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Species Details

Details of Bluestriped fangblenny will be displayed below

Bluestriped fangbl...   

Common Name: Blue-lined Blenny, Blue-lined Sabretooth Blenny, Tube-worm Blenny, Twostripe Blenny
Scientific Name: Plagiotremus rhinorhynchos
Local Name: Fansooru mas
Dhivehi Name: ފަންސޫރުމަސް
Animalia  (Kingdom)
Chordata  (Plylum)
Teleostei  (Class)
Perciformes  (Order)
Blenniidae  (Family)
Plagiotremus   (Genus)

Bluestriped fangblenny's description

Bluestriped fangblenny (Plagiotremus rhinorhynchos) is a species of combtooth blenny found in coral reefs in the Pacific and Indian ocean.

Short description - Dorsal spines (total): 10 - 12; Dorsal soft rays (total): 31-37; Anal spines: 2; Anal soft rays: 29 - 33. Adults variable in color, ranging from black to yellow; 2 blue stripes on body.

Max length : 12.0 cm SL male/unsexed.

Bluestriped fangblenny habitat

This species is reef-associated, and inhabits clear, coral-rich areas of lagoons and seaward reefs (Myers 1991). It is known to hide in deserted worm tubes or other small holes when alarmed (Myers 1991, Kuiter and Tonozuka 2001).

It often hovers above the reef waiting for unwary prey. It attacks other fishes to remove scales and skin tissue (stomach contents typically contain only mucous and a few fish scales).

Juveniles mimic the cleaner wrasse, Labroides dimidiatus (Lieske and Myers 1994). According to Côté and Cheney (2005) they are facultative mimics that change their colour: at cleaning stations they mimic the cleaner wrasse and attack unsuspecting customers, and elsewhere they adopt an alternative colour and striping pattern to conceal themselves among fish shoals from which they can strike at passing fish.

Bluestriped fangblenny threats

There are no major threats known for this species.

Bluestriped fangblenny's status