Filling in the List on Paul Allen's Reef

    We continue to enjoy beautiful weather with spectacular sunsets and great surfing conditions. Luckily the surge is coming from the north, so surfers can ride their boards at Banyans, while the majority of Kailua Bay is protected and calm. There was a high school paddling regatta in Kailua on Saturday.  Luckily, even though the Honolulu weather lady had predicted very high surf,  the bay on Sunday was still flat. 

Hawaiian filefish, Cantherines sandwichensis, Kailu Kona 2011

    The 2022 list had not grown as quickly as I had hoped.  Part of this was due to us not being able to swim at Mahukona. Our expert, Peter Krottje,  far away in California, tells us that yes, Mahukona sometimes gets choppy, and cloudy, and no, no one seems to be able to predict when that is going to happen.  It was a first for us.  And so, after three outings, the list still lingered around 60 species.  I hoped that a swim out on Paul Allen's Reef would fill in some of the gaps.

   Sandra dropped me off at the pier around 9 AM.  It was sunny, calm and there were lots of recreational swimmers on the Ironman side of the pier.  Luckily, that was not my destination.  Over by the Beach Boy Shack, in front of the King Kam Hotel, I put on my gear and headed into the Inner Harbour.  It was cold, but not as bad as I expected.  

Christmas Wrasse added to the list for 2022

   Although the water was clear, I didn't see much until I approached the small jetty.  There I spotted a
small Hawaiian Filefish.  This is a species that we should be seeing routinely.  As you can see from the picture taken a decade ago, it is not a very spectacular fish, but with that distinctive white spot before the tail, it is easily identified.  This would be a good day for Hawaiian Filefish; I saw  at least five individuals overall.

    Almost immediately after I saw the filefish, a nice plump Christmas Wrasse made an appearance.  Now this is a fish you hear  a lot about, because it is so beautiful.  I nabbed two quick pictures and what you see is the better of the two with, maximum primping.  Suffice it to say, this fish likes fast moving, turbulent water and this has an effect on the photos.  The area at the mouth of the Inner Harbour is a good spot for both Chrstmas and Surge Wrasse, the latter being seen less commonly.  One might also keep an eye out for the rare Five stripe Wrasse in this turbulent habitat.

Bird Wrasse, Kailua Bay, January 2022

    Out in the bay, things were pretty quiet.  But on the far side, by the entrance to Paul Allen's Lagoon, things picked up. The conditions were so calm, that I was able to make a careful examination of the branching coral that was once home to a family of Coral Couchers.  I believe we can now put this to bed, there is no one crouching in that coral no mo'.  Shortly after that, I nabbbed a nice picture of a Bird Wrasse.  This unusual fish is  fast moving and a good picture is rare.

   After the bird wrasse went his way, I encountered a pair of Spotted Surgeons.  Ordinarily a fish of very turbulent water, this pair seemed to have ventured in just so I could add them to the list.  

A small convex crab shell

       Before leaving this area, I noticed an interesting crab carapace on the bottom, and then another.  I dove down about ten feet and collected one.  Back at the ranch, Hoover's critter book in hand, this would prove to be a Convex Crab.  We see this species occasionally.  It is perhaps a bit more common than the closely related and more visually interesting Seven Eleven Crab, but still a good find. From the surface I thought this carapace might be four inches across.  When extricated from my pocket back at the ranch, I was chagrined to find that it was only an inch and a half.  What it lacked in size, it made up in bulk.  This is the sturdiest little crab shell I have ever seen.  All crustaceans must molt to grow.  In this case the crab is shedding a shell to which he devoted a lot of resources.  It makes me wonder what ecological advantage this extra-strong shell imparts.  Here is a picture of the shell sitting on our front railing.

A pair of Spotted Surgeonfish by Paul's Lagoon

    Just around the corner, now facing the open ocean, I saw the first trumpetfish for the new year.  This was a fine yellow trumpetfish.  He was just hanging by the rocky drop off, as opposed to schooling as a stalking horse among yellow tangs.  In the same area we got the first lizardfish for the year, a Reef Lizardfish.  

    Anticipating cold water, I had only asked for 50 minutes, so at this point it was time to start heading back to the beach to meet up with my lovely chauffeur.  As I made the turn I added a nice pair of the progressively uncommon oval butterfly and a bevy of epaulette soldierfish. Shortly there after I saw a pair of Very Longnose Butterflyfish, one black and the other yellow.  The black one is occasional down at City of Refuge and uncommon up here.  Sometimes it seems hard to distinguish the forcepsfish, also called a long nose butterfly, from the VLNBF.  If you see a black one it's got to be the Very Long Nose.

The first trumpet for 2022.

   In the bay I found the large branching antler coral we talked about recently, still home to the breeding pair of blue eye damselfish.  This species is dependent on the coral both as a home and as a food
source...its diet is limited to coral polyps. So if you like Blue eye Damsels (and who doesn't?) keep cheering for a coral comeback.

  As I made my way through the Inner Harbour I happened upon a large male Yellow-tailed Coris who had just acquired his lunch.  In his jaws was  most of a black brittle star.  Wrasses by and large are carnivores, but not in the way we are used to thinking.  Rockmovers and yellow-tails are continuously turning over rocks and eating the small invertebrates they have uncovered.  In this instance, the wrasse had a large invertebrate.  One that looks much like a lady's hairbrush but, in all likelihood, isn't quite as tasty.  

   With that image of  of haute cuisine I'ii call it quits.  The list is up to 71, so we have some work to do.  Stay tuned.

jeff 

A mixed pair of Very Longnose Butterflies, City of Refuge 2014