Chaetodontoplus ballinae is a dichromatic beauty of legendary proportions, documented based on two trawler specimens off the deepwater Australian coast in the late 50s and 80s. One of the rarest and least known of the Chaetodontoplus genus, this angelfish is…
Pseudanthias calloura makes an unexpected resurgence after a long hiatus
Pseudanthias calloura is widely known for its rarity as well as its beauty. It’s scarcity in the trade has promoted this species to the top of many wish lists, only to bring disappointment to said list makers. Commonly known as…
Photos of Paracheilinus nursalim by Eric Cheng are the best we’ve seen of this species
The West Papuan endemic Paracheilinus nursalim is not only the crème de la crème of Paracheilinus, it is also one of the newer members to be described; Discovered not too long ago in 2006, and described in 2008. This stunning gem is…
Secrets of the ghost anthias revealed in Sakayana’s dive blog
We’ve mentioned briefly before that the genus Pseudanthias, and anthias in general, are not prone to hybridisation and aberrations. Despite making their presence deeply felt by occupying almost every square inch of coral reef in shallow water, and even being…
Awesome Fish Spotlight: Chelmonops truncatus
Today’s Awesome Fish Spotlight features a lesser seen member of the butterflyfish clad that hails only from Australia – the only country that’s also a continent. Australia is so awesome it can call itself whatever it wants, and because of…
Barry Brown updates with more deepwater Curacao treasures including an undescribed Decodon
Barry Brown is an avid underwater photographer that has spent the last decade or so documenting fish and other marvellous creatures in Curacao, and is working with the Smithsonian Institution in documenting new species from the deep waters of the…
Tomiyamichthys nudus is a beautiful shrimp goby that bears resemblance to a small Flabelligobius
Tomiyamichthys nudus is relatively new species described only in 2012, and published in Allen and Erdmann’s new book on reef fishes of the East Indies. Previously, it has only been known as Tomiyamichthys sp, or sometimes incorrectly as Flabelligobius sp,…
Parioglossus winterbottomi is an exquisite species of the mini dartfishes
Parioglossus is a relatively small genus of mini dartfishes that seldom enter the trade. P. dotui and P. philippinus are probably the only two species that appear with any regularity. Unlike the more conventional dartfishes, this genus boats of relatively small…
The Blunt-nosed Basslet is a perfect Caribbean curiosity for your deepwater tank
Bullisicthys caribbaeus is a remarkably cute fish from the deep waters of the Caribbean that is worth taking a second look. Not often is the word cute used to describe a fish, but the blunt-nosed or pug-nosed basslet is certainly cute,…
The mind-blowing Odontanthias elizabethae has left us speechless
There are some fish that are just so rare they’re almost mythical, and to see one would probably require divine intervention on some cosmic celestial level. We’re so fascinated with Odontanthias, and over the years few representatives from this genus…