It’s not often that a guest is able to show an experienced dive guide something new in Lembeh, but leave it to John Hoover to take on that challenge! Hoover, the authoritative word on Hawaiian fish and critter life, brought Flasher Wrasse Fever to Lembeh this week as he shared his excitement for this beautiful animal at meals, on the boat, and underwater. Who knew that Nudi Falls is teeming with one of the most beautiful fish in the sea? Not a single one of us at Two Fish Lembeh! We were too busy scanning the weeds and rubble for hidden wonders such as Rhinopias, cryptic Frogfish and tiny Nudibranch to notice the plethora of Flashers chasing about.

Otherwise a dull coloration, the male Flasher Wrasse flashes brilliant colors and raises a spiky dorsal fin for only a few seconds before returning to its regular coloration. This is all a display put on to attract the attention of the nearby female Flasher Wrasse. In photo review, it’s hard to believe that photos taken only seconds apart are truly the same fish! Thanks to John Hoover, the guides have a new critter to share with all our Two Fish guests…

Other Lembeh critters of interest this week include the Dragon Shrimp and the Eel Nudibranch. Jicoyance is one of the farthest dive sites that we visit with Two Fish, and is only accessible when weather conditions are right. However, it is well worth the trip due to the beautiful reef and unique critters. The small bushes of Black Coral are home to tiny Dragon Shrimp and it is one of the only sites that the dive guides can regularly locate Eel Nudibranchs (Bornella anguila). Extremely brightly colored and sporting uniquely formed cerata, one of the Eel Nudis’ preferred methods of locomotion is to swim in the water column in a very eel-like fashion. Though I looked for this beauty for years in Hawaii due to John Hoover’s stories, it took coming to Two Fish Divers in Lembeh to finally see one…

Photo Credit: John Hoover (Blue Flasher Wrasse, displaying)