Big Fish, Little Fish @ Beach 69

    Sandra and I have been living through a modest drought in fish watching.  To keep us amused during this ichthyological bald spot, the dear good lord has ushered in hurricane season.  We are now up to our third

Hurricane Blas followed harmlessly by  Celia

named hurricane.  Weather-wise, 2016 is much more clement than its unbearably hot predecessor.  Not only are our temperatures here in Kona more comfortable, but the ocean temperature a thousand miles and more to the east are lower.  This is significant because while the hurricanes are forming with regularity off the coast of Mexico, they are losing power as they get off shore over the cooler water.  By the time they make it to the vicinity of Hawaii, they are nothing but a rain storm.  And we need the rain, so it is all for the best.  As I write, the fizzled out remnant of Hurricane Blasis providing us with an evening drizzle and lower temperatures.

   What with getting the fish exhibit underway, we have been mostly snorkeling around Kailua and not finding anything very special. The most you could say for these outings is that the water was warm and fairly clear,

Bonnie Visits the Paper Mache Fish at the Library

providing Sandra with the opportunity to show off her new diving prowess.

    Today things took a turn for the better as we took a little trip north to Puako. It was a beautiful morning at Beach 69, blue sky and sparkling water.  We grabbed the last picnic table and in a moment we were in the water.  At 9 AM there were a surprising number of snorkelers already in the bay.  Lucky for all of us, the water was a perfect 85 degrees.  It was very clear right by the sandy shore, but before we got to the island, it had tuned a bit turbid. 

    On the way out, I spotted a speeding leatherback, that sleek jack with the cute little black fin.  Out at the rocky island I was checking out all the depressions for the reef shark that, rumor has it, once lived there.  Even at this early hour, there was no shark, but I stumbled on to a small cave full of delights.  The firs thing we encountreed was perhaps the largest porcupinefish I have ever seen, possibly two feet in length.  He and his buddy swam back and forth in the cave, providing Sandra and I with some good, if shadowy, looks.

   A few feet to the right, an adjacent room in the cave was occupied by at least one red bigeye.  I dove down and held onto a protrusion of dead coral and was rewarded as a bigeye cruised languidly across the mouth of the cave.   I took advantage to nab two quick pictures. Looking into the cave, Sandra and I observed several silver fish in the same space.  They were deeper in the cave and I didn't get a good picture.  Back at the ranch these fish were identified as the Common Bigeye, also kown as a Glasseye (note the great shot of his convex tail, which is the telling field mark)  Way more interesting, both species of bigeye can, in addition to the usual red coat, sport a red and silver mottled pattern or a pure silver coat.  I had never seen a pure silver one before and now I believe I have seen four.

Common Bigeye, Beach 69.  Note the convex tail.

  When we tired of annoying the bigeyes we swam over the seaward side of the island.  There, a large porcupine fish was swimming slowly beneath us.  As you can see he had a handsome khaki and chocolate coat, sort of like he was wearing the camoflage suit from Desert Storm.   I was suspicious of this fish and did my best to get some good pictures.  As I believe you will agree, he has non-retractable spines.  Hence he is the fairly uncommon spotted burrfish.  This was only my second burrfish and it was a life fish for Sandra.  Her first of the day!

   We swam out to the point and then down the shore of what was until recently Steven Stills estate.  Mr. Google tells us that Steve has parted with his seaside digs for $20 mil.  Which given the price of real estate in these United Snakes  really seems like a bargain.  God, after all, made only one Waialea Bay, and He did a damn fine job.  Mr. G does not reveal the name of the new owner.

Spotted Burrfish with non-retractable spines.

   We were looking unsuccessfully over the sandy bottom for seahorses when right below me an eel sucked his head back into the sand.  Schloop.  Generally when I see garden eels, which isn't very often, they are in water deeper than this seven feet.  Never the less, that is what I called Sandra over to see.  Suddenly, another eel poked his nose up from a different hole about five feet away.  Watching it churn away with its mouth, I knew this was a speckled snake eel.  Some people see a fair number  of this species.  For me it was only my second and a life fish for my lovely companion  The speckled snake eel lives in the sand and pokes its head up.  When the head is out, the mouth is moving continuously.  Perhaps this is a respiratory necessity, but it is a singular behavior.  All this swooshing of water through the gills makes for a mini sand storm which rendered my attempt at photography murky.  We watched the snake eel for a couple minutes until he withdrew back into his sandy lair.

   Between the burrfish and the snake eel, one might think we had seen enough.  However, on the way in we swam over a small coral protruding from the sand in about four feet of clear water.  On the top of the coral

Extreme Juvenile Hawaiian Dascyllus

were two immature Hawaiian dascyllus.   I am justifiably fond of this juvenile, which is sometimes called the domino damsel.  One of these babies was about about three centimeters and his brother was just a dab smaller.  As I watched, I could discern a third dascyllus, this one infinitesimally small. It was like watching a pair of connected white flecks dart back and forth above the coral.  I estimated his length at about two millimeters, dramatically smaller than a self respecting grain of rice.  I put the camera on macro and dove three times for pictures.  At times like this, one can not give modern technology too much credit.  Somehow the camera focused on the speck and captured these amazing pictures.  Note, if you will, that the entire tail is clear.  And check out the unusual shape of the body and fins.  Having never seen anything like this, I am truly proud of these pictures.

    Life ashore was equally delightful.  I made friends with a vivacious twenty something and her grandfather, who were visiting from Palm Springs, staying in Holualoa, for crying out loud.  I showed her my picture of

Juvenile Hawaiian Dascyllus,  Beach 69  2016

the burrfish and the baby dascyllus and she showed me how to transfer pictures wirelessly from her Go Pro to her cell phone.  Chicas, fancy cameras and amazing little fish.  Does it get any better than that?

jeff

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