Blennies - Marine fish

Blennies - Marine fish are popular aquarium fish, and for good reason. They are peaceful, colorful, and many are downright helpful. For example, the aptly named Lawnmower Blenny will keep your green algae well trimmed and presentable. With the exception of Fang Blennies, Blennies are totally reef safe- in fact a reef environment is really best for them because they can be shy and the intricate rockwork of a reef provides ample hiding spaces. They are omnivores and should be fed a varied diet of frozen or live foods and plant matter. Blennies do not have teeth or functional jaw, so food must be small enough for them to swallow whole.
Blennies are often confused with Gobies, but there is an easy way to tell the difference. Gobies have two distinct dorsal fins, Blennies have a single dorsal fin that runs the length of their body. Also, Gobies' pelvic fins are fused to form a sucker, similar to Remoras.

Popular name	Scientific Name	Description	Max size (cm)
Spinyhead blenny	Acanthemblemaria spinosa	Brown checkered body with distinctive yellow frills on head.	2
Bicolor blenny	Ecsenius bicolor	Characterized by the striking contrast of a blue head and upper torso followed by a yellow orange lower torso.	11
Black combtooth blenny	Ecsenius namiyei		10
Blackline fang blenny	Meiacanthus nigrolineatus	Yellow bodied with bright blue mask and dark black line running from the eye to the caudal fin.	9
Black sailfin blenny	Atrosalarias fuscus		10
Blue & gold blenny	Enchelyurus flavipes		5
Bundoon blenny	Meiacanthus bundoon	Black with lighter patch over caudal fin. Very distinctive swallowtail caudal fin.	8
Canary fang blenny	Meiacanthus oualanensis	Similarly shaped to M. bundoon, but canary yellow.	5
Diamond blenny	Malacoctenus boehlkei	Gray with black splotches, and a yellow mask. Shaped more like hawkfish than a blenny.	6.5
Ember blenny	Cirripectes stigmaticus		12
Lawnmower blenny	Salarias fasciatus	Tan and brown striped and spotted with iridescence. Requires Mature Tank.	14
Linear blenny	Ecsenius lineatus		9
Midas blenny	Ecsenius midas	Although often seen yellow, this fish has the ability to change its color to match the surroundings. It has a very distinctive swallowtail shaped caudal fin.	13
Molly Miller blenny	Scartella cristata	Mottled tan, white, and black covering the body and fins.	12 )
One spot blenny	Crossosalarias macrospilus		10
Red lip blenny	Ophioblennius atlanticus	Black to grayish yellow with red patch over mouth.	19
Red Sea mimic blenny	Ecsenius gravieri	Sky blue anterior fading to yellow towards the tail, with a black stripe running the eye to the base of the caudal fin.	8
Sailfin blenny	Emblemaria pandionis	Very similar to Salarias fasciatus but slightly darker and with a much larger dorsal fin.	5
Segmented sailfin blenny	Salarias segmentatus		10
Starry blenny	Salarias ramosus		14
Striped blenny	Meiacanthus grammistes		12
Tail spot blenny	Ecsenius stigmatura	Drab tan all over with dark spot at the base of the caudal fin and a light yellow line through eye.	6
Two-spot blenny	Ecsenius bimaculatus	The top half of this fish is black towards the front and fades to white closer to the tail. The bottom half is white with two distinctive black spots right under the pectoral fins.	4.5
Convict blenny	Pholidichthys leucotaenia	Not actually a blenny but from closely related family Pholidichthys. Juvenile has black eel-shaped body with a distinctive white stripe running down the body. Adults are yellow and black striped.	34

Posted in: marine fish