Coryphopterus curasub newly described from mesophotic curacao

Coryphopterus curasub is the newest species of deepwater reef fish described from the depths of Curacao. The new Coryphopterus goby species is yet another new discovery made by the deep-diving Curasub which now gets its full name included in the binomial designation of…

Gilmorei is the first Polylepion wrasse to be found in the Atlantic

A new species of small, deep-water wrasse has been described from the Atlantic Ocean. Members of the Polylepion genus have previously been restricted to the Indian and Pacific Oceans but this one, named Polylepion gilmorei after Grant Gilmore, formerly of…

Lipogramma schrieri & L. barrettorum, two new species of Caribbean basslets

Deepwater basslets are a source of constant fascination, and a virtual wellspring of unknown fish. The latest species to come from this broad group are Lipogramma schrieri and L. barrettorum from the southern Caribbean.  We tend to loosely classify any fish living…

New Fire Goby Was Lionfish Food Before It Was Ever Discovered!

Palatogobius incendius is a new species of deepwater Caribbean goby that was discovered, unsurprisingly, in the mesophotic reefs of Curacao. But what is surprising is the circumstances surrounding how this fish was first collected.  The newly described incendiary or Fire goby was…

New Species of deepwater scorpionfish, Scorpaenodes barrybrowni

Scorpaenodes barrybrowni is a new pretty little species of scorpionfish from the deepwaters of the Caribbean Sea. Discovered in Dominica by the Curasub, the newly described Scorpaenodes barrybrowni is named in honor of Barry Brown, a member of team Curasub and the…

New species of Lipogramma basslet potentially discovered in Dominica

Lipogramma klayi is a beautiful and delicate looking species of Caribbean basslet which is no stranger to the pages of Reef Builders. We’ve written about this species at length over the years and now it seems like it may one…

We bet you can’t name this Caribbean fish
The RV Chapman and Curasub have successfully completed a month long expedition into the marine biology and ecology on the deep reefs off the Northwest coast of Dominica. This bottom dwelling fish was photographed on the 30th day of their expedition on…
New Decodon hogfish collected in Dominica

The Curasub responsible for so many new discoveries and new species in Curacao is on the move. As part of the Smithsonian Deep Reef Observation Project (DROP), a team of researchers and the Curasub are currently in Dominica, to do…

Plectranthias sp. Curacao is in the good hands of Blue Harbor

The new species of Plectranthias that was recently collected from Curacao is probably the first of its kind to make it into a home aquarium. We first featured this fish with a post from Joe Oliver at the source, and…

Curacao Sea Aquarium Deep Sea Display update

After 4 years in Curacao and some of the most amazing fishes known to man, I thought I had seen it all and was beginning to have doubts about whether we would find a new species that is as unique…