Sand Chutes and Kaloko Canyons 10/20/19

Some days your photography skills are going to abandon you, and that happened on this day at Kona dive sites.  It may be impatience or preoccupation with other things, it may be that you are thinking about not being left behind by your group, it may be just bad luck or surge.  I accept that some days I'll just not be on my game and leave it at that.

But I did miss a great opportunity with a Wire Coral Gobie, and a Spotted Coral Blennie.  Those pics are not here because I don't have any good ones.  OK.  There were a few that I managed to salvage into the "interesting enough" bin and here they are.

The first thing I noticed about this Leaf Scopionfish was how far down into the antler coral it was. I was about to bail on it as not worth the work, but the I saw the foot.  Leaf scorpions have feet?!  Well, yest they do I later found out by consulting the Hoover book.  Anyway, here is a good shot of a leaf scorpion foot.

 

This may be the same Whitley's Boxfish female  I got a few days ago at Kaloko.  So she's famous now. looked for the male that's supposed to be there but he was not available.

Meanwhile we are still in the middle of the 2019 bleaching event with water temps still in the 84 degree range at depth on Hawai'i Island west side.

Antler coral tips bleaching: Sand Chutes

Antler coral bleaching: Sand Chutes

Lace Coral bleaching: Sand Chutes

Video Vignettes with Tara: Kaloko and Eel Cove

Diving with Tara is always a treat, but it is especially when we get to dive at Kaloko Canyons and eel Cove, both sites where I've enjoyed memorable dives with her.

Here are a few videos with short clips at both sites, including Tara's magical moment with the Raccoon Butterflies at Eel Cove back in 2017.


Tara and the Butterflies

Golden Arches and Kaloko Canyons 10/13/19

Feeling brave enough to go out with the 105 macro, which is hard to shoot in surge, and guess what there was?  yep, surge.  What you have is what you have, and you hope for a little luck.

So, it went pretty well.  Did find some bleached coral which is not surprising since water temps have been above 84 for the last six weeks.

 Here's a nicely camouflaged  Devil Scorpion.  He was on the move but I wasn't fasdt enough to get him with his fins out.

 Juvenile Yellow Tail Coris and Juvie Ornate Wrasse having a chat on the reef at Kaloko Canyons.

Panther flounder can see you anywhere cause he has eyes in the back of his head.

Puffer flyby.  He was so close I couldent get all of him in with the 105.

Rough spined urchin.

Fat White mouth Eel.

Ms Whitley's!

Yellow Margin Eel stretching out in his hole.

More teeny animals: Golden Arches and Lonetree Arch 10/6/19

Fast forward a year and a half.  I'm back in Kona and out to Golden Arches and Lonetree Arch to refresh my macro skills, which have deteriorated mightily.

Someone I respected once told me "if you take 6 good pictures a year you are doing great."  I'm on track for that.

First up there's a Bicolor Nudibranch.  This is one of about 6 we found, but I wiffed on all the others.  I'm blaming the surge.  Next is a Coral Monster mask.  I'm gonna be this for Hallowe'en.

Bicolor Nudi

Coral monster mask

 Here's an Octopus that decided to move to a new hole just as I swam by.

Right under Lonetree Arch was this family of White Margin Nudis.  From the Kupuna to the keiki, they're all here.

 Puhi (White Mouth Eel was a bit crabby sdo I didn't have any trouble getting him to show me his teeth.