The spectacular Lipogramma robinsi pictured above is nothing short of amazing. The deep waters of Curacao harbor some amazing fishes that only up till recently familiarized themselves with fish enthusiasts world wide. Of which, the genus Lipogramma have always been at the forefront of attention when it comes to Curacao caught beauties. Lipogramma klayi and Lipogramma evides are two very rare and very beautiful little basslets that are the poster child for the genus. That is, until now.
Measuring in at 2 inches of extreme beauty, the extremely deepwater and elusive Lipogramma robinsi was caught as a depth of 550ft. Big blue fins dotted with yellow and that amazing ocellatus on the dorsal fin, no one would have thought that anything could be prettier than L. klayi or L. evides! The big robust finnage of L. robinsi is a contrast to the dainty fairy like appendages that L. klayi and L. evides possess. In fact, it almost has a little Calloplesiops going on with those fins.
The previously undescribed saber goby that lurks in the deep will be named after the daughter of its discoverer, Coryphopterus “Nikki”. Caught at 325 feet, this tiny 1.5 inch goby is not cheap and fetches a hefty price of around USD 1,500. This, together with the super rare 2 inch juvenile Liopropoma aberrans caught at 400ft were some of the recent hauls from a deepwater Curacao expedition.
Also caught on the trip was a new species of pearlfish caught at 850ft. Whilst all these deepwater gems are beautiful and spectacular, the new insight on Lipogramma robinsi has got to be the most exiting new member to the genus! It won’t make the cut for fish of the year 2012 though, for it was caught and photographed last month in December.
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