
… Christmas Wrasse, that is, this one swimming past a ledge occupied by blue-black urchins.

… Christmas Wrasse, that is, this one swimming past a ledge occupied by blue-black urchins.

On a recent swim, I saw this shoal of fish, mostly comprising of Whitebar Surgeonfishes, heading off on its morning business.


The Sunday Stills Monthly Color Challenge theme is ‘Blue.’ See more responses here. After sorting through some photos, I found a cluster of abstract blues that I like so here they are.





On my last swim, I saw this Wedgetail Triggerfish slip into this crevice in the rocks. I thought it might have disappeared, but there it was, wedged in, side on. It might have been protecting eggs laid in there or just waiting for me to move on!
This fish is also known as the Picasso Triggerfish. In Hawaiian, it’s called humuhumu-nukunuku-ā-pua-a and it’s the official state fish.
Posted for Bushboy’s Last on the Card photo challenge. See more responses here.

I don’t see Spotted Eagle Rays as often as I used to, but that’s true of many creatures that live in the ocean around here. This one went skimming by a small school of Yellow Tangs and out into deeper water. Happily, it looked in excellent condition with a beautiful array of white spots on its wings.


Chubs might be the most cheerful-looking fish in our local waters, and with their touches of brassy yellow, these chubs are amongst the most colorful.

I came across this relatively small Giant Porcupinefish on a recent swim and it headed directly towards me for a short while, before deciding I wasn’t that interesting and swimming off.

I used to see Scrawled Filefishes all the time at the place where I usually go snorkeling. For the past few years they’ve become occasional visitors, so I’m pleased when I run into them these days. This one had the good graces to not only stick around, but to do so in a spot where the light illuminated its wonderful markings.