Kermit the (Crab) Frog

     Early this morning my sweetie asked me to look at the wave predictor and, lo and behold, calm

conditions were predicted for the Kona Coast.  Sweetly she asked if we could go to Ho'okena, even though we will be going there again with our guests later in the week.  Not being the sort of guy who wants to disappoint his Honey, I cleared up the breakfast dishes, got our snorkeling equipment together and off we headed to the south.

    Lucky for us, on arrival we got a primo parking spot and, with our trusty old binoculars, were able to pick out the dolphin pod in the bay.  Wiki wiki we got down to the water and swam out toward the dolphins.  On the way out we saw the expected Yellowfin Surgeons and Gilded Triggerfish.  As a treat, Neptune sent us a pair of genuinely large Ulua.  This is not an uncommon fish, but, the cheesy  Island Insurance commercial not withstanding, you don't see the really big ulua very often.

     Although the dolphins were delightful, I was also keeping my eye on the sandy bottom 40 feet below.    

First, I noticed a group of Garden Eels.  Then, off to the side, I spotted two animals working in concert on the sandy bottom.  One was a fish, probably a Yellowstripe Goatfish, although it was too far away for me to be certain that I had identified what type of fish it was, much less the species.  It could have been a razorfish or some other wrasse. The second was clearly a crustacean.

    Doing my mediocre dives, I was able to close to within 30 feet or so of this pair.  I could clearly see that I was looking at a crab that was forging across the sand by pushing with its rear legs. I knew immediately that this was a Frog Crab!  His forward propulsion was in direct contradiction to those famous marine biologists, Tom and Dickie Smothers who sang, "Crabs walk sideways and lobsters walk straight. And we won't let you take her for your mate."  He was pushed along by a remarkably frog-like extension of his rear legs, leading with a pair of enormous pincers, his eyes erect on stalks.  The attendant fish worked around him, similar to a Multiband Goatfish teaming up with an octopus.

     I'm afraid that the picture above is the best I could do at this extreme distance.  Sandra thinks my picture looks quite a bit like that staple of our diet here in Hawaii, the Costco rotisserie chicken. Believe me, it was a Frog Crab.   I'm including a purloined picture so you can get a better idea what this animal looks like.   Interestingly, there were no good pictures in Google images of a frog crab in the wild.  More on that momentarily.

    This was my first frog crab.  Our friend John Hoover tells us that this was a Kona Crab, Ranina ranina (Linnaeus 1788) which means Frog frog.   "How did good old Linnaeus get one of these crabs?"  you may ask.  The answer is that they are widely dispersed in the Indopacific and are quite edible.  Hence, European sea captains were probably been offered them as food in trade and a few specimens undoubtably made it back to the curiosity collections of Holland.  They are trapped commercially even here in Hawaii, but the catch is regulated.  Consequently, most pictures on the internet are directed towards the chef, as opposed to the wildlife biologist.  Hoover goes on to say that the crab lives below 30 feet and is rarely encountered in the wild.  (Unless you count plucking them from traps!)

    We completed our circuit, encountering a school of Oval Chromis that deftly evaded my attempt at photography. 

Let's Go Bucks!

   Lately I have become enamored of an old tune, Ragtime Cowboy Joe.  As a child I bore the indignity of a Canadian father whose only interest in athletics was hockey.  Living in Portland, the only professional sports we attended were the Portland Buckaroos, who, purely by default were my childhood athletic heroes.  Before each period the Bucks would skate around their end of the ice to a peppy organ version of Ragtime Cowboy Joe.  Following which we would get out our cow bells and yell,  "Let's Go Bucks!"  With that in mind, as we swam in, I composed this ode to my sweetie whose enthusiasm had spawned this days adventure.  (In the event that you are not familiar with the tune, I'm including a version by the Flying J Wranglers of Ruidoso, NM.  I hope you will take the time to enjoy their singing.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Et_ZyqIa36E

Ragtime Sandra Gray

Way down in Ho'okena where the big fish  play,
You can swim with an Ulua or a Manta Ray.
But the hottest thing in the whole damn bay,
Is Ragtime Sandra Gray.

 (refrain)
She likes to sing raggedy music to the Dolphins,
As she bobs, back and forth upon the ocean.
With the sharks, she has never had a quarrel.
You can hear the dolphins chortle as she sings into her snorkel.

