It's a Pipefish, but which Pipefish?

Unidentified Pipefish, Fukui Point, Bunaken Island, Indonesia

by B. N. Sullivan

Nature photographers sometimes find it difficult to positively identify a creature they have photographed in the wild.  Certainly those of us who began taking pictures of critters in pre-Google days had (and still have) shelves full of reference books that we pored over, looking for photos or descriptions of animals we were trying to identify.  Nowadays, the task is made easier due to the wealth of online materials, searchable databases, and so on.  Still, many online photos are misidentified, so the trick is to find authoritative sources.

Generally, large animals and very common animals are easier to identify, while small, and/or less common creatures still can present a challenge.  Relying solely on an animal's coloration or markings to identify it does not always work.  For many species, the males and females look quite different.  As well, many creatures undergo drastic changes in appearance as they progress through their various developmental stages.  In some cases, similar species can be distinguished from one another only through laboratory examination of structures not visible externally.

But I digress...

This is a about a pipefish.  Recently, The Terramar Project published an article about a pipefish photo that prompted some marine scientists to think that it depicted a new species.  The article reminded me that I had a pipefish photo, taken many years ago, that I had never been able to identify with certainty.

That's my mystery pipefish at the top of the page.  To me, it resembles the so-called Network Pipefish (Coryichthys flavofasciatus), but may not be an exact match.  Now, perhaps the resolution of the photo is not as crisp as it could have been.  The markings thus may not be clearly represented.

But if anyone knows with a fair degree of certainty what Pipefish species is in my photo, please let us know.  Leave a comment or send us a tweet: @TheRightBlue

For the record, the fish was photographed (on film) at Fukui Point, Bunaken Island, in Indonesia's Bunaken National Marine Park -- in 1993!

Hold that pose, little crab!

Yellowline Arrow Crab, getting situated on a sponge

A Yellowline Arrow Crab strikes a pose

by B. N. Sullivan

This series of photos depicts a Yellowline Arrow Crab (Stenorhyncus seticornis), a common Caribbean species.  With its distinctive pointy-headed spidery shape, bulging eyes, yellow knees and tiny purple claws, it is an interesting photo subject.  As we approached this individual, it skittered onto a bright orange sponge -- also quite photogenic.

But crabs are not always the best photo models.

In this instance, the crab first struggled to get situated on the sponge, as if it wasn't quite sure how to arrange all of those gangly legs.  A few moments later it was settled in place, and I snapped its portrait.

I began to move around a bit, hoping to catch it from a slightly different angle, but my crabby friend would have none of it.  Without a by-your-leave, the crab simply left the scene.

It was time to look around for another subject.

"I'm outa here...!" - Yellowline Arrow Crab

I took these photos of the Yellowline Arrow Crab during a night dive at Little Cayman Island.

Bearded Scorpionfish: A Name That Suits

Bearded Scorpionfish (Scorpaenopsis, barbatus), Red Sea

by B. N. Sullivan

Meet the Bearded Scorpionfish (Scorpaenopsis barbatus).  Both the common and scientific names of this fish refer to the frilly, fleshy flaps of skin protruding from its chin.  (The Latin name "barbatus" translates to "bearded.")

Like others in its family, Scorpaenidae, the Bearded Scorpionfish is an ambush predator.  Its strategy is to lie in wait for its prey to come swimming past at close range, and then to spring forth with its mouth wide open to engulf its meal in one big gulp.  In order to do this successfully, it helps to be as inconspicuous as possible.  It helps to be camouflaged.

The scorpionfish usually rests on algae-covered rocks, or among corals and marine plants.  The frills on this guy's chinny-chin-chin are a part of its disguise, helping it to blend in with its usual surroundings.

Despite its elaborate camouflage, the individual in these photos was easy to spot since it was out in the open, resting on a patch of sand.  Hoping I could get a close-up photo of its head, I lay down on the sand, too, and inched toward the fish.  To my delight, my subject did not flinch or flee after the first shot, so -- still on my belly --  I was able to move around carefully and face him to take a head-on shot of his impressive 'beard' at close range.

Bearded Scorpionfish (Scorpaenopsis, barbatus), Red Sea

A Beautful, Fragile Bryozoan Colony

Macro photo of a Lace Bryozoan (Reteporelina denticulata)

by B. N. Sullivan

This beautiful marine organism is a colony of Lace Bryozoa (Reteporelina denticulata).  Despite their appearance, Bryozoans are neither a coral nor a plant.  Taxonomically, the Bryozoa form a phylum all their own.  Most of the more than 4,000 species of Bryozoans live in the sea.

The name Bryozoa translates to "moss animal."  The individual animals that make up the colony are microscopic.  This species builds lacy calcareous structures of interconnected branches, made from the mineralized exoskeletons of thousands of tiny individuals.  The macro photo at the top of this page gives a good idea of how intricate and intertwined the branches can be.  It takes the colony of organisms a very long time to build these lovely structures.

The colonies are pretty, yet they are quite brittle and therefore very fragile.  If you come across a Bryozoan colony while diving, be careful not to touch it or bump it. The delicate structures will almost surely break if handled.

Almost all Bryozoans are sessile -- that is, the colonies are attached to some hard substrate like rock or hard coral.  The photo below shows a colony of Reteporelina denticulata growing on a hard coral (Porites lobata).  Once in awhile, a diver may come across a small Bryozoan colony that appears to be growing out of packed sand or mud, but closer inspection will almost certainly reveal that it is in fact attached to a rock or lump of coral rubble that is buried.

The Bryozoan species pictured here is rarely seen at depths of less than about 10 meters, but we have seen them on rocks below 40 meters.  In our experience, larger colonies are found at deeper depths -- perhaps because they are less likely to be disturbed and damaged by surge.

I photographed the Lace Bryozoan colonies shown here off the coast of Puako, Hawaii at depths between 20 and 30 meters.  The colonies pictured here are quite large for the species -- approximately four inches (10 cm) across.

Lace Bryozoan colony growing on coral in Hawaii