Category Archives: Fish

Fish at Viper Rock

Fish swim in the waters off Hawaii

On the coast where I snorkel, there’s a spot known locally as Viper Rock. This is where a very large Viper Moray Eel used to reside in a recess in the rock. I haven’t seen him lately, but it’s also a good spot for a variety of fish so I go down there regularly.

On this day, I approached the rock from the shore side and noticed these Whitebar Surgeonfishes swimming by. Then I noticed the Great Barracuda that can be seen in the background against the edge of the farther rocky outcropping. A few moments later I saw another one, and then a third.

It appeared that the barracuda ohana that frequents that area was around in force. Rather than cross to the other side of the ridge by Viper Rock, where the barracudas were, I returned the way I came. A couple of barracudas looked like they might follow, but quickly lost interest. Their interest in people appears to be related solely to the possibility that those people will snag some fish which the barracudas will then hope to steal.

Solstice photos

A Royal Palm in Hawaii

This week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme is ‘Again the Solstice.’ See more responses here. I didn’t have any good ideas for illustrating the solstice so, instead, plumped for photos taken on the solstice.

The top photo, I’ve run before in 2019, but who doesn’t love a grumpy cat? The second photo, from 2021, is of a royal palm amongst other tropical foliage. These palms can grow to 70 feet tall and look very stately when planted in a row. This one was quite a bit smaller.

The bottom two photos show a Fiery Skipper butterfly on a Mesembryathemum flower in 2020, and a Pacific Day Octopus hunting in the company of a goatfish back in 2018.

A Fiery skipper butterfly on a Mesembryathemum flower
A Pacific Day Octopus hunts with a goatfish

Milkfish at Lahuipua’a Fishpond gate

Milkfish congregate at Lahuipua'a fishpond gate at Mauna Lani Hawaii
A sign next to Lahuipua'a Fishpond at Mauna Lani, Hawaii

Fishponds were places where the early Hawaiians used to raise fish for consumption. Lahuipua’a Fishpond at Mauna Lani is a very large pond which holds many Milkfish. Awa is their Hawaiian name.

These Milkfish were congregated at the entrance gate, no doubt hoping for someone to open it and let them out. The gates can be used for either purpose, but the idea of the ponds is that small fish can enter, but as they get bigger, they can’t get out. The fish in the top photo are far too big to escape through the grill.

There is another way out, as the sign in the second photo notes. Jacks and barracudas sometimes manage to get into the pools and will feed on the juvenile fishes. There are supposedly a couple of very large barracudas in this pool that have so far evaded capture and they’re probably living well off the inhabitants there.

In the pink

A Pinktail Triggerfish in the waters off Hawaii

This week’s Sunday Stills Monthly Color Challenge is ‘Pink.’ See more responses here.

The top photo is an appropriately named Pinktail Triggerfish. Below, we have a Gold Dust Day Gecko cleaning the windows, a pink hibiscus fronting an orange tree, and an Hawaiian Stilt with an itch.

A Gold dust day gecko licks its eye
A pink hibiscus in front of an orange tree in Hawaii
An Hawaiian Stilt scratches itself

Countdown

Ten sheep, and ten cattle egrets, in Hawaii

This week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme is ‘A Numbers Game.’ See more responses here. I put all my fingers and thumbs to work for my response, starting with ten Sheep in formation (and ten Cattle Egrets, too, as a bonus).

Next we have nine Spinner Dolphins playing, eight Wild Pigs foraging, seven Cattle Egrets heading to work.

Nine spinner dlophins in the waters off Hawaii
A wild pig with seven piglets in Hawaii
Seven Cattle Egrets fly over the water in Hawaii

Then there’s six Dung Beetles at work, five Black Triggerfish feeling blue, four Japanese White-eyes bathing.

Six dung beetles in Hawaii
Black Triggerfishes in an aroused state in the waters off Hawaii
Four Japanese White-eyes bathing in Hawaii

And finally, three Horses watching, two Hawaiian Monk Seals resting, and one Pueo anticipating zero and lifting off.

Three horses in Hawaii
A Hawaiian monk seal and pup on a beach in Hawaii
A pueo takes off in Hawaii

Arc-eye Hawkfish

An Arc-eye Hawkfish waits in coral in the waters off Hawaii
An Arc-eye Hawkfish waits in dead coral in the waters off Hawaii

Arc-eye Hawkfishes come in two color variations. The top photo shows one that is reddish tan with a white stripe on the side. The bottom photo shows a fish that is a darker brown with no white stripe.

According to my fish book, John P. Hoover’s The Ultimate Guide to Hawaiian Reef Fishes, Sea Turtles, Dolphins, Whales, and Seals, the white stripe coloring is most common in deeper water where the coral is spaced farther apart. In shallower water, where the coral colonies are closer together, the darker coloring predominates. However, both these photos were taken in shallow water so it’s not an either/or situation.

Predators

Blue Goatfishes and other fish hunt fro prey in the waters off Hawaii

It’s not unusual to see this kind of gang activity while snorkeling, and what they’re doing is hunting. Their prey is small fish that take sanctuary in coral heads and among the rocks.

This bunch of hunters is dominated by Blue Goatfishes, easily identified by their blue bodies and yellow saddle at the base of the tail. There’s also a Bluefin Trevally and Pacific Trumpetfish toward the bottom of the photo and, near the top of the photo, a Peacock Grouper with a Whitemouth Moray Eel curling below it.

Eels are popular members of these hunting parties because they can wriggle into the smallest spaces, flushing out prey. The goatfishes perform similar work using long, white barbels below the chin to probe small spaces in the hopes of disturbing a meal. Other fish tag along hoping to be beneficiaries of this work by being the first to snag any victims that get flushed out.