The Ghost pipefish is one of those sea creatures that divers simply love , mainly due to the fact that these tiny creatures are so difficult to spot, blending in so well with their surroundings, that often the only way to see ghost pipefish is to dive with an experienced dive master who knows where they live on the reef. The second reason for these creatures being so popular with divers is that they are simply stunning and unusual creatures to look at, as they hover motionlessly upside down looking like an extension of the coral behind it.

Ghost Pipefish also better known as False Pipefish or Tube mouth Fish, are in fact not members of the Pipefish family, but are closely related to the Pipefish and sea horse family, which is perhaps why the Ghost Pipefish while having the long tube-like snout taking up 1/3 of its size is similar to the pipefish, and its body covered with external plates making its appearance and size more like a seahorse.

They are found in tropical waters of the Indian Ocean primarily and also known to be found in the western pacific up to Japan. Ghost Pipefish are tiny creatures that grow no longer than 6 inches (15cm) and are found in waters ranging from 3-30m (9-98ft) mostly around coral reefs. Ghost Pipefish feed on tiny crustaceans like shrimp, mysids (opossum shrimps) and benthic creatures that live in the substrate or seabed. These creatures are almost vacuumed up into the Ghost Pipefish’s long snout.

Ghost pipefish spend most of their lives with their head/mouth facing downwards, floating near motionlessly around coral or rocks that they blend in with making them nearly impossible to see. These fascinating creatures are also known to change their color to blend in with their backgrounds, and additionally change their shape as well, adding to their mystery and intrigue.

Some of the more well-known types of Ghost Pipefish are the Ornate, Robust and the Rough Ghost Pipefish.

Ornate Ghost Pipefish (Harlequin Ghost Pipefish)
The Ornate Ghost pipefish also known as the Harlequin Ghost Pipefish is probably the most easily identifiable type of Ghost Pipefish, owing to its elaborate form, well developed fins and brighter variable colors and spots or bands make it a prize for underwater photographers and scuba divers. Ornate Ghost Pipefish are normally found close to featherstars, soft coral, sea pens and black coral and grow up to 11cms in length.

Robust Ghost Pipefish
Varies from Green to brown and is known to mimic the appearance of rotting sea grass or sea weed and is very difficult to spot. This species of Ghost Pipefish grows up to 15cms (6 inches) and is found in lagoons and coastal bays and areas containing sea grass.

Rough Ghost Pipefish
The Rough Ghost pipefish grows to 12cms in length and is reddish brown and covered with rough scales that make it look like algae.

Photo Credits: photos by PacificKlaus, Nick Hobgood,Stephen Childs,ray ellersick on flickr

Of an estimated 1.4 -1.6 million marine species on Earth only 250,000- 300,000 (approximate figure) species are known to man. It comes as no surprise, when just one liter of seawater alone can host 20,000 different microbes.1,000 – 1,500 new marine species are identified each year!

With well over 16,000 marine fish species, these next 5 fish don’t even make a dent in the catalog of fish you probably haven’t even heard of but we thought we’d start somewhere. Here are some pretty Bizarre Fish you won’t forget that easily-

Crocodile Fish

Aptly named for it’s resemblance to a crocodile, this unusual looking flathead species belongs to the flathead family Platycephalidae. This bottom-dwelling ambush hunter, feeds largely on smaller fish and crustaceans and is also known as De Beaufort’s flathead or crocodile flathead. It’s closely related to scorpionfish and stonefish. The crocodilefish is a mottled brown or green and grey color, ideal to camouflaged with their habitat, on a sandy or rubble sea bed. They are native to the western Pacific region including Philippines, Borneo, Papua New Guinea, New Caledonia, Palau, and even Indonesia. They can reach a length of 50 centimeters (20 in) and have very photographic eyes especially for underwater macro photography. Unlike actual crocodiles though, divers who come across a crocodile fish have little to worry about as the fish often remains very still, even if humans approach them.