And they jump, every time they see her comin',
Cause the Dolphin folks all say.
She's the high falutin', rootin' tootin, Snorkelin' Girl from Hookena!
Ragtime Sandra Gray

Raggy Scorpionfish, S. venosa (Cuvier 1829)   Bali 2009

She sings her raggy music to the crabs and fish.
She could cook 'em in a chowder or most any dish.
But she like pipe her snorkely tremolo.
So she sings to her friends below.

refrain

I'm including a pic of the Raggy Scorpionfish, taken with the old $89 water camera at dusk in Permuteran, Bali.  My only regret is that I wasn't thoughtful enough to sing Ragtime Cowboy Joe to this magnificent stonefish. 

jeff





   

Pier Beats City. Details at 11.

  This week Sandra and I are hosting two of our dearest friends, who have come to Hawaii to enjoy the fish, 

Christmas Wrasse, City of Refuge, August 2013

 the Kilauea volcano, the Mauna Kea Observatory And, of course, the excellent company.  The first day was dedicated to fine cuisine, etc. and the telling of lies.  On day two, it was time to hit the water.

   We always start at the pier.  Its the safe place to make sure all systems are go. On this day there was a modest swell and the water was fairly cloudy. Brad and Dale enjoyed the fish and the delightful cool water, but it was far from the best possible show.

    Having consumed a variety of barbecued fish the night before, we set out for City of Refuge the next day.  The Painted Church and the Pu'u Honua were excellent.  The park was hosting a large blubbery monk seal, replete with a childish autobiography, indubitably composed by one of the twenty somethings, looking cute in her Smokey the Bear Hat.

Loco Moco,  Breakfast of Surfers (and Snorkelers)

    After the requisite Tiki Face picture, we headed over to the Two Step entry.  City was pristine, with flat, crystal clear water.  There was the usual group of Thompson's Butterflyfish accompanied by Three Spot Chromis and Hawaiian Dascyllus.  In the corner, Dale spotted a gorgeous Christmas Wrasse.  This fish is becoming progressively less common and I'm treasuring every encounter.  Good spotting, Dale!  Otherwise, it was usual suspects.

     That evening our guests took us out to the Big Island Grill.  B.I.G. was hopping with noisy locals meeting and greeting.  I ordered the loco moco.  In the past, we have left it to the children to order this famous surfer dish.  A large bed of rice, a heaping helping of roast pork, two fried eggs, bathed overall with brown gravy.  It was yummy and it took me two days to finish the scrumptious left overs.

     All of which brings us to yesterday.  Our guests had departed to try their hand at volcano watching and Sandra and I, left to roast in Kailua, repaired to the pier for a swim.  The water in the bay was refreshing  and dramatically more clear than it was two days earlier.   We'd been swimming  for only a few

Nesting Night Sergeant, Kailua Pier, August 2013

minutes when Sandra called me over to the sea wall.  She had discovered a large Green Sea Turtle feasting on the algae growing  inside an even larger tire.  As I watched the turtle, a Night Sergeant made a couple runs at me.  It seemed that he was protecting a nest inside the tire.

    A bit further out, we encountered a Zebra Moray Eel, slithering around on an afternoon hunt.  While I was fiddling with the camera, Sandra watched the eel catch a small fish.  How exciting is that?

    Way out in front of the palace, we saw a single Saddleback Butterflyfish.  Turning seaward, I was virtually in the middle of the bait ball of Big Eyed Scad.  This time the ball was composed of large adult fish.  Previously, we reported on an interaction with Black Durgons.  They were present, but so were a variety of other fish.  A bevy of Ringtailed Surgeon were on the bottom and a large

Lined Butterflyfish Accompany the Bait Ball

school of Lined Butterflyfish was hanging with the scads, as well.   The bait ball, as always, creeped out my swimming companion, who kept her distance while I dived into, and otherwise annoyed, the enormous school of silvery fish.

     Soon we headed for home.  Opposite the outermost swim buoy, in about fifteen feet of water, I spotted a very small Day Octopus.  Initially, he was white, which is a pretty unusual appearance for this animal.  Soon he changed colors and textures, blending in with his background.  He permitted us to watch him for about five minutes, swimming and perching twice, until he disappeared into a crevice.  What a treat.
I sang him the Octopus Doxology and we headed on in.

