Opistognathus aurifrons
Description: These little cuties have a yellow heads and a light blue-green bodies.
Size: Small. Up to 4-5"
Habitat: Yellow-headed jawfish live in patches of sand and coral rubble around the edges of reefs. With no place to hide in these open areas, jawfish dig in, building burrows into the sand.
Behavior: Always industrious, jawfish keep their burrows shaped up. They line the entrance with rocky rubble so it won't cave in, and they're forever shoveling out mouthfuls of sand. They sometimes raid a neighbor's burrow for choice pebbles and shells.
When danger threatens (or divers loom in for a better peak), they dive for cover into their burrow. When the coast is clear, they hover over their burrows waiting to snap up small animals that drift by on the currents.
Range: On coral reefs in the Caribbean Sea and western Atlantic.
Interesting Facts: Besides serving as scoops, jawfishes' big mouths come in handy at mating time. The males carry their eggs inside their mouths until they hatch. Males can be territorial; they may use their mouths to “joust” with other jawfishes.
Click here for an OUSTANDING Yellowheaded Jawfish photo!
