Moorish Idols are one of the most easily identified fish around here, with their distinctive colors, markings, and shape. These juveniles lack the long filament on their dorsal fins, but otherwise have typical appearance. Moorish Idols are considered of the smartest reef fishes.
Back in August of 2020 I posted some photos of a walk I did along ʻAnaehoʻomalu Bay beach (here). The top photo in this post was taken at that time. As you might remember, this was during the time the island, and all of Hawaii, was more or less shut down to visitors. Consequently, this popular beach was almost deserted.
Last week, I thought I’d revisit the scene and took a late afternoon walk along that stretch of coast. The bottom photo shows a scene from the same end of the beach as the top photo. It was actually less busy than I expected, but still considerably more than my previous visit.
I saw this female Sonoran Carpenter Bee (Xylocopa sonorina) in an Agave Attenuata and at first thought she was dead. But when I went out to look, she moved a bit, then burrowed deeper into the plants and disappeared from sight. I saw her three days in a row on the same plant and then she must have moved on. I’m not sure exactly what she was doing there. She didn’t appear to be collecting pollen but might have been doing so, albeit very slowly!
I noticed these gorgeous flowers when I went to get my hair cut. Abutilon Red Tiger is a hybrid shrub that does well in Hawaii. it’s sometimes called Lantern Flower or Chinese Lantern, though that name is also used for other plants.
These tables were at a restaurant on the coast in front of the Hilton Hotel. I noticed that each table had a small pair of binoculars on them, probably because we’re in the Humpback Whale season. I thought that was a nice touch. I don’t know what the food’s like though.
This is the time of year when Plumeria produce buds, which will become flowers in the next week or two. There were a few leaves on this tree, but most will fill in after the flowers bloom.
This week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme is ‘Future.’ See more responses here. While I rummaged around for ideas, the song ‘The Future’s So Bright, I Gotta Wear Shades’ by Timbuk 3 played in my head (link). So I thought I might as well go with that.
I had planned on featuring an array of sunglasses I have, but then I forgot to take them with me when I went to take photos. Besides, I discovered I no longer have the pair of red ‘Deathwish’ sunglasses I found several years ago, so my heart wasn’t in that project.
Instead, here’s a very upbeat lion enjoying a day on the South Kohala coast.
A year or two ago, when I was snorkeling, I spotted an enormous eel resting in a recess in some rocks. I took a few photos, but couldn’t get anything very good because it was so tucked away. I pointed the eel out to some other snorkelers in the vicinity and they checked it out. One of the other snorkelers is much better than I at getting close to subjects so she was able to get better photos despite the surge around the rock. I joked with her that I was fine hanging back, and that I was waiting to get a photo of the eel attacking her!
The eel in question was a Viper Moray Eel so since that time the spot has acquired the name Viper Rock. My fish book describes these eels as “evil-looking” and “one of the largest and potentially most dangerous of Hawaii’s eel.” It’s been an on-and-off resident of that little cave since ever since and I’ve taken photos when I’ve had the opportunity. None have been great, but these are a couple that give an idea of the spot and its inhabitant.
Graham's Island 