Tag Archives: Crabs

A small world

Tiny fish shelter in a tangle of lines in the waters off Hawaii

During a recent swim, I saw a small tangle of lines floating in the water. While I’m not a fan of debris ending up in the ocean, I know these kinds of thing can have a positive side, so I headed over to check it out.

While I liked the color and reflections of the scene, what I was looking for was whether this floating raft sheltered anything. I had to look closely, but saw a few tiny fish hiding in the lines. As I approached from one side, they disappeared to the other. We played this game for a while and I was able to get a few photos.

I don’t know what the fish were, but they were likely juveniles of one of the pelagic species. They were very small, a half to three quarters of an inch long. The clump of line itself was only 6 to 9 inches across. But such environments provide valuable shelter for a variety of tiny creatures. It was only when I looked at the photos that I noticed another one, the small orange crab on one of the lines.

Going green

The view from Waipio Valley overlook offers many shades of green and a good deal of blue.

This week’s Sunday Stills color challenge theme is ‘Shades of Green.’ Captions are on the photos. See more responses here.

Found this on the shore one early morning. A fisherman’s lure perhaps.

A’ama Crab molt

I spotted this A’ama Crab molt on a rock when I was about to get in the water. The molts are so complete they look like live crabs. The blank eyes are the giveaway. This one was notable for its color. As the molts sit in the sun, they turn an orange-red, so this one was likely very recent.

Seven-eleven Crab

The Seven-eleven Crab (Carpilius maculatus), is easier to identify than it is to see. That’s because it’s mostly active at night. This one was probably on its way to its daytime resting spot when I saw it. It gets its name from the prominent red spots on its shell, two behind each eye and three on the back, with the other four generally less visible along the rear, though two of those are clear in this photo.

Posted for Becky’s Squares: Seven. See more responses here.

Horn-eyed Ghost Crab

I’m not entirely confident that this is a Horn-eyed Ghost Crab, but that’s what my usual ID source says. On the plus side, it’s clearly bigger than a Pallid Ghost Crab. But Horn-eyed Ghost Crabs are generally not seen during the day, though this was taken in the early morning. They also have points on their eye stalks, though I’ve seen photos without. Any input on identity would be appreciated.

A Horn-eyed Ghost Crab in Kawaihae Hawaii

On edge

An Aama Crab hangs onto the edge of a dock at Kawaihae Harbor in Hawaii

An A’ama crab hangs on to a boat ramp in Kawaihae Harbor.

Floating

A crab molt floats in the waters of Kawaihae Harbor in Hawaii

A crab molt floats in shallow water in Kawaihae Harbor.

The Numbers Game #25

Encrusted pilings in Kawaihae Harbor, Hawaii — Corals grow on the pilings in Kawaihae Harbor.

The idea of The Numbers Game is to enter a number into the search bar of your computer and then post a selection of the photos that turn up. This week’s number is 146. Captions are on the photos. You can see more responses here.

These photos, all with a 146 in their numeric identification, are from a snorkel in murky water in Kawaihae Harbor.

Orange Red Didemnid in Kawaihae Harbor, Hawaii — I think this is Orange-red Didemnid, a kind of tunicate.

A Banded Urchin on a piling in Kawaihae Harbor, Hawaii — A Banded Urchin on a piling.

An Aama crab on a piling in Kawaihae Harbor, Hawaii — A Banded Urchin on a piling.

Graham's Island

Life on the Big Island of Hawaii