    Be you in Honaunau or downtown Kailua, there is always a chance that some excellent animals are waiting to say hello.

Zebra Moray Looking for a Bite.  Kailua 8/13

jeff

Find the Octopus and Win a Prize!

The Resident Monk Seal Basks on Her Private Beach at the Pu'u Honua.

   

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!

Summertime

   As the seasons move along, the reef treats us to a parade of delightful immatures.  In the last two days, I

Hawaiian Cleaner, Labroides phthirophagus Kahalu'u 2009

 had the chance to snorkel both the Ironman side of the pier and my favorite spot, Ho'okena.  I'm shocked to tell you that in comparison, the pier won.

    It was cruise ship Wednesday, so there was lots of action around the pier.  Making my way through the mob, I swam out to the palace and then back in, not seeing much until I got to the third swim buoy.  There I spotted an immature cleaner wrasse. He was almost as long as my little finger, but not nearly as chubby.  He had set up home in a coral head about five feet deep where he was plaguing a variety of fish. (They can't resist to come to a cleaner, but so often the plucking seems painful.) He afforded me many close looks and I carefully noted where he was relative to the swim buoy and the sand around his particular coral refuge.

Blue Streak Cleaner Wrasse L. dimidatus Amed, Bali 2009

   This particular immature is interesting, as it is virtually identical to the immature Bluestreak Cleaner Wrasse, L. dimidatus, found elsewhere in the pacific.  Here in Hawaii we have a single cleaner wrasse.   Throughout the western pacific there are two.  The aforementioned blustreak and the Bicolor Cleaner Wrasse, L. bicolor.  The immature of the latter sports a handsome chartreuse stripe.  My conclusion is that our fish and dimidatus share a more immediate common ancestor.   I'm including a picture, sadly taken with my first underwater camera, hence not very good, of the adult dimidatus in Bali.  Looking for this picture among the Bali portfolio really made me want to go back.  Great fish, great people, fascinating culture,  delicious (if somewhat monotonous) food. Only downside: Hotter than the hinges of Hades.

     But I digress.  As I got to the shore, I realized that I had another ten minutes to swim.  "Why not,"  I

The Male Pearl Wrasse, Kahalu'u 2012

  asked myself,  "don't I swim back out and see if I can find that baby cleaner wrasse whose location I so carefully noted?"   Try as I might, I could not relocate that lovely little fish.  Cleaner wrasses tend to pick a spot, the cleaning station, and stay there.  I'm sure there is a message here. Perhaps, "don't ever count on being able to swim back to a fish on the reef."  On the way in the second time, my persistence was rewarded with a male Pearl Wrasse.  This was the first time I had ever seen a male pearl at the pier.  Unless I'm mistaken, it was my first immature cleaner wrasse, as well.

    The following day we headed down to Ho'okena,
a spot where we almost always see something special.  The day was gorgeous.  After a morning rain the sun was out, the sky clear and a mild breeze was keeping it cool.  The water was a pleasant

  temperature, too.  Very near the entrance, I saw a maturing Red Shoulder Surgeon, almost adult size, half gray and half yellow.   He was deep and we couldn't get a good picture.   Further out,  we found a coral head with at least two pairs of Potter's Angelfish.  They were about thirty feet deep.  On the way back in I was imagining what their names might be:  Beatrix, Colonel Sherman, Harry and Hermione (By this time the dashing young wizard must have swept her off her feet)  


     The best summertime news is terrestrial, today as we motored home from our late morning swim we saw our resident pair of Kalij Pheasants with a brood of six chicks.  The chicks were already as big as small chickens.  We can look forward to more of these beautiful birds at Casa Ono.

Kalij Pheasant at Casa Ono. 

aloha,
jeff




 

   

Its King Kamehameha Day!

   Rolling into the parking lot on Saturday morning, I knew something was up.  Not only were all the parking spots taken, but all the illegal parking spots were occupied,  as well.  I back tracked to my secret alternative parking spot and  made the slightly longer walk down to the pier.   As I hit the malecon, it was obvious

The Women's Six is Ready to Race

that an outrigger regatta was in progress.  The smoke from a dozen barbecues wafted across the bay, there were bunches of people on the pier, and (biggest clue of all)  there were canoes in the water.
 
