This entry was posted on Friday, August 22nd, 2008 at 9:58 pm and is filed under About, Adventure Cruises, Information, Sites, Snorkeling, Snuba. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
Photo Courtesy Hawaiifishes.com
This fish is really adorable! Research could find no Hawaiian name, but that possibly could be because this fish likes the water deep as it is a sponge eater and sponges do better in waters less turbid, so the ancient Hawaiians may have not caught and eaten this one. If we’re able to locate any information, it will most certainly be posted. This fish is ENDEMIC, i.e. lives in Hawaii only. According to researchers, the fish that created this species are now extinct, making this cute one even more special.
Coming to Hawaii? The average snorkeler could get to see this fish if they were to keep a watchful eye. Around some islands it is spotted in shallow reefs. I love the shiny black eye that blends with the bandit stripe. They have small mouths with brush-like teeth. Angelfishes are diurnal. According to Dr. Randall, some (maybe all), are protogynous hermaphodites, i.e. they begin their mature lives as females then later change to males. In some species there are dramatic color changes as well.
While snorkeling in Hawaii, camera in hand, try to always remain quiet and calm. You never know what awaits you around each reef!
