No, your screen isn’t displaying random alphabets in a series of unpronounceable words. Our atrocious attempt at translating today’s title post into Japanese was intentional. We’re going international on today’s Awesome Fish Spotlight (literally), and we’re featuring a butterflyfish that could…
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Decompressing marine fish from the deep reefs of Curacao
The following is a guest contribution from Joe Oliver, a resident Marine Biologist for the Curacao Sea Aquarium and Substation Curacao. As an aquarist (hobbyist or professional) there is a huge array of fishes available as possible options when it comes…
Turbinaria bifrons is the rarest stony coral you’ve never heard of
Turbinaria bifrons is quite simply unlike any coral anyone has ever seen, and it is perhaps one of the rarest stony coral species in the aquarium hobby. When we say T. bifrons is rare we don’t mean rare as in a strain…
Japanese aquarium figurines
Leave it to the Japanese to fetishize all things in the natural world, not the least of which are aquatic animals, through the fine art of collectible figurines. If keeping an aquarium is too much time, money or hassle, a…
Awesome Fish Spotlight: Antilligobius nikkiae, The Sabre Goby
We feature yet another deepwater Curaçao fish today, but this time it’s a goby from the monotypic genus Antilligobius. Antilligobius nikkiae is named after Dutch ‘Antillen’ referring to the region now known as Antilles or Caribbean Sea.; nikkiae: Named after Nicole Laura…
Macropharyngodon vivienae new range extension could mean we’ll be seeing more of this species
While Macropharyngodon may not enjoy the popularity of other wrasses such as Cirrhilabrus, it is most certainly not stuck in a rut. The genus is not heading in a dead end track, but rather has had a few interesting developments recently. With M. pakoko being…
A rare look at the exotic coral reef of Bazaruto Island, Mozambique
As aquarists, we tend to spend a lot of time thinking and discussing the coral reefs where our aquarium marine life originates from. Places like Bali, Australia, Maldives, the Red Sea and their habitats are extremely well documented but there…
First Tusk Hermit crab goes on sale in the U.S. at Old Town Aquarium
Hermit crabs are rarely thought of as little more than the janitors for our reef and marine aquariums and blue leg and scarlet hermit crabs are purchased for cheap by the dozen to do our bidding. These species are colorful…
Google Street View of Great Barrier Reef officially released
A little over two years ago, we learned Google, in conjunction with Catlin Seaview Survey, had the ambitious plan to map the Great Barrier Reef and allow anyone to take a “Street View” look at this majestic location. Last week, Catlin…
Awesome Fish Spotlight: Lipogramma trilineatum
Today’s Awesome Fish Spotlight features a tiny basslet from the Lipogramma genus. All Lipogramma are small basslets confined only to the deep water reefs of the new world, namely the Atlantic. There are eight described species of Lipogramma, with undeniably…