Ocean Sunfish (Mola Mola)

This strange fish (yes, it is a fish!) that looks more like a gigantic rock or fossil is actually the heaviest known bony fish in the world. The Mola Mola, as the Ocean Sunfish is also known can grow up to 1.8 – 3.3m (5.9- 10.8 ft) and can weigh a staggering 1,000 kg (2,200 lbs)! Native to temperate and tropical waters around the World, this Pelagic fish can swim to depths of about 600 m (2,000 ft). This monster of a fish is seemingly docile towards humans and many divers have enjoyed the company of the Ocean Sunfish while Scuba diving. The fish however is not so loved by boaters as there have been instances of sunfish colliding with boats while surfacing causing significant damage to the boats. Ocean Sunfish can even jump out the water at the surface up to a height 10 feet (3 meters) in the air and land with a splash to shake off parasites that infest their skin. (For more read: Sumo Wrester of the Seas- The Ocean Sunfish (Mola Mola) )

Sea Lamprey

The Sea Lamprey native to the Atlantic coasts of Europe and North America and even found in the Great lakes of America is a weird looking jawless fish. It possess an almost eel like body, but unlike the eel its skeleton is made of cartilage rather than bone. This parasitic fish has an unusual wide oral disc similar to a suction-cup in place of its mouth and is filled with many small teeth arranged in circular rows. While the sea lamprey appears headless it actually has functional eyes and gills just like regular fish, it has a single dorsal and ventral finfolds. Sea lampreys grow up to 1.2 m in length, weighing up to 2.5 kg. They feed on a wide variety of fish like herring, mackerel, salmon, trout and even some sharks usuing they sucker to latch on to the host preventing their blood from clotting until they die of blood loss or infection. Only one in every seven host fish will survive this deadly parasitic fish.

Trumpetfish

Named for its long, thin snout and body to match, the trumpetfish is a relative of the seahorse. Often spotted vertically to blend with vertical coral like sea whips, pipe sponges or sea fans, the trumpetfish is a master of camouflage. They can however sometimes be yellow or green, with blue or purple heads but can still easily change color. Trumpetfish ‘can grow over a meter in length, with its head representing about one third of that length. They are found pretty much all over in coral atoll reefs or in lagoons.

Dolphin Fish

This one you mostly know by its Hawaiian name Mahi-Mahi, but the dolphinfish is no where related to the mammals everyone knows as Dolphins. Found in most temperate, tropical and subtropical waters worldwide, the Mahi-Mahi is a popular for sport fishing as they dwell close to the surface. They also average 7 to 13 kilograms (15 to 29 lb) and come in dazzling colors like golden on the sides and bright blues and greens on the sides and back. It’s meat is popular in restaurants which is where you have hear of it as Mahi-Mahi and not Dolphin-fish.

*Photo Credits: photos by Olivier Egloff, Pachango, coda, fugm10, Nick Hobgood, andrew read, Flawka on flickr. Wikipedia.org (public domain images)

“It was a night dive on the wall, and I was busy scanning the rocks and coral illuminated by my dive light’s narrow beam, when my dive master frantically points out a small orange/red clam like creature attached to the wall. Upon closer inspection I was simply mesmerized. The clam had red tentacles through which a blue bolt of electricity seemed to be flashing across back and forth like a tiny lightning bolt that burned bright blue in the darkness. I simply couldn’t take my eyes off this creature.”

The “clam” that the diver above is referring to is actually known as The Electric Flame Scallop, also called the Red Electric Flame Scallop or scientifically known as Lima Sp. Belonging to mollusk family known as Limidae which comprises of only bivalve mollusks which are made up of  scallops, clams, oysters and mussels that have a shell consisting of two rounded plates called valves joined at one edge by a flexible ligament or hinge.

The Electric Flame Scallop, inhabits the waters of the Indo-Pacific, ranges in size from 1 inch to 3 inches when reaching maturity and is instantly recognizable by its soft parts being a flame red color, with several bright red tentacles protruding from the open valves (shell).  What makes this creature even more fascinating is that it seems to create bluish white electricity which can be seen shooting across the mantel like lightning bolts quite visibly in the dark.

While the purpose of the Electricity generated by this creature is unknown, it makes a remarkable spectacle for any night dive where even in the darkness; you can see the flicker of bluish electricity bolts flowing through the scallop’s filaments. For Underwater photography an electric flame scallop is truly a delight to photograph.  During the day, the bio-luminescence isn’t very apparent, which is why electric scallop sightings are more spectacular at night.

