Category Archives: In The Water

Spot the Scorpionfish

A Devil Scorpionfish in the waters off Hawaii
A Devil Scorpionfish in the waters off Hawaii

When I get to the end of a swim, I keep looking around because, as the water shallows, it’s possible to see a wide variety of fish and marine invertebrates.

Recently, I was about 10 feet from my exit point when I saw the Devil Scorpionfish in the photos. That’s right, there’s a fish in the top photo and it’s not the Bright-eye Damselfish on the left. The second photo gives a better view, where the fins stand out a bit and a flash of orange can just be seen on the left pectoral fin. A Devil Scorpionfish will flash these orange fins, probably as a warning to predators, since it has venomous spines.

Don’t feel bad if you can’t find the fish in the top photo. I wouldn’t have spotted it if it had been stationary, but in the shallow water, I noticed a small movement and quickly realized what I was looking at. I’ve seen a Devil Scorpionfish in this area before so this might be the territory of this same fish.

Whitemouth Moray Eel

A Whitemouth Moray Eel in the waters off the Big Island Hawaii

I’d just got in the water recently when I saw this Whitemouth Moray Eel hunting with some Bluefin Trevallies. The trevallies carried on, but the eel was torn between joining them and retreating into the crack it was emerging from. In the end it did neither and I got a few photos before carrying on with my swim.

Bicolor Chub

A Bicolor chub in the waters off Hawaii

The Bicolor Chub is one of several chubs here, but the only one endemic to Hawaii. While it has a lot of similarities to the Gray Chub, the two-tone coloring makes it easy to identify. Some Bicolor Chubs are dark at the back and light at the front. This one also has the dark top to its head and face. Some of them also have dark backs so that the only light part is the belly area.

Dwarf Moray Eel hunting

A dwarf moray eel swimming in the waters off Hawaii

I was snorkeling recently when I saw this Dwarf Moray Eel hunting with a small Saddle Wrasse. It promptly disappeared under a rock and I didn’t expect to see it again. But I was in no hurry, so moved away a bit and kept watch. After a while the eel poked its head out, hesitated, then swam out.

I snapped these two photos, the first as it emerged and the second as it disappeared again. I like how, in the top photo, the eel oozes out of a hole no bigger around than it is, which is less than an inch! These small eels typically are less than a foot long.

A dwarf moray eel swimming in the waters off Hawaii