Category Archives: In The Water

Fish at Viper Rock

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

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 Pacific Day Octopus hunts with a goatfish

Hawaiian Green Sea Turtle passes by

A Hawaiian Green Sea Turtle passes close by

The current Friendly Friday challenge theme is ‘Green.’ See more responses here. These photos are from a recent encounter with an Hawaiian Green Sea Turtle.

I was snorkeling over a shallow area when this turtle rose up from the deeper water beyond. I reached the edge of the shallows at about the same time as the turtle which slipped below me, between me and the rocks, before disappearing in the direction I’d come from.

Adult turtles mostly eat algae and sea grasses, which turns their fat green, hence the name.

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 pink hibiscus in front of an orange tree in Hawaii

A’ama Crab on a rock

The top photo looks like a regular shot of an a’ama crab on the edge of a tide pool with the ocean blurred in the background. But the second photo shows that the ‘tide pool’ is actually a depression in a large rock, one of several placed along the edge of a parking lot, to stop people driving into the ocean (yes, they would, in case you’re wondering.).

For some reason, this encounter reminded me of the incredible climbing ability of these crabs even though I often see them skittering up or down vertical walls, in rolling surf, when I get in the water.

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.