberglass screen to cover up the back of the tank. It will be tricky.

So, you collected them yourself?? That's probably a no-no! : ) I've heard that they fetch such high prices b/c they're protected.

Anyway, wish me luck and I hope your tank in FL does great.

Flamehawk

pinkie · #6 12/05/2007, 05:16 PM

I have one, and have had him for several months. He doesn't seem to have any problem with the warmer temperatures (high 70's). He is a hardy eater and has been very healthy. I have been extremely happy with him. They can be very difficult to find though, I have heard they tend to essentially disappear from the wild for months at a time.

Sk8r · #7 12/05/2007, 05:20 PM

I have a pearly and no jumping, nor even any movement toward the surface. What I've found is that a jump prone fish with no bullies about and an abundance of fish of their own size generally will stay down at the bottom where they belong and not jump. [It's a predator-avoidance thing.] If there is a vast disparity in fish sizes, they may feel threatened, so guard against jumps.

JM68 · #8 12/05/2007, 06:18 PM

They are awsome fish with a great personality. I had one jump out of the tank on me so make sure u cover your tank. The one i have now eats like a champ and is doing fine with water temps in the high 70's to low 80's. He is also pretty tough and defends his area anytime another fish goes near it even my trigger. I'd strongly recommend one, but get ready for a pretty steep price depending on where u get it. Also despite wut a lot of people say u can keep one without a deep sandbed. They will take sand from other parts of the tank and pile it around LR to make their burrow.

seapug · #9 12/05/2007, 06:53 PM

Blue spots are awesome fish but are notorious for doing great for about a month and then dying for no apparent reason. After losing two Blue Spots I opted for a Pearly Jawfish and it's doing great.

If you want to try an expensive Jawfish like a blue spot, I'd recommend making it the first fish you put in a tank or put it in a sparsely populated tank with a decent depth of sand-- at least a couple inches of sand with large open areas and plenty of pieces of larger coral gravel (1/4-1/2" rubble) they will use to build their burrow. Flat rocks resting on the bottom are favored burrow spots.

philter4 · #10 12/05/2007, 07:24 PM

They are not protected, but it is no longer easy to export them from mexico, they used to just let you bring aquarium fish across the boarder, but no longer.

As for their reputation for living only a month, I've written about this before, the most common way they are collected is as follows (I've dove with commercial collectors in the gulf and all of the ones I've watched on many trips use this method, but I have not seen all collectors so if there are some that dig them out they are the ones we should be buying from). What they do is take a 2 inch PVC coupler and attach a plastic bag with a rubberband. They then squirt a chemical down the jawfishes hole, I've seen them use vinigar and once a diluted solution of bleach. They put the trap over the hole and within 30 sec. the fish is in the bag. They collect all the jaws from a colony this way. I believe this is why they don't do well long term, but I have no scientific proof. When I collected them I dug them out and I only lost ones that jumped. I've never tried to keep them other times, and I think the ones that live when collected this way are the ones that were collected after the squirt bottle is diluted so they are "less" damaged. Just my opinion and observation.