Tag Archives: Surgeonfish

Aquatic

A greeting on the sea floor at Two Step, Hawaii

This week’s Sunday Stills color challenge theme is ‘Teal or Aqua.’ See more responses here. I’m going underwater for a selection of aquatic aquas.

The top photo shows what happens when divers have too much time on their hands.

Next, we have some Square-spot Goatfishes and a few Orangeband Surgeonfishes meandering over a patch of sand. Then a Bullethead Parrotfish displaying a variety of colors. And a shoal of Hawaiian Silversides going hither and yon over a rocky bottom.

Goatfish and orangeband surgeonfish in the waters off Hawaii

A Bullethead Parrotfish in the waters off Hawaii

Finally, a couple of Spinner Dolphin photos, where they swam below me over an aqua background.

Spinner Dolphins in the waters off Hawaii

A Spinner Dolphin in the waters off Hawaii

Traffic patterns

Acute halfbeaks and convict tangs in the waters off Hawaii

Needlefishes travel in one direction near the surface, while convict tangs go the opposite way on a lower level. It’s not unusual for fish to have a particular level they operate in.

Pacific Trumpetfish

A Pacific Trumpetfish drifts in the water as a couple of Yellow Tangs pass by. Trumpetfishes often hang vertically, head down waiting to snag a meal. They also change color and markings to blend in with other fish, hoping to sneak up on prey.

Trumpetfishes looks easy to spot, but they propel themselves with dorsal and anal fins set far back on the body where they’re not seen by potential prey and, from the front, which is where its prey is, they’re very hard to see.

Goldring Surgeonfishes

The ring around the eyes of these fish, which gives them their name, also gives them a look of perpetual surprise.

Yellow chub and other reef fish

A variety of fish swim in the surge over a shallow part of the reef. The yellow chub is an unusual color variant of the gray chubs swimming with it.

Bright fishes

Three Pyramid butterflyfishes off Hawaii — *Pyramid Butterflyfishes*

A female Pearl Wrasse off Hawaii — *Pyramid Butterflyfishes*

This week’s Friendly Friday challenge theme is ‘Something Fishy.’ See more responses here.

This seemed like a good opportunity to post a gallery of some of the fish I see when I snorkel around here. Most are brightly colored or have distinctive markings.

Also posted in response to Becky’s April Squares challenge theme of ‘Bright.’ See more responses here.

Yellow tang school

Yellow tang swim off the Big Island, Hawaii

Yellow tangs are common here and are usually seen in schools. I like how, when they move from one feeding spot to another, they string out in long, colorful lines. They’re often seen in mixed schools with convict tangs, the paler fish with vertical black lines.

Brown surgeonfish

My fish book describes the brown surgeonfish as “so unremarkable in appearance that most divers and snorkelers overlook it.’ While this is true, any photographer knows that the right lighting can do wonders for a subject.

Graham's Island

Life on the Big Island of Hawaii