The electricity (which is actually a form of bioluminescence)  is not known to be harmful to divers or other creatures, and especially since the electric flame scallop is a filter feeder and feeds off on microscopic phytoplankton and bacterioplankton (omnivorous) it is curious why it possesses such a brilliant ability. Marine Biologists suggest that the light generated by the electric scallop attracts plankton to its filament like tentacles helping it feed from a fixed location.

Often the Electric Flame Scallop is confused with its parent species the Flame Scallop or Lima Scabra which is also similar in appearance, with a red fleshy mantle covered with tentacles, except for the absence of the strip of bio-luminescent tissue on its mantle that sends a flash of color back and forth over the mantle.  Interestingly enough the Flame Scallop, and it’s sub-species the Electric Flame Scallop are not truly scallops but a form of file-clam.

* Photo Credits: photo by Phil Camill on flickr

There has been much debate and controversy in the study of Cephalopod intelligence with many researchers arguing about the true intelligence of these creatures. Undeniably though, cephalopods comprising of the order of cuttlefish, squid and octopus, exhibit remarkable case, spatial learning capacity, navigational abilities, communication skills and predatory techniques.

Cephalopods class of mollusks are known to be the most intelligent of marine invertebrates, often using complex  “reasoning” to locate and hunt down its prey. What baffles most researchers is that the octopus has a very short life span of usually 2 years, making the need for such intelligence unnecessary. Also the Octopus is not a social creature, and have no parent/sibling source to learn from, and hence most intelligent behavior is picked up by the octopus from its own interactions.  It has though been noted that the cephalopod family have large brains which are indeed capable of storing and processing complex information.

Movement
Octopus have eight large boneless tentacles which have hundreds of suckers on them, with the octopus being able to control every one of them, and manipulate it’s muscular tentacles to propel itself underwater.

Dexterity
Dexterity is another fascinating trait that cephalopods possess, especially the octopus which is able to use its tentacles and suction cups just as a human would use his hands. Octopus have been known to be able to perform complex manipulations of their tentacles and be able to unscrew the lids of a jar, or even collect rocks/coconut shells to close the opening of its den while it hides inside.

Camouflage
Cephalopods- octopus, cuttlefish and squid have the ability to control the color of their bodies.  This ability too requires complex brain power. Octopuses have the ability to rapidly change the cromatophores in their body to blend in with their surroundings.

Communication
Cuttlefish in particular have been said to communicate with one and other by a complex series of instructions communicated to other cuttlefish by rapid changes or flashes of body color. This form of communication is also said to be used in the squid and cuttlefish’s mating rituals.

Octopus and Squid studied in aquarium tanks have been known to display remarkable intelligent traits. scientists have tested the ability of octopuses to solve mazes, learn cues, and remember solutions. They found that octopuses solve problems readily, learn quickly and,  remember what they have learned in short term memory. The reason however for these creatures to possess such intelligence is still a mystery.

Photos from flickr by: ccaviness, Frank Peters, richard ling

The reef is full of interesting creatures and fascinating adaptations and survival techniques used by reef inhabitants to prevent becoming food to predatory fish. Often this survival evolution results in some interesting partnerships between marine creatures. One of the more curious relationships that most divers would have come across, is that between the marine goby fish and the shrimp.

The Pistol Shrimp or Snapping Shrimps of the Alpheus shrimp, family are great diggers, and constantly create and maintain burrows in the sea beds sand using its large claws. However the shrimp have really poor eye-sight and being almost blind, cannot spot their predators until it’s too late. The Goby fish  (Gobies in the genus  Amblyeleotris, Cryptocentrus, Ctenogobiops, Istigobius, and Stonogobiops) on the other hand are small vigilant fish that form a symbiotic relationship with the shrimp and act as the shrimp’s watchman against predators, in exchange for shelter in the shrimp’s burrow.

The goby will usually sit at the entrance of the burrow maintaining a constant vigil against potential predators, while the shrimp bulldozes away clearing gravel from the burrow. Whenever the shrimp needs to dump gravel outside the burrow, it is usually exposed to potential predators. However with the Goby keeping lookout, the shrimp places one tentacle on the Goby while exposed, so if the Goby darts inside the burrow, the Shrimp instantly is alerted of the presence of a predator and it too darts back inside the safety of its burrow. The partnering between these two creatures is only that of a watchman and housekeeper. Gobies eat micro-fauna and sometimes tiny fish they find near the bottom, the shrimps feed on what they find in their burrowing and hence do not compete for food.

