Following too close and go to your room!

Giant Porcupine Fish.  It swam away.  I have these mad skills with animals. But seriously, these guys have a major bite, so I'm glad it didn't accost me.

 Lizard fish #1. Just sitting.

Male box fish. We really like these fish.

 Snowflake moray eel for Siouxie Sue!

Christmas wrasse

This fish is actually a Sergeant Major, but I call the little one Sergeant Minor. Awfully cute!

Brighteye Chromis.  I see scadzillions of these and love every one.

 Very small Raccoon Butterfly fish. maybe 2 inches long.

Hebrew Cone. It is already starting to get gunk on it...look at the blue at the thick end...

 Find the tiny Humu

Another snowflake.

 Trunk fish female.

Juvenile Rock Mover. They are so like seaweed, it's sometimes difficult to know what they are! They move with the water, too, so it's hard to get a great picture.

Drupe.  I couldn't be sure no one was in there (look at the part missing on the right), so I put it back down. Love that purple. The dotted purple is my dive glove. Actually a gardening glove, but I make do.  Just on the left hand, in case I have to pick up something gnarly...like glass.

 I think this is a Manybar Goatfish. I don't usually see a face.

This little Leaf Fish apparently had done something wrong and was told to go to its room. 

 Juliana's Sea Hare.

The head...same animal as above.

Somebody done lost their mask's glass...bummer

 Bleached coral...also a bummer.

This poor brittle star was exposed when a rock moved surprisingly under my hand.  I had thought it was anchored...sorry little guy!

 My fave Trigger Fish...the Picasso. Love these guys. This one was about 2" also. Running fast, too.

Honu. Just out of the water in the kiddie pond...

This is the glass I picked up today. Oh yeah, and the operculum and shell bits! Another good reason not to walk on the bottom.

Bluefin trevally following a goat fish too close! (Just like those visitors in town for the Marathon...don't get me started...)

Have fun while you're in town! Stay healthy....

Operculum in use

I'm always kinda sad when I have to report that I didn't see any octopuses in my swim...but I do understand! By the time I get to the swimming hole after church, it's 11:30.  And many more people are present in the water, mucking things about. So any smart octopus would get out of the way!

And they are smart, so...

But I did enjoy the swim anyway. Especially since I saw my fave collectible in one of my fave shells: Turban shell and its operculum. (Of course, I didn't collect this one, since it was still in use.)

Same shell, I think...and same operculum ;) The thing in the middle snaps shut like a door whenever someone tries to invade the shell.  A life affirming action, because I think it keeps many predators out. At least, I hope so.
I also collected several opercula that were lying on the bottom, just rolling around with the waves. Maybe 35 or so. I asked myself: if I am finding all these opercula, why aren't I finding the broken shell, too? I don't know if they can reproduce another operculum, so can't tell ya. I do wonder.

I'm more careful around these Cone shells.  Not that I pick shells up if they are in use.  At least, not usually. But the cone has a potent poison, so I tend to admire them but from a distance.

These 2 cowries were snuggled all up in a hole in the reef.  I've seen this quite a few times now and still enjoy it. Makes me think of school kids all bundled up for their afternoon nap. Not really sure why they do it, but protection seems like one option. As far as I know, Cowry Shells are not cannibals.  But I don't know too far!

OK, that's it for the shell portion of this post.  I do enjoy them very much, and took several broken bits home with me. If they're broken, it's easier to tell that they aren't in use. My criteria for bringing them home...

A very nice parrot fish swam by:

Lovely colors! Bright blue, pink and even some green.  Beware though: if you eat 'em, you gotta make sure they aren't carrying ciguaterra. Not sure what that test involves, but words to the wise.

Also, when in the water, please try to avoid walking on the bottom. You've heard me complain about this before, but really, would you want to step on this lovely flounder?

Or this leaf fish for that matter...

I don't know if they have the poison spines that their cousins the Scorpion Fish have, but would you want to be the one to find out?