   But these weren't just any canoes.  There were at least four koa canoes paddling near the pier waiting for their turn to race.  As I neared the pier, I ran into signs trumpeting the Kamehameha Day regatta sponsored by the club that calls the Kailua Kona pier its home; hence the Kai Opua King Kamehameha Day Regatta.

    Lucky for me, there were a half dozen booths in Queen K Place, the nearest of which staffed by a comely twenty something who gave me a quick interpretation.  Not being a native of Hawaii, I did my best to understand her without asking her to repeat. 

    The regatta is a club regatta, as opposed to high school teams, and its about the only event in Kailua Kona on KK Day.  Hilo and Honolulu both have parades.  We, here in  the home of the king, have the regatta.   Clubs from around the island travel to Kailua with their canoes for the races.  The canoes are not exactly antiques, as they are still being produced.  But may of them are quite old.  Each of the koa canoes racing here belongs to its club.

    With this information in hand, I took a few more pictures and then donned my geeky snorkeling apparel and hit the water.  There were lots of paddlers in their team shirts flopping around in the sandy shallows, undoubtedly refreshing after a hard paddle.  As I swam out, a canoe with six serious young men made a swoop through

Digging For Home

 the swimming area.  Soon I was out on the starting line, about ten yards past the last swim buoy.  From here I had a good view of the race committee boat, where stood the starter with his big red flag.  To my right were eight koa canoes, glowing like old gold on the azure sea.  The canoes were positioned behind a starting line of large colorful flags.  What pageantry.  The Kailua interpretation of the Palio di Siena.  Mama mia!

    The flag went down and off they went.  Unlike the big canoe race on Labor Day (where they race to hell and back) this is a sprint.  They went down and back twice to a line of flags about 150 yards away.

     This gave me time to look for a fish and I snapped a mediocre photo of a Blue lined Surgeon.  I have a

Koa Canoes with the Kamehameha Day Crowd

 feeling that this fish isn't all that unusual, but its not very colorful.  Mostly you have to be aware of it and know the shape.  Suffice it to say, that while I took a moment to look at the fish, I made sure I didn't swim onto the course!

    I surfaced and readjusted the camera for this exciting photo of the finish.  Following that I swam in, showered and bid Aloha to my friends at the Kamehameha Day Regatta.       

Aloha to you, too!
jeff

Blue Line Surgeon says, "Go Kai Opua!"

The Palio di Siena is a race around the medieval piazza of Siena in Tuscany.  The riders, wearing costumes of their contrade (wards), rival the pagentry of the King Kamehameha Day Regatta in Kailua.

Na Kahumoku

    What, you may ask, is Na Kahamoku?   If I told you that it was a new offering at the Big Island Grill,

 would you believe me?  Possibly a mound of rice, a layer of raw ahi smothered in Manhattan clam chowder.  And topped with two Rocky Mountain Oysters.  And they only serve it on Wednesday as Tuesday is butchering day at the Parker Ranch.   You very well might, as loco moko is only slightly less complex and disgusting.   BIG will serve you a steaming portion of that surfer classic for about ten clams.

     But no!  Na Kahumoko translates to "Keepers of the Island."  It is a service organization at Kealakehe Middle School.   The charming trio at right is in the vanguard of NK.  If you are lucky, like Sandra and I were, they will drop in while you are down at K Bay and teach you about a fish or the coral. Or maybe they will teach you how to fix your home computer.

    All kidding aside, I think it is super that these kids are promoting conservation as opposed to the assassination of the animals we hold so dear.   Na Kahumoko is most definitely Pono!

jeff

Kahalu'u Shy with addendum

   Still feeling the glow of our encounter with the rare transitional phase Black Surgeonfish, Sandra and I headed down to Kahalu'u for a late morning swim.   The day was overcast, but conditions were pretty

Pugnacious Lagoon Trigger  "Whadda You Lookin' At?"

 good.  There was no current and the water was warm and, like the sky, only a little cloudy.

