Baby Jeffrey and A Big Day at the Pier

   Sandra and I returned from the PNW early this week.  While we were in the northwest we did not see any

To Us This Day a Snorkeler Is Born  

fish, but we did get to attend the birth of our first grandson.  Nothing fishy about that!  He was born 5 weeks early, but he is already home and doing wonderfully.  With all these ads for the Lion King on TV, I feel like breaking out in a chorus of The Circle of Life.  

  Here Comes the Lion.
  I see the Lion
  And he's looking at fish.

   From the day we arrive, blinking at the sun,  there are more fish to be seen, than we ever can see.

  You're just lucky that I don't speak Swahili.

    I got in the water early this week and I almost wrote a blog to alert you to the warm water.

Flying Gurnard  Kailua Kona  July 2013

Clearly its more fun to write about a great fish sighting, so I held off.  Today I'm writing a blog.  Are you excited?

    This afternoon the Redoubtable SKG and I made our way down to the pier about two in the afternoon.  The water was pleasantly cool, but just like earlier in the week, it was significantly cloudy.    
     Just after entry we didn't need clear water to see a juvenile gurnard in the shallows. We played around with him for a few minutes getting a few  pictures.

     Only a few meters further out, between the first and second swim buoys, our eyes were caught by a small fish with a bright yellow forehead.  It was an immature Hawaiian Hogfish swimming among the shallow coral.

Hawaiian Hogfish,  Kailua Pier,  July 2013

    Although we only see this fish only every two or three years, Sandra and I knew immediately what we were looking at.  The pictures show what  a beautiful and distinctive fish this is.  The big difference today was that, unlike other sightings,  the hogfish was seriously shallow.  The few times we have seen this guy in previous years he has been at least twenty feet deep.  What he lacked in depth, he made up for with elusive behavior.  We played around with the baby Hogfish a  long time and got a couple pretty good pictures.  What a treat it was to see such an unusual fish at true snorkeling depth!

    We swam away from the hogfish with a bit of regret; its unlikely that we will see that individual again and truly unlikely that we will see another Hawaiian Hogfish in six feet of water.  Go with God my friend.  It was nice to know you.

     Sandra and I swam out to the reef in front of the palace and then headed back in.  As I swam, I suddenly found myself looking at a pair of Devil Scorpionfish.  They were perched like statues on rocks, separated by less than a foot.  I have never seen a pair of scorpionfish before!  One can only assume that they were preparing to make the two headed beast.  Being scorpionfish,  they were really cool about it.  But I could tell what they were thinking.  I mean, just look at that picture.  Does it reek of SEX, or what?

     Finally it was time to head in.  We were unable to relocate the baby hogfish or the small gurnard.  On the other hand, we did get a nice photo of a gentleman of a certain age and his dog, Spirit.  Spirit has cataracts and hence needs dark glasses for playing at the beach.  It appears he is still having a blast.

Smells Like Team Spirit

    I hope you have enjoyed the narrative.  The water is really nice, if not crystal clear, so get your buns down to the beach and have a look around,  And this time, see a fish for baby Jeffrey!

jeff

A Pair of Hot and Heavy Devil Scorpionfish.  Ooh la la!

One more look at the Bay Hogfish,  My wish for the evening is that my grandson has a chance to see this beautiful fish. E Komo Mai Baby Jeffrey!