Lizard Fish for Alex:

And since I search for octopuses, I look into holes.  I was surprised to see this hiding Humu:

They do this sometimes, if they are feeling threatened.  I certainly didn't threaten it, so not sure why it hid. The spine on the top of its head supposedly makes it hard to pull out of a hole. Not that I have tried. Nor would I.

And something I'm not sure I've ever seen before: I can only suppose it's a starfish:

Last shot at the beach was the seal, taking, don't faint!, a nap!

Yeah, if Alex were here, he'd say "That's what they do!!!" And he's right.

OK, not the last.  but this one is, really.  I had to report finding a Juliana's Sea Hare. My co-worker of the same name was less than thrilled that this ugly creature had her name.  I think they are pretty fascinating.

And I got out earlier this morning to take out the trash and found these:

Oh wait! There's more:

Cloud and a moon.  Perfect. And they were just floating there, waiting for me to come outside.

Last but certainly not least, is the female trunk fish. Oh so cute.

No Centerpiece!

As with any decorating, there should be a centerpiece, a focal point that brings it all together.

For me, no big surprise, it's the presence of at least one octopus. But no joy yesterday after church; my pal said maybe there were too many people in the water.  Or perhaps by noon or 1, they are worried about getting sunburned. LOL.  Of course, they are usually hiding, so that's not a real worry.  (But now I'm thinking about that...since they do have skin, surely they could get burned by the sun?)

So that said, we start the post today with a photo of what NOT to do:

Don't throw your gear in the sand! Yes, this rookie move happened as I was trying to get ready to get in.  Someone had moved my bag of towel and slippers last week (can you believe?!), so I am becoming really minimalist about what I leave at the beach.

Luckily then, the bag also had just a towel and a pair of slippers.  We had heard that people are stealing stuff from cars and beach bags...one leaves the keys in the beach bag on the beach, goes snorkeling, only to find that someone has gotten their keys, gotten into their cars and not only pilfered stuff, but received the data about where the person lives, etc.  I tell you: what is going on with people these days?

SO I have taken preventive measures..and so far, it works.  But do try to keep sand out of your gear. This seal didn't seem to care that it had sand on its skin....

There were 2 seals, on separate beaches

 Yes, I know, it's too far away!  But I wanted you to be able to see what I see when I'm out in the water, looking to the beach.  Which I do, because I don't want to come in where the seal is.  I have never had one be aggressive to me, but I also steer clear of them, as the lifeguards suggest.

I was treated to a Pinktail Durgon yesterday.  Always a nice surprise, as I don't see many of them at this beach:

In the photo just above, you can see the yellow side fins.  I really love the tail fins, too, clear with black edging. This fish is quite shy and will swim away when approached.

A 3 spot damsel was guarding the coral head:

That's it, on the upper left.  I do admire how feisty they are in protecting their coral: whatever shape it is in.

They are so shiny and pretty.  And smart to hide!

Not sure if the striped hawk fish was trying to hitch a ride or what, but the sea hare is under the fish...Hubby said perhaps there were 2 sea hares.  Cannot tell.  I do know that the Sea Hares are not the prettiest in the bunch..

Related, apparently, to the slug family.

See the little orange legs? I couldn't tell how many crabs were involved, or if this one was simply transferring from one house to another...



















 OK, time for an Eagle Eye Challenge:

OK, what do you see?  Besides the light making a nice pattern.  OK, a clue: it's in the middle of the shot.  Sort of.

Does the shot above make it easier?  Yes, it's the Spotfin Scorpion Fish. With the face only a mother could love.  But still potent with poison.

A Sea Hare of a different kind...couldn't find one in the book that looked like this.  But click on it: see the line that runs along the top of the body?  What is that for?!

It was a treat to see a group of 4 Moorish Idols...small ones:

You can see the visibility wasn't great, so they brought some bright yellow to the scene.

 Doesn't this Christmas Wrasse look as if it's standing on its tail?
And a Hebrew Cone:

Supposedly, it's called that because the lines look like Hebrew script. For whatever reason, I like it for its clean coloring.












And lastly, the Trunk or Box Fish:

There you go, babe!