Sunday Jul 20, 2008

Makua has been a fantastic venue for videography and ichthyology this year.  Sunday was no different.  With large capacity tanks we were able to spend about 90 minutes in the very productive rubble areas.

Trying to deal with sensory overload was challenging as one great subject followed or interrupted the next.  Certain species were less abundant than last week, as fish collectors had been through the area, plucking the little bandit anglefish ($$$) and many of the small Potter's Angelfishes.

I was glad to get the Waikiki cardinalfish - recently revised by Jack Randall to A. perdix, as last week my footage did not turn out of the same cryptic fish.  We are still in what seems to be a bloom of small scorpionfish - Sebastapistes (S. galactacma especially), as one small coral head seems to hold upwards of 50+ individuals in some cases.

I cannot resist filming the Harlequin shrimp, even after tons of clips from the previous two weekends; it doesn't seem to make sense that they should be so colorful and attractive (at least to humans).

Lots to see in a tight little area; were it not for air consumption, we would have stayed and stayed and stayed.

Yawning Leaf Scorpionfish (Taenianotus triacanthus)

Young Fan-Tail Filefish (Pervagor spilosoma)

Pair of Harlequin shrimp (Hymenocera picta) with small cushion star

Juvenile triggerfish (Sufflamen fraenatum)

Gymnothorax gracilicauda

Waikiki Cardinal (Apogonichthys perdix)

Ostorhinchus maculiferus

Male and Female Pencil wrasses

Juvenile Leaf Scorpion (Taenianotus triacanthus)

Sebastapistes galactacma

Sebastapistes galactacma