A fish a day...

I mentioned some new fish species seen in the last week and I'm starting to get them up into my album. From the 26th of August whilst snorkelling off Sapi island, come three new species: the Goby Istigobius ornatus, the Emperor Lethrinus erythropterus (apologies for the illustration since it was a long way away and moving fast so an out-of-focus blob is all I got to show for it, but its key feature - white tail rings - are obvious), and the Trevally Caranx melampygus (no illustration yet since I got a better photo on 28th August but I haven't processed those yet). I haven't updated the Checklist yet either because of this but suffice to say for now the total of fish species I've logged in TARP is 364.

In addition, I have uploaded an ID panel for the diagnostic Juvenile of Damselfish Dischistodus chrysopoecilus (which justifies my renaming it in my list a few weeks ago from D. pseudochrysopoecilus), and I have added a better photo for the Butterflyfish Chaetodon rafflesii.

On 31st March 2007, I found the iridescent lip of this Sea squirt mouth at Hanging gardens off Gaya island irresistibly photogenic, so I went ahead; I believe it to be a member of the Genus Herdmania in the Family PYURIDAE.

Diver caught in a fishing net

Putting together the News links for this blog reminded me of an incident a year ago today (i.e. 31st March 2007). At the end of an afternoon dive on Agarille reef south of Sapi Island, our group came across a long fishing net caught along its bottom on coral at around 10 metres but suspended by floats along its length in mid-water. (Almost no algae had gathered on the mesh so I assume it was quite fresh.) Two of us had knives and we set to cutting it (and various shells and echinoderms) free whilst the rest of the group rolled it up. At one point I looked down to where my buddy was rolling the net and saw a loop of it had come down above and behind him ensnaring his regulator's first stage and his tank valve. I told him to stay perfectly still and gradually cut him loose. It might not have ended happily under different circumstances and it is disappointing that he was exposed to a fishing net in a marine park at all.

This photo of a Tunicate (a Sea Squirt, probably in the family Diazonidae) was taken in the morning of the same day, at Hanging gardens off Gaya Island.