by Admin | Jan 27, 2020 | Fish, Photography
Possibly some of the ugliest fish in sea, the Scorpaenidae are masters of camouflage. Here’s some video. I shot this very short piece in October in the southern Red Sea. It features two devil scorpionfish (Scorpaenopsis... by Saltwater Smarts | Jan 26, 2020 | Fish
Yellow coris wrasse (Halichoeres chrysus) Known by a variety of common names—banana wrasse, canary wrasse, golden wrasse, yellow coris, et al—Halichoeres chrysus is hardy, readily available, reasonably affordable, well suited to modest-sized systems, and among the better choices for beginners. Of course, owing to all these positive attributes, this wrasse is justifiably popular among many seasoned salties, as well. Physical traits I like to describe the typical wrasse body shape as akin to a banana with fins, which is especially apt for H. chrysus given its coloration. That color, as most of its common names imply, is bright yellow to orange-yellow overall with one to several dark ocelli, or eyespots, in the dorsal fin. Faint green streaks may also be visible on the head. Maximum length is around 4½ inches. by Admin | Jan 24, 2020 | Fish, Photography
It’s hard to imagine this cute looking fish hides a distinctly unpleasant modus operandi, but in truth, fangblennies have a dark side. Fangblennies belong to the Combtooth blenny group and are widespread across the Pacific and Indian... by Saltwater Smarts | Jan 24, 2020 | Fish, Science
Is It Okay to Quarantine Multiple Marine Fish at Once? For most of my years as a saltwater aquarium hobbyist, I’ve made a point of quarantining all new fish before introducing them to my main system. By and large, my approach to the quarantine process has been observational—that is, watching specimens closely for signs of disease and treating them only if symptoms appear in order to avoid stressing them unnecessarily. However, (relatively) recent events have me questioning whether I’d be better advised to treat all quarantined specimens prophylactically rather than wait for symptoms to arise. Allow me to set the stage: A few years ago, my wife, Melissa, and I sold our old home and moved into a smaller one after an intervening year in a rented duplex. Naturally, once we got settled in, I took the first opportunity to set up my old 125-gallon tank, which had been in storage throughout the transition. Once I got the system up and running and began to cycle it, I set up a 29-gallon quarantine tank and acquired three specimens—a yellow tang, Niger trigger, and coral beauty. My plan was that these three would be the tank’s only fishy inhabitants (at least initially) along with a percula clownfish that I’ve had since 1997 by Admin | Jan 16, 2020 | Fish, Photography, Science
I’ve spent hundreds of hours underwater, and swum with a dozen species of shark. Never have I felt threatened by them, but being close to a titan trigger? I’d keep my wits about... by Admin | Jan 10, 2020 | Fish, Photography
It’s been a number of years since I was fortunate enough to travel to Mauritius, luckily though, I was asked to travel there on assignment at the end of last year, meaning I was able to revisit some great dive sites with some great...
