A swim filled with good stuff

I know "good stuff" can be very subjective. For me, octopus, frogfish, scorpion fish, nudibranch. Which is what showed up today!

So in order of appearance, the nudie:

Very pretty. A family member of the Spanish Dancer, I think. 

 Light on it makes a big difference, right?

I included the following photo because you can see a bit of the size. The frogfish is at the end of the manini's tail. There was maybe 7 or 8 inches separating them. But it helps you see the frogfish isn't big.

I don't know if we call them toes, but you can see the foot of the fish. 

Quite happy to be able to get out there to see it again today. The waves pushed me back for a while, but then I was able to get in closer between sets.

Here's the first octopus. I was glad of the white rock near it, as that helped as a locator.

 You can see its eye and some skin as it hid in its den. This was quite a small octopus. Which I think is very cute.

 Looking down on it from above.

While I was out looking for the frogfish, I saw an octopus out of the corner of my eye. By the time I turned that way, it had hidden underneath the rock. You can barely see it to the left of the orange-ish plant. And then it was gone!

Below, octopus #3. Adult size

 This one has dug or blown out quite a decent dent in the ocean bottom. 

I liked the light on the siphon and its eye. You can see both eyes in this one.

 Below is I think #4. Sharing space with an urchin.

It is easy to get confused. 














And on to the Devil Scorpion Fish or as my sweetheart calls it: Ze Devil Fish!

 The orange and yellow under their side fins makes 'em much easier to spot. This one also moved when I arrived, which helped.

See how when you can't see the fin color, you can almost lose them? The funny thing was that a Brighteye Damsel fish was totally trying to hassle the scorpion fish! The Devil Scorp is a bazillion times bigger than the Damsel fish. Quite a brave (or stupid) fish, to take on this guy.

A cleaning station, well attended.

Cornet Fish over in the deep side. This side was quite wavy today, and therefore not very clear. This fish is over the place where octopuses used to have a den, so I continue to check inside for a new addition.

 A good reason not to walk on the bottom! They have pokey parts that could stab you in the foot.

 A nice smallish honu swam by.

Juvenile Yellow tail Coris

Needlefish

A small seal on the beach. Glad to see that.

Snowflake moray eel, trying to find a safe space to dig in.

 Supermale Christmas Wrasse.

 Today's ring find. There was no inscription. I had the feeling it had been in the water for a while, as it was quite beat up.

 Who's next? Hawaiian Cleaner Wrasse awaiting the next fish to clean  up.

Very happy with the viewings today. Not as happy to see a netter in the Keiki Pond. Everyone's entitled to swim, I guess. But that's also why I don't show octopuses to people. Some do eat 'em. Bad, bad people!

Six octo-fish and a nudie and a spotfin.

The water quality was not the best ever, but 6 octopuses makes up for that! (I may intersperse the pix with a Spanish Dancer nudibranch, just for some color.)

 See it? Just kidding. It was on the deep side. And actually, it's the brown spot right in the middle of the photo above. 

 And closer up.

 Peeking at me!

I do enjoy the octo-fish. And the nudibranchs! I wonder how close to the nudibranch color the octopus could get....hmmmm...

The raccoon butterfly got right up close!

 Lovely clouds

 Blue spined unicorn

Crab (look for its eyes behind the Turban shell)

 The cutest little flounder (also see the vid on youtube...look for octopigirl7)

 Honu on the beach

 This Humu was trying to hide in a former octo-den.

Lizard fishes for my sweetie

 Male box

Very unusual to see the Pencil Urchins out and about.

 Pinktail Durgon

 Spanish Dancer Nudie again

Spotfin Scorpion Fish hiding

 Yes, there really is a flounder...

 Urchin remains

 And the little flounder again. Such good camouflage!