So how do the Gobies and Shrimp find each other in the first place? Shrimp-goby researchers have been trying to figure out this one for a long time, and have conducted numerous experiments  to determine whether the Gobies find the shrimp, or vice versa, and also to determine whether they locate each other optically or are attracted chemically. There has been no definitive answer as to who spots who in this symbiotic relationship and it is still one of nature’s mysteries.

So the next time you spot a goby while scuba diving, perched vigilantly near a burrow, look closely and you will more often than not, spot the housekeeper shrimp hard at work bulldozing clawful after  clawful of sand. Spend some time watching this interesting relationship and I can tell you , you will not be disappointed.

Photos from flickr by: Nick Hobgood, PacificKlaus. Boogies with Fish

One of the most unique and fascinating creatures a Scuba diver can come across on a dive, is the rarely spotted peculiar looking sawfish.  With a long snout interspersed with sharp saw-like toothy scales, the sawfish is a creature difficult to not identify.

Sawfish though they may resemble a shark with a saw nose; they in fact belong to the family of Rays. They are also considered one of the more highly endangered marine species in existence, and are now protected under the highest protection level of the Endangered Species list. Often growing up to a length of 7m (23ft) and with a lifespan of 25-30 years, the numbers of this species has dwindled over the centuries due to excessive hunting for traditional medicine and souvenirs.

Sawfish are found primarily in the tropical and sub tropical waters of the Atlantic and the Indo-Pacific . 5 out of the 8 different species of sawfish are found in Australia, and are known to live in fresh water  river estuaries and large lakes most notably known to be found in Lake Nicaragua.

The saw like teeth located on the Sawfishes rostrum (nose) is in fact a kind of scale known as denticles that the sawfish uses to dig up its prey of crustaceans buried in the sea bed. It’s real set of teeth are located in its mouth that the sawfish uses to devour its prey. The strange looking rostrum or snout also contains motion- and electro-sensitive pores that allow sawfish to detect movement of prey buried in the ocean floor.

The Sawfish is a nocturnal predator, feeding on mainly a diet of crustaceans, prawns, crabs, and other invertebrates, and may sometimes feed on smaller fish, slashing at them with its saw-like snout before devouring them. Being able to traverse between brackish and fresh water, sawfish are often found hidden in the muddy bottom of river estuaries making them a rather unique marine creature.

If you are looking to Scuba Dive with Sawfish, the chances you will ever come across one are highly unlikely, being firstly endangered and nocturnal creatures often lying buried in the seabed during the day. The best chance of spotting a sawfish is in Australia’s Queensland, the Northern Territory and Western Australia, where currently the largest existing population of sawfish are known to exist. In freshwater, the sawfish is known to be most commonly sighted in Lake Nicaragua, where overfishing had caused the population to drastically decline until the government outlawed the hunting of sawfish from the lake.

Photos from flickr by: greyloch, tricky ™, istolethetv

Not something you would want to find in your plate of Calamari, the Giant Squid and Colossal Squid have long been the stuff of legends. Stories surrounding the creature claiming it sank ships and plucked sailors off decks, heightened our curiosity of these already mysterious creatures over the last decade. Dead specimens, that sometimes washed up on beaches, provided proof of the existence of these massive deep-dwellers, but no researchers had ever seen one alive until a few years. Even with increasing sightings since, the Giant and Colossal Squids never seize to amaze the World when they make their rare appearances.

Two Japanese researchers, Tsunemi Kubodera of Tokyo’s National Science Museum and Kyoichi Mori of the Ogasawara Whale Watching Association, were the first to lure one of these giants with bait to catch a glimpse of it as well as photograph the live 25-plus foot female squid. The managed this almost impossible feat by followings the sightings of sperm whales with sucker marks on their skin. The researchers then chose a spot to lower a hook baited with a single small squid and an automated digital camera that snapped a picture every few minutes and sent it down to a depth of nearly 3,000 feet. Their operation was a success as the giant squid came for the bait. The unlucky squid however got a tentacle snagged on the hook and struggled for 4 hours trying to get free. In the struggle however, the researchers obtained more than 500 pictures of the squid, which scientists called Architeuthis. They then tried to haul the heavy weight squid into the vessel as a live specimen, but the squid lost the battle and its life while trying to get free.

