Death on the Sand A work of fiction

    The day started innocently enough.  Susan was meeting the girls for some bonding on the beach and I would go for a swim, pick her up in a couple hours.   Susie looked great as she headed for the beach, a nice fitting swimsuit always brings out the best in a girl.
    I was left at the pool with a couple of the guys.   Events have ordained that these fellas spend a deal of their time around the pool.  No more swimming in the ocean.  So it goes.   On the other hand, we were in Hawaii and it was snowing back in Portland, so things could be worse.
    Our conversation was lightened by two petite twenty somethings across the pond.  They were minimally clad and knew it.   A sensual shower, seemingly for our benefit, and off they went.  And it was time for me to go, as well.

This little guy was granted a free pass.

    Down the strip at Wailua,  I grabbed my stuff from our ancient Honda and strolled into the shelter.   Under the spreading metal roof of the kiosk, a bunch of Episcopals were preparing a remembrance for an elderly optometrist.  So I was informed by the advanced guard of the church.  I suppose the departed are no longer elderly, but he had been so recently.  The Episcopals had the tables bedecked with tropical  flowers, at first I thought it might be a wedding reception or a baby luau.  But no, it was a wake.  Perched on the buffet stood a glossy 11 by 14 of the good doctor.  He was reclining in his favorite chair reading a novel by the late Michael Chrichton,  It promised to be a fine send off.

Spiny Sea Cucumber  Holothuria hilla

     Getting in to the water it was real shallow, so I swam out a bit before putting on my fins.  dodging the multitude, I made my way left where I found a moon shell harboring a hermit crab.  I could see a his legs tipped in white.   His small face peered up at me, blue antennae checking things out.  His handsome shell not withstanding, he was surely a Hanzlitts and so reprieved from a closer exam.

     A few strokes further and I happened upon a worthy invertebrate and not one hiding inside a cone shell, either.  This was a handsome sea cucumber with a haircut like Bart Simpson, Holothuria hilla.  Ochre and white, he was colored much like Thompson's Gazelle.  He was actively grazing, but he was mistaken if he thought he was a gazelle.  The sun was bright, the water clear, and I set about getting a picture of this beauty.  This is not a particularly rare animal, but one that is usually nocturnal.  Unlike most Hawaiian sea cucumbers, he does not have a thick leathery skin.  If you lack a good defense, the veil of night represents a significant benefit. 

Spiny Sea Cucumber and Stripe Belly Puffer

     One should never assume their actions around the reef are going unnoticed.  Fish are always keeping an eye on you, much like an egret watches the cattle, in hopes that some prey will be revealed.  As soon as I started photographing, a pair of threadfins, bright as shiny yellow banderas, came to investigate.  Within moments they were nipping at the cucumber and I was trying to shoo them away.  the activity attracted a saddle wrasse and a pair of Lined Butterflies, big as dinner platters.
      Not only that, but a Striped Belly Puffer cruised in.  Ordinarily these guys just drift stolidly about the reef.  They must know that they are poisonous and they give us humans little notice.  This fellow had a totally different affect.  He looked nothing like a floating lump, but more like a dog on point, eyes fixed on its prey. I could almost sense the puffer queivering in anticipation.  Who would have guessed that this stolid fish, so common at Waulua, could transform into an animated predator?  

Saddle Wrasse, Stripe Belly Puffer, wounded sea cucumber

      He watched the cucumber for perhaps fifteen seconds.  The cucumber wasn't going anywhere, so he could wait as long as he wished.  Striking suddenly, he grabbed the cucumber in the middle, ripping a chunk of flesh and spilling what passes for the guts of an echinoderm.  He then backed off and other fishes approached for a nibble.  The puffer backed off a bit, but remained fixed on his prey, staying that way until I swam off.
     Back on the beach, the good doctor had drawn a mob.  I caught my shower and made my way through the throng.  Me and the venerable Honda made our way back up the strip to where Susan was waiting for me by the old stone church.  I guess she'll stick with the old salt for another day.
   

As I paddle off into the sunset I'm going to leave you with the face of Menace to haunt your dreams.  Looks a bit like Hannibal Lecter, doesn't he?

jeff