Underwater crop circle-building pufferfish officially described as Torquigener albomaculosus

Pufferfish seem to make headlines for all kinds of interesting behaviors from chasing lasers, apparently mourning the loss of a friend, and especially for helping dolphins to get high. But no pufferfish behavior garnered more attention than the elaborate “underwater…

Chelidoperca santosi, a new deepwater fish species from Palawan, Philippines

Chelidoperca is a genus of deepwater basslets which are completely unknown in the aquarium world, which is a shame because these fish are fairly colorful with interesting color patterns. Chelidoperca santosi is the latest species to be described from this…

The Coral Sea Pseudanthias cf. aurulentus looks even more amazing in a reef

A few days ago we wrote about a potentially new Pseudanthias species from Cairns Marine that has been coming out of the Coral Sea. This remarkable fish has been dubbed temporarily as Pseudanthias cf. aurulentus and is a member of the…

Pseudanthias cf. aurulentus from the Coral Sea may turn out to be a new species

The genus Pseudanthias is growing at a rate of at least one new member per year as the reefs of the Pacific continue to drip feed us with brand new, never before seen species. In 2013 we saw the appearance of the…

Pterois paucispinula: Mombasa lionfish is split into two species

Lionfish get a bad rap these days for a single species that is an unwelcome visitor to Caribbean reefs. But the Mombasa lionfish is now represented by two species that know where they belong geographically. Pterois paucispinula is the new species…

Top 10 new coral and giant clam species of 2014

The discoveries of new fish species were really impressive this year and the coral and giant clam taxonomists also had their hands full in 2014. Across the board we are still seeing a nice steady flow of new soft and…

Great Guns of Brixton! New snail named after the Clash’s iconic Joe Strummer

A deep sea snail with purple blood, spiked shell and living near hydrothermal vents are so reminiscent of the punk rock movement of the 1970s and 80s, the team that discovered a new species named it after Joe Strummer, the…

Top 10 new fish species of 2014

The last few years have been really hot ones for the discovery and description of new reef fish species and 2014 was no slouch either. Sometimes it seems like new species descriptions are dominated by dwarf gobies of the Eviota and Trimma genera,…

Teardrop ‘maxima’ clams are now a distinct species, Tridacna noae

Tridacna noae is a newly recognized species of giant clam which reefers have been enjoying in our aquariums for many years now. We’ve always been told that the morphology of the shells of giant clams is the key to identifying…

Eviota algida is cute new species of nano goby from the heart of Indonesia

A short distance off the southeast coast of Bali, there lies a smallish island called Nusa Penida which is the discovery site for a new species of nano goby. Eviota algida joins a parade of new species to be described in…