Just like the Giant Jellyfish that frequent Japanese waters creating waves among marine scientists, researchers and water lovers the world over, there was little known about these rare and elusive creatures.

The Giant Squid, is the smaller of the 2 squids and is more widespread than it’s cousin the Colossal Squid. Specifically found in the North Atlantic Ocean around Newfoundland, Norway and the northern British Isles, the Giant squid has also been sighted around Southern Africa, Japan, New Zealand and Australia among its other dwellings. It is estimated to grow to astounding proportions of 13 meters (43 ft) for females and 10 meters (33 ft) for males measuring from claudial fin to the tip of the two long tentacles. Like all squid, a giant squid has a mantle (torso), eight arms, and two longer tentacles and can weigh a maximum of 275 kilograms (610 lb) for females and 150 kilograms (330 lb) for males. The inside surfaces of the arms and tentacles are lined with hundreds of sub-spherical suction cups and it is common to find circular scars from the suckers on or close to the head of sperm whales who are predators to the giant squid.

The Colossal squid is one of the largest living organisms and is estimated to grow upto 14 metres (46 ft) in length. Unlike the giant squid, whose arms and tentacles only have suckers lined with small teeth, the Colossal Squid’s limbs are equipped with sharp hooks. They are also believed to have a longer mantle than giant squids, although their tentacles are shorter. The Colossal squid known range extends only to the Southern Ocean right from Antarctica to southern South America, southern South Africa, and the southern tip of New Zealand.

While little is known about the life of this creature, scientists have slowly been piecing together evidence of the elusive giants from pictures like these, the specimens washed up on shore and even from stomach contents of sperm whales. In time, we’ll learn more about these mysterious creatures living in the depths of our Oceans.

Sea Stars or Starfish as they are better known are fascinating creatures of our Oceans. Closely related to sea urchins, sea cucumbers and sand dollars, starfish are not really fish. They are echinoderms and marine scientists are trying to get people to use the name ‘Sea stars’ instead of the misleading but popular Starfish tag.

There are over 2,000 species of Sea stars across the World’s Oceans. They typically have five “arms” and while these are the most common of sea stars, species with 10, 20 and even 40 arms exist. Starfish or Sea stars rather, have radial symmetry which makes them distinctive from other sea animals. They come in striking colors that can work as a camouflage and inspite their bony or spiny upper surface, are very attractive creatures.

The seemingly passive and helpless sea stars can be quite the predators underwater. They feed on clams, oysters, snails and other mollusks that are significantly bigger than the size of their mouth which is placed on its underside. If you’ve ever tried to open the shell of a clam or mussel open, you’ll know just how difficult this task is. Yet, sea stars easily wrap their arms around the animal’s shell and pull it open with the help of its tube feet,which is also how it moves around on the sea bed. Then it does something amazing- it eats its prey with their stomach inside out! It pushes its stomach through its mouth and into the shell of clams, scallops or mussels and then digests the animal before sliding its stomach back into its own body. In essence, starfish have two stomachs, the one can be extended outside its body and the second pyloric stomach to which it is transferred for further digestion.

Another very interesting ability of sea stars is how it is able to regenerate lost arms and can regrow an entire new arm in time. It uses this ability to its advantage when they are threatened by predators- the smart starfish drops an arm to get away if needed. Some species can even grow an entirely new sea star just from a portion of a severed limb as that’s where it houses most of its vital organs, some however, require their central body to regenerate.

Sea stars have eyes at the end of each arm, but in reality can’t see very well. They can sense light and dark but not distinct shapes nor colors. Their tube feet however are sensitive to chemicals and uses this to locate food.

So, the next time you come across a sea star when you Scuba dive or just walk along a beach you can truly see them for the stars they are!

* Photo credits: photos by TheMarque, Razvan Marescu, paulshaffner on flickr.

What marine animal grows up to 1.8 – 3.3m (5.9- 10.8 ft) and can weigh about 1,000 kg (2,200 lbs) and is not a whale, but a fish? – The answer is an Ocean Sunfish. Also known as Mola Mola, the ocean sunfish is the heaviest known bony fish in the world.

