mimic Forktail Blenny???? ID

[rizkeeper]

I thought I was getting a midas blenny, and this is what I have....cool fish. I think it is a mimic forktail blenny,

Anyone have one of these? Good bad?

 

[Ludwigia73]

Very nice!!!

 

[rizkeeper]

anyone have one of these guys?

 

[rizkeeper]

no one?

 

[cateyes]

maybe try posting in the "reef fishes" forum...

very pretty... do those have a venomous bite???

 

[rizkeeper]

i think the real one has the venom, but this is a mimic, it fools everyone

 

[cateyes]

thanks ,, i'll be tagging to see what info you get..

 

[Paintbug]

it looks like the real deal to me. i havent really seen a mimic foxtail though. and yes they are venimous. their spines, and they have a pair of fangs that will sting you. my stripped fang blenny is the same way but as long as you dont try to grab him, he doesnt bother me. neat little fishes!

 

[rizkeeper]

here are the real ones, But the more I research the more I may agree with you....

 

[rizkeeper]

the 3rd pic, the difference is in the black line down the back of the fish, mine doesn't have that.

 

[Paintbug]

females and males have different patterns, you may have the one that no one seems to take a pic of . the males will change colors during spawning. im not sure how or which colors get changed i just read that from one of my books.

 

[rizkeeper]

screw it, I wil just have the thing bite me tonight and I'll will let you all know what happends

 

[Amphiprion]

The picture needs to be a bit clearer. But judging from the overall head shape and stripe pattern, it seems you have a real fang blenny, Meiacanthus atrodorsalis. The mimic blenny is Ecsenius gravieri (a cool-colored bicolor blenny, if you will) and actually mimics Meiacanthus nigrolineatus. Your blenny's stripe extends abruptly from the eye to the dorsal fin, whereas in the mimic and nigrolineatus, the line trails across the body toward the anterior portion of the dorsal fin.
You can get bitten, but it is harder do than you might think.

 

[thehedge]

Yes that DEFINATELY looks like the real deal. The Mimic Blenny has a rounder head very similar to a Bicolor Blenny. Yours appears to have the pointy mouth like the real Fang Blenny.

In addition to being venomous, they will nip the scales off any other fish you have in the tank.

 

[Paintbug]

there ya go . if yours does like my fang blenny, he will yawn from time to time and you can see the fangs. im still amazed at how much they can open their mouth. when i look at his mouth is a few mm across. but he could easily bite around the tip of my pinky finger.

 

[rizkeeper]

paint....how is you fish towards others?

 

[Paintbug]

he doesnt even act like they are around. its like he has a chip on his shoulder(fins). sometimes he looks at my coral beauty like come get some LOL but he just swims around hunting pods all day. hes never bothered me either.

 

[rizkeeper]

yeah, I see that same trait in mine. I only have a small Powder Blue tang in the tank, But some time the PBT will bow up to the forktail, they slowly size each other up, than part ways. Funny to watch.

I really want a midas blenny though. I hope they can co-exisit. The fork tail will be easy to catch though, it sleeps under my magfloat some nights. I have no idea how it pulls that off, but it does. maybe the current keeps up there.

 

[Paintbug]

mine sleeps under the mag-float, in the corners on the silicone, behind the overflow box, on top of the powerheads, i even seen him behind on of the powerheads. strange little guys sometimes LOL