Sarcastic Fringehead (Neoclinus blanchardi) Interactions - Unusual behavior

Some recent recordings of Sarcastic Fringehead (Neoclinus blanchardi) that I found unusual. The structures these guys are in are the artificial reefs installed on the sea bead to house predators and promote kelp growth along the sand. The depth was about 41'. I normally don't see them venturing outside of their safe hovels. It is hard to say what kind of behavior this is. This requires a bit more recordings and more regular monitoring of these fringehead, in addition to determining the sexes of these individuals. Of the times I've dove the site, I've only seen one fringehead swimming between hovels during a dive. I'd also normally see 1-3 fringehead per dive in these artificial reefs, with the rest of the structures occupied by two-spot octopus.
05:39 is the thumbnail
Song 1: 0:01-2:42
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Music By KaizanBlu
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Song 3: 5:14-7:53
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Music By: "NO MIC"
Track Name: "Tell Me What Matters"
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[@bettagems9209]

such fantastic-looking fish, great video, well-done!

[@fredwooten14]

Strange fish.

[@johncgodfrey]

Such a cool fish!

[@bradsillasen1972]

Outstanding! Smooth cam work.

[@EmmettDoyleDDR435]

Cool

[@moonpleco5083]

Awesome footage! Sarcastic Fringeheads fascinate me so much. I suppose that they are searching for new house, perhaps shell. Who knows, maybe living in artificial hole is less comfortable for them. Both fishes are not interested in hunting at this time, they might came out to explore neighborhood. They met each other, despite being loners they don't fight. If they are male and female we may see their courtship on this video.
When I'm looking at them carefully, l think they are both females. That is , they may be quiet along themselves, well fed females usually are more laid back.

[@MaverickDiving]

Definitely not behavior I have seen before. There are many in this area near UCSB.
My guess was some kind of courtship between male and female, since the one that often opened its mouth was slightly larger and wider head size.
Hard to say with only this one recording. If something like this is observed a few more times with data regarding time, place, conditions, then a scientific paper could be written about it.

[@moonpleco5083]

Thank you for explanation. It could be courtship. Indeed, all life aspects of those fish are worth observation and study. Your footage is unique and professionally done. If you can please do more videos. Sarcastic Fringeheads are known but not much info about them, at least in internet.

[@moonpleco5083]

​@@MaverickDivingThank you very much for article recommendations! It's hard to find any scientific or hobbyist deep look inside articles about Sarcastic Fringehead. I wonder why such interesting species is not well known....but perhaps it's better for them?
Thank you again!

[@flameyoshi07]

Sea

[@yeahboy6807]

Looks a bit like a long, thin stone fish