This bizarre looking fish has a huge oval shaped body which resembles a fish head with a tail. It has long dorsal fin and anal fins, often making the fish as tall as it is long. Another unusual feature of this fish is it’s tail that doesn’t look like one at all. It’s tail extends right from it’s dorsal fin to the anal fin and looks like a lumpy pseudo-tail known as the clavus.

Native to temperate and tropical waters, the Mola Mola or ocean sunfish can be found in every ocean in the world, however, can display distinct differences in their appearances from the Atlantic to the Pacific regions. This Pelagic fish can swim to depths of about 600 m (2,000 ft) and prefer warm waters of 10 °C (50 °F). The solitary sunfish, thrives on jellyfish, squid, crustaceans, zooplankton, small fish and plants like eel grass.

As large as this fish is and inspite its thick skin, it is hunted by sea lions, orcas and sharks. It’s seemingly docile towards humans and many divers have enjoyed the company of the Ocean Sunfish while Scuba diving. The fish however is not so loved by boaters as there have been instances of sunfish colliding with boats while surfacing causing significant damage to the boats. Ocean Sunfish can even jump out the water at the surface up to a height 10 feet (3 meters) in the air and land with a splash to shake off parasites that infest their skin. A story of a boy that got knocked off his boat when a sunfish leaped onto it is quite popular among other such incidents.

The meat of Ocean Sunfish is considered a delicacy places like Taiwan and Japan and they are fished for even their fins and internal organs that are used in traditional medicine. The Mola Mola is also threatened by floating litter such as plastic bags which resemble jellyfish, its main diet causing them to choke and suffocate.

Ocean Sunfish can be seen in a few aquariums across the world like- Kaiyukan Aquarium in Osaka, Japan; the Lisbon Oceanarium in Portugal; and the Monterey Bay Aquarium, USA (the fish in this aquarium had to be airlifted out by helicopter and released into the bay after outgrowing its tank.)

This clumsy but fascinating fish as gigantic as it is, still seems like only half a fish instead of a whole making it one bizarre looking fish!

*Photo credits: photos by coda, acme, Cláudio Franco on flickr.

Sea Urchins are an endless source of fascination for Scuba divers and snorkelers alike. Belonging to the same family as Sea Stars, sea cucumbers and brittle sea stars, the Sea Urchin is a slow moving creature that feeds mainly of algae, sea weed and kelp. They move around the ocean with the help of tiny tube like feet that are almost invisible to the naked eye. Common colors they found in include black and dull shades of green, olive, brown, purple, and red.

Widely found in oceans around the world, the Sea Urchin is actually considered a threat to marine environments, as they reproduce rapidly and can wipe out large areas of marine fauna causing barren wastelands underwater known as urchin barrens. In many countries sea otters which are a natural predator of the sea urchin have been introduced into the ecosystem just to keep the rapidly multiplying urchins in check. This has proved to be highly successful in British Columbia and in Monterrey Bay where urchin nibbling at the base of the giant kelp forest were causing large areas of kelp to get depleted.

Divers are especially wary of these creatures mainly due to the fact that accidental stings while walking in a shallow reef, or touching one accidentally while Scuba diving can be a painful proposition. The  spines of sea urchins remain in the wound making wound heal slowly. Sea urchins inject a small amount of venom when stinging, but the amount is negligible to cause any serious injury , around 10 species of Urchins are poisonous but there are a few that are deadly. Sea urchin stings must be washed thoroughly and rinsed with vinegar to wash out the stings and then watched over the next couple of days for signs of infection. Divers should be constantly vigilant where they place their hands, to avoid an accidental encounter with these spiny devils.

Despite the wary glances from divers, Sea urchins are considered a culinary delicacy in many places around the world, and the Urchin eggs or Roe are especially in demand. Certain cultures also believe that the sea urchin is a powerful aphrodisiac, and especially in Japan where the Urchin known as known as Uni  and is a prized delicacy. Uni or Urchin contains anandamide,  which is present in the human brain and other organs at very low levels, and activates dopamine or the reward circuit of the brain which may be why it could be considered an aphrodisiac.

Whether the Sea Urchin is considered an aphrodisiac or a culinary delicacy, a menace to marine eco systems or a nuisance to unwary divers, the Sea Urchin truly is a fascinating creature.

Photos by: Philippe Guillaume, hfabulous, Kamil Porembiński