Back out into Cane Bay's sands!

First, a pretty picture of coral, a Christmas Tree Worm, and a Cardinal Fish.  There are at least seventeen different species of Cardinal fish here.  This is one of them, hahaha.  I did, at one time know most of their names on sight, but I didn't keep in practice.  I do remember the one that has two white lines across his eye is called a Flamefish.  Not this one.

I used to do fish population count surveys for a fine organization called REEF.org., so I was a real name learner, even more so than when I lead divers and they always asked, "What was that??"  I couldn't get anyone else interested when they found out that they'd need to learn all the different kinds of Groupers, and Grunts, and and and...

Cardinalfish have the red color and big eyes of nocturnal creatures.  Once the sea is dark enough in the evening, they come out of hiding and stay around up in the water high over their reef, eating the shrimps and whatever else they find up there.
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OK, back out across the sand...

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But not far, what's this?  Hum, I don't recognize this critter at first.

 Oh!  Aha!  A Brittle Star, a big one.  What's he doing out in the sand??  They REALLY hide during the day.  I carefully scoop him up, and...
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Gently carry him back toward the coral that I just left.  He was feeling my hand some, but didn't move very much.  I don't think they can bite, can they?  lol

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Boy, did he ever scoot when he percieved the dark overhang!  They have primitive eyes on the tip ends of their tenticles, or the pointy bits, legs?  All starfish are that way.

And now I'm wondering if I didn't mess up.  Maybe he was trying to migrate to a deeper reef.  Owell.

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OK!  Here we are!  Kind of deep down the sandy slope, maybe sixty feet, 20m.  This Peacock Flounder is looking at a lot of little things popping around in the sand, maybe little hermit cabs, something anyway.  My slow approach concerned the fish, but didn't alarm him enough to run away.  

See the long pectoral fin?  A male.  When they are flirting with a girl, they really raise this fin high and handsome.

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I am amazed he let me float right down in front of him!

I'm being watched!  Look at those eyeballs!  I bet he's focusing on this giant Bubbling Monster, yet, with the shape of those pupils, he can see almost 360 degrees, all around.  Amazing!  The eyes can rotate all around, and sometimes I notice a flounder by this movement.  Looks like two frantic marbles.
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I'm always a little sad that fish's bone structure isn't such that they have a Dolphin's smile.  I don't even know what to say about this guy's face!  Yeow!  But I'm sure he couldn't be that grouchy.  I tried to move sideways to the right, but he didn't like that at all, and started away.  I immediately backed up and swam off away from him.  Maybe I can see him this close again someday.
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OK, whew, off with me to get my tanks filled for another dive in the Amazing Sea!  And, hum something new, more computer time, I need to go Twitter.  Or Tweet, it is.  A slow start there, FaceBook started zooming right away.
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Thanks for stopping by!

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