    Early in our swim I encountered an aggressive Rectangular Triggerfish.  About a week ago I had a similar experience, with one of these small fellows charging me, coming repeatedly within inches of my mask.  As I Prepared to capture an image of this interesting behavior, the Canon D10 informed me, "No Memeory Card".   As they say on Ork, "Shozbot!"
 
      The following day Sandra accompanied me for a swim and I spent an hour and a half swimming circles in K Bay trying to get a rise out of a triggerfish.  I did get one lagoon to approach me with his trigger up, but basically the exercise was a failure.  So today's encounter felt like vindication.  Sandra got to see the aggressive Rectangular Trigger (usually these guys retreat when you approach them).   I proceeded to let the triggerfish threaten me for several minutes while I took pictures. 

Argus Grouper waiting for his eel to go hunting.

   While Trigger and I were playing, Sandra got bored and swam a short distance away.   She grabbed my attention with a series of ladylike squeals through her snorkel.  She had discovered an Argus Grouper and a small Yellowmargin Moray hunting together.  They were looking nose to nose in the same opening in the coral.  I made it over in time to get a quick glimpse at this symbiotic behavior, but in the process I disrupted the dynamic duo.  The gorgeous young Yellowmargin receded into the coral and the grouper skulked around looking annoyed. You know how petulant those Argus Groupers can be. 

    Sandra came to the surface and said,  "That's what you get for pissing off the triggerfish."

    I didn't get a picture of this interesting behavior.  But I was immediately reminded of a letter to the editor from a reader named "evenhanded".  He was surprised that I hadn't seen more instances of eels hunting

Two Ornate Butterflyfish Out on a Date. 

with fishes, as he had witnessed this many times in Bonaire.   It is of interest that his examples were with members of the sea bass family, very much like the Argus Grouper.  The other pertinent point is that the government in Bonaire strictly protects all reef animals.  They actually make you buy a tag to explore the ocean.  There is no fishing.  You are not permitted to wear gloves.  The laws protecting the reef in Bonaire are the very antithesis of Hawaii laissez faire.  If our government gave the reef half the protection it receives in Bonaire, we would undoubtedly see all kinds of animal behavior.

    Following the eel grouper encounter we made the loop without seeing much else of interest, although I did snap the lovely picture of a pair of ornates you see above.    At this point, Sandra retired to the beach and I continued to swim for a little more exercise.

Square tail Filefish   Cantherhines sanwichensis, imm

   Having completed my supplementary swim, on the way to the beach, I saw a small filefish in the shallow coral rubble.  Looking more critically, I realized that I had a Shy Filefish.  He was about 4 inches in length and gave me one clear shot on top of a chunk of coral.   Dropping down, he swam among the coral rubble, offering me several  sihouettes with his tail spread and his file erect.   Unfortunately, I could not get in position to capture that classic filefish image.  I feel very fortunate that I got one well focused picture.  If you have a chance, take a look at the guide books and tell me who has the best picture. 

    Back in the day, say fifteen years ago, I would see this fish at least once in K Bay on an average two week Hawaiian vacation with my family.  So I've probably seen the Shy Filefish four or five times.  But not recently.  I can't clearly remember the last time I saw one of these furtive fish.  Maybe ten years!

Square tail  Filefish, Kahaluu, May 2013

This is one of those fish that I thought I might never see again.

   Isn't it great to know that if you spend some time at Kahalu'u you have a chance at this unusual beauty?  Is it enough to make you want to petition the people who ought to protect this heavily used gem for some increased protection.  How wonderful would it be if Kahalu'u was protected like the reefs of Bonaire? 

Go Fish,
jeff

A few days later, having had the opportunity to consider the above identification, I would like to submit one more picture,  some additional field notes and a correction.  Completing our swim yesterday, the Redoubtable SKK and I spotted a similar immature.

Square tail Filefish immature, Kahalu'u

However, this one started out quite gray with the white spot on the caudal peduncle and changed coloration to the striped form.  The picture you see was taken a few days ago and already (if it was the same fish) the stripe pattern was not so pronounced.  John Hoover writes that the immature Square Tail Filefish,  C. sandwichensis, has a honeycomb pattern.  He offers no picture.  I now suspect that our "shy" filefish was a little seen immature of the relatively common Sandwich Island Filefish.  If you look carefully, you will see the white spot on the caudal peduncle in the honeycomb pictures above.

Mea culpa,
jeff