blue spotted jawfish behaviour

[beeguiles]

So I got this guy a couple weeks ago. He is very outgoing and loves to dig burrows in the sand. But...the past couple of days at night I noticed him swimming out in the open a lot. He goes up to the surface of the water and like skims it with the top of his head and then swims around and then goes back to his burrow. He does it over and over again. He also does it during the day sometimes. There is no physical damage. No rapid breathing. He eats like a hog. Lol is this normal or a sign that he's not happy? The sandbed is a couple inches deep but prlly deeper where he is because of him piling all the sand up. I have live sand. Black and white. Can't remember what brand. Just wanted to see if this is normal or if its going to cause stress and possibly death in the future?

 

[little_fish]

How many fish do you have in your tank? It sounds like he is showing some aggressive behavior and is defending his territory

 

[beeguiles]

A pair of clowns and a six line wrasse. He isn't paying any attention to them at all. It's so weird what he does. He swims up to the top of the water about an inch from the surface and looks at it for a few seconds and then he swims across the top of the water and kind of pushes the top of his head out of the water. It's like he's trying to see over the top of the water without sticking his whole head out just his eyes. And then he goes back to his little area and does it again. Maybe he's looking for a spot to jump out? He can't get out though. Everything is secure. He has shells to rearrange but he hasn't touched them. Maybe I should get him some crushed coral bc he isnt content with the burrow he made? Could that be it? He is a marvelous fish, I hope he isn't stressed and this is his funny personality. Maybe be is just patrolling the tank lol. :)

 

[little_fish]

Dont add crushed coral, that stuff can damage their gills as they shift it. And if you dont think its aggression then dont worry about it.

 

[beeguiles]

Yea he is still new. He is prlly just trying to fit in. I heard splashing noises this morning. I think he found out that he can't escape lol

 

[Northstar24]

Has he settled in for you? I am looking at potentially adding one of these to my tank

 

[beeguiles]

Yes he has settled. He was looking for a spot to jump out I think but after a few nights he decided its not worth his energy since its all sealed up lol and I added some more live rock and made some tunnels and what not. He seems to like it better and feel mote comfortable.