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by **Hiroyuki Tanaka** » July 1st, 2006, 12:26 am

Here is a new column. I got a new digital Nikon's one-lens camera, and I can take photos and see so easily. Anybody can post any fish or invert pics just photographed (not limited to "today") and I hope to see yours !

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I went to a yacht harbor this morning (5:30 AM) and faound four species of Chaetodon. One of them is C. auripes, some 15cm long, a less colorful species.

They can be seen from the upper side of the wall of the harbor, and the depth from the angle of wall was some 2 meters. The harbor is located near to my home (Miyazaki City, southern Japan) and it took some 10 minuites by car.

1. C. melannotus, 15mm and C. vagabundus, 20mm.

2. C. auriga, 20mm.

by **marillion** » July 1st, 2006, 7:52 am

Great to see you back!

Peace,

Chip

by **Hiroyuki Tanaka** » July 1st, 2006, 8:33 am

Thanks

The next is one of rays ??? It measured over 40 cm long. It slowly swimmed before my eyes.

by **GreshamH** » July 1st, 2006, 12:54 pm

Is it a ray, or a sunfish (Mola Mola) on it's side? IS that red color it's true color?

by **Hiroyuki Tanaka** » July 1st, 2006, 9:04 pm

Thanks, but it is not a sunfish. Yes, it was reddish brown like this. Today (July 2) I went again to photograph the threadfin butterfly and it is here. It was swimming just under the surface (around 7:00AM).

by **WRASSER** » July 2nd, 2006, 4:59 pm

Nice pics, Thanks for sending them from Japan :wink:

by **Hiroyuki Tanaka** » July 9th, 2006, 5:32 am

Today I went to the yacht harbor at 7:00 and took 70 shots.

1 A long fish swimming very slowly at the surface, over 30cm. They are hunters and the third individual has already caught a small butterflyfish

.

2

I cannot tell the species but blenny. A quite beautiful fish, some 5cm

.

3 A Cleaner Wrasse (Labroides dimidiatus), 6cm was cleaning several larger species at the surface there.

by **Lawdawg** » July 9th, 2006, 7:51 pm

Very nice pictures!

by **Hiroyuki Tanaka** » July 10th, 2006, 5:00 am

6:30AM at the same yacht harbor, Miyazaki City. July 10, 2006. Cloudy.

Platax orbicularis, 4cm at the surface.

Chaetodon lunula, 2cm.

Chaetodon vagabundus, 2cm and a surgeofish.

by **Hiroyuki Tanaka** » July 10th, 2006, 5:02 am

Lawdawg,
Thank you very much! I found five species of Chaetodon at the site these two months

.

by **Lawdawg** » July 10th, 2006, 5:40 am

How nice it must be to see them up close in a natural habitat!

by **Meloco14** » July 10th, 2006, 2:23 pm

Wow it would be so nice to be able to go down to the local harbor and see such pretty fish. The few fish you can see around harbors in Southern California are all drab colors and pretty boring. Plus the water is usually filthy. You are lucky to have found such a nice spot.

by **Matt_** » July 10th, 2006, 10:33 pm

Plagiotremus tapeinosoma

by **Hiroyuki Tanaka** » July 11th, 2006, 12:53 am

Dear Matt,

Many thanks for your ID and very nice pics. Here is another shot taken yesterday. They should be a pair.

Today (5:30 AM) I photographed two butterflyfishes, one of them is the Oriental Butterfly, Chaetodon auripes, the commonest in Japan.

by **Hiroyuki Tanaka** » July 12th, 2006, 6:43 pm

One of the rare butterflyfish, Chaetodon lunulatus, 15mm photographed at the surface in June 18, 2006. I have seen it only once !

by **Matt_** » July 12th, 2006, 8:01 pm

Hiroyuki Tanaka wrote:Dear Matt,

Many thanks for your ID and very nice pics. Here is another shot taken yesterday. They should be a pair.

Dr. Tanaka,
Do you know how this fish feeds? Be careful of your hands when they are in the water!

by **Hiroyuki Tanaka** » July 13th, 2006, 2:41 am

Thanks Matt,

No, I do not want to keep it in home, or do not collect it. This morning I found so many stingy jellyfishes there !

by **Meloco14** » July 13th, 2006, 1:20 pm

Matt_Wandell wrote:
Hiroyuki Tanaka wrote:Dear Matt,

Many thanks for your ID and very nice pics. Here is another shot taken yesterday. They should be a pair.

Dr. Tanaka,
Do you know how this fish feeds? Be careful of your hands when they are in the water!

I want to know how it feeds. Tell us! Tell us!

by **Matt_** » July 13th, 2006, 1:59 pm

Meloco14 wrote:
Matt_Wandell wrote:
Hiroyuki Tanaka wrote:Dear Matt,

Many thanks for your ID and very nice pics. Here is another shot taken yesterday. They should be a pair.

Dr. Tanaka,
Do you know how this fish feeds? Be careful of your hands when they are in the water!

I want to know how it feeds. Tell us! Tell us!

Blennies from the genera Plagiotremus and Aspidontus (and there's one other I can't recall) are called 'fang blennies'. They typically mimic cleaner wrasses and peaceful Meiacanthus blennies, among others. They do this to enable getting close to large fish, which they swim up to and tear a large chunk of flesh out of. They have two little venomous fangs if I remember right.

So, assuming they would treat a human arm like any other large chunk of meat swimming by, they'd probably have no qualms about swimming right up and biting the hell out of you. I believe Bob Fenner has been bitten by this very species....twice!

by **Meloco14** » July 13th, 2006, 6:24 pm

Ahh, yes I have read an article in Coral magazine about fang blennies. They look cool when swimming but I would never want to mess with them!

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