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The only known specimens of Bulbonaricus brucei were collected in the Western Indian Ocean around Tanzania from dendrophyllid corals, in this case Galaxea astreata .
Little is known about the feeding habits of this species, but they probably feed on harpactoid copepods, gammarids, and mysids like other pipefish species.
Like most other pipefishes, this species is ovoviviparous, and males incubate eggs under their tails before giving live birth.
The pipefish grow to a maximum size of 4.5 cm, and males can breed to a size of 4.35 cm.
Unlike the spotted pipefish Bulbonaricus brauni, Bulbonaricus brucei has only light longitudinal stripes without spots.
A similar but even more extreme metamorphosis was previously described in Bulbonaricus brucei (pug-nosed pipefish), where even the larval dorsal fin is resorbed (and the facial changes are even more extreme, resulting in a pug-like facial expression).
In many scientific publications the species is listed as endemic around Tanzania, but in the meantime there are several finding reports, partly with photos from Taiwan, the Philippines, Japan and from the Indo-Pacific Coral Triangle.
Literature: Andrey Ryanskiy "Reef Fishes of the Coral Triangle, edition 2020, page 23
We have attached links below to the radio reports from the Philippines and Taiwan.
We would like to thank Brook Petersen for the first photo of this species.
Feeding intake.
The fish take a long time to eat at the beginning, before the food is taken up, a close inspection is carried out. After acclimatisation, the offered frozen food is eaten without problems. It should be noted that wild-caught fish behave differently than offspring when it comes to food intake. In the case of offspring, the size of the fish purchased also plays a role in the choice of food.
Little is known about the feeding habits of this species, but they probably feed on harpactoid copepods, gammarids, and mysids like other pipefish species.
Like most other pipefishes, this species is ovoviviparous, and males incubate eggs under their tails before giving live birth.
The pipefish grow to a maximum size of 4.5 cm, and males can breed to a size of 4.35 cm.
Unlike the spotted pipefish Bulbonaricus brauni, Bulbonaricus brucei has only light longitudinal stripes without spots.
A similar but even more extreme metamorphosis was previously described in Bulbonaricus brucei (pug-nosed pipefish), where even the larval dorsal fin is resorbed (and the facial changes are even more extreme, resulting in a pug-like facial expression).
In many scientific publications the species is listed as endemic around Tanzania, but in the meantime there are several finding reports, partly with photos from Taiwan, the Philippines, Japan and from the Indo-Pacific Coral Triangle.
Literature: Andrey Ryanskiy "Reef Fishes of the Coral Triangle, edition 2020, page 23
We have attached links below to the radio reports from the Philippines and Taiwan.
We would like to thank Brook Petersen for the first photo of this species.
Feeding intake.
The fish take a long time to eat at the beginning, before the food is taken up, a close inspection is carried out. After acclimatisation, the offered frozen food is eaten without problems. It should be noted that wild-caught fish behave differently than offspring when it comes to food intake. In the case of offspring, the size of the fish purchased also plays a role in the choice of food.
