ANIMAL: Canary Fangblenny Meiacanthus oualanensis Type of Animal: Combtooth Blenny Habitat: Coral reefs, shallow coastal lagoons Location(s): W C Pacific around Fiji Appearance: Small slender bright yellow to orange-yellow fish w/ fork-like tail fin, males larger than females & show more color when breeding Food/Diet: Mysis shrimp, brine shrimp, krill, amphipods, copepods, cyclops, zooplankton, phytoplankton, marine algae, microalgae Status in Wild: Stable Conservation: Breeding in aquariums & aquaculture Lifestyle: Solitary or small harems of a male w/ 1-4 females. Harems may be found in close proximity to one another. Additional Info: Called: Male Female Young: Fry Group: Colony Gestation: 10-14 days Life Span: 3 years Body Length: Male: 3 in Female: 2.5 in These fish sometimes appear in aquarium trade. Also called Fiji Fangblenny, Canary-Yellow Sabre-Toothed Blenny, Canary Blenny, Coral Blenny, Forktail Blenny, Sabretooth Blenny, Yellowfang Blenny, & Oualan Forktail Blenny. Like most blennies, they’re rather skittish. However, they can be rather inquisitive sometimes. Due to small size, single blenny can be kept in very small tank. Eggs hatch as planktonic larvae. Like other blennies, they’re excellent jumpers. Due to this habit, they need to be kept in tightly sealed aquariums. These fish love to hide. They spend lots of time darting in water column. These fish eat multiple small meals per day. Active during day (diurnal). Each egg batch has 100-300 eggs. Before spawning, male starts displaying to female. Female’s abdomen swells up at this time. Gets name from coloration as well as having fangs. Eggs adhere to substrate via filamentous adhesive pad/pedestal. Males guard eggs in time period prior to hatching. Fun Fact(s): Unlike many blennies, they have functional swim bladders. While agile swimmers when necessary, they prefer scooting in short jumps from spot to spot. These fish mildly venomous w/ venom in fangs. Bites painful not deadly used in defense. Venom reduces blood pressure of potential predators, making it relax jaws so blenny can escape. Some say venom similar to effects of heroin. They’ll also bite inside of predator’s mouth.
