Category Archives: Fish

Pacific trumpetfish

A Pacific trumpetfish changes color to blend in with its surroundings
Pacific trumpetfish are one of those fish that like to blend in with the crowd. Their color can vary from yellow to black depending on which fish they’re trying to mimic. The can also display vertical bars or horizontal stripes. Oftentimes, they’re seen hanging upside down in the water. The purpose of all this subterfuge is to sneak up on their prey which is mostly other fish.

This one was in horizontal bar mode and on a horizontal trajectory, but not with any quarry in sight, unless I was its intended victim. I think I’d be a bit hard to swallow.

Bluestripe butterflyfish

A bluestripe butterflyfish swims in the waters off the Big Island of Hawaii.
Most butterflyfish have some sort of eye camouflage, so the bluestripe butterflyfish is unusual in having none. The diagonal blue stripes also make it stand out from the crowd. And where most butterflyfish have relatives in the Pacific, the nearest relative of the endemic bluestripe butteflyfish, is the east coast of Africa

In my attempts to identify what I see in the water, I use John P. Hoover’s book The Ultimate Guide to Hawaiian Reef Fishes, Sea Turtles, Dolphins, Whales, and Seals. His website is hawaiisfishes.com.

Black triggerfish

A group of black triggerfish gather in the waters off the Big Island of Hawaii
I came across this blob of black triggerfish just floating and weaving idly back and forth. Only the one had the coloration that is a sign of arousal and agitation, though it was drifting about much like the others. I suspect this was some sort of courtship/mating ritual going on, but it was quite ethereal to watch.

Bicolor chub

A bicolor chub off the Big Island of Hawaii.
The bicolor chub’s distinguishing feature is that its rear third or half is dark. Sometimes, as with this one, the head turns dark and sometimes the back also, so only the belly is light.

Silver hookfish

A silver hookfish lurks on a head of coral.
The silver hookfish is fairly common in coastal waters here. It spends much of its time slowly cruising shallow waters in search of prey, usually much larger fish than itself. On occasion, the silver hookfish will rest for an extended time on a patch of coral or rock as seen here. Sometimes they can even be seen leaping through the air like flying fish.

While humans aren’t their usual prey, curious or gullible people, lured by its glittering appearance, are sometimes snagged by one of the hookfish’s several barbs. This can be a painful experience, sometimes requiring medical treatment.

Silver hookfish are not recommended for human consumption, since they’re extremely tough and may contain concentrations of toxins, which can impair perceptivity.

Square-spot goatfish

Square-spot goatfish swim in the waters off the Big Isalnd.
Square-spot goatfish are quite common and most easily distinguished by the square spot in the yellow stripe along their sides. However, the intensity of the square spot changes, darker during feeding, and fading (as with the fish in the photo) or disappearing altogether while resting or schooling. When the spot disappears, square-spot goatfish are hard to distinguish from yellowfin goatfish.

In my attempts to identify what I see in the water, I use John P. Hoover’s book The Ultimate Guide to Hawaiian Reef Fishes, Sea Turtles, Dolphins, Whales, and Seals. His website is hawaiisfishes.com.