tiny – Everything about underwater and sky

Camouflage in Purple

Hamodactylus noumeae

“Isobana-Kakure-Ebi” in Japanese.

When a diver illuminates up a gorgonian which looks like a large fan by his underwater flashlight, often, he may find out something reflecting in the light. Looking closely, he will see a very small shrimp staying on the branch. This is Hamodactylus noumeae( Commensal Shrimp). “Isobana-Kakure-Ebi” in Japanese.
They are very tiny shrimps, around 0.5cm. The purple body seen through a transparent exoskeleton is beautiful.
Body-color is depending on a host gorgonian color.
Moreover, most of the body is transparent, so it is hard to find.
They are also masters of camouflage and Ninja under the sea.

Hippocampus japapigu Short, Smith, Motomura, Harasti & Hamilton, 2018

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This pic is not brand new. But my favorite.
This guy is very tiny. Under 5mm long. Always behind seaweed or rock for hiding. And moving quickly. So it is so hard finding it out.
Fortunately, the guide I was diving with was excellent. He has good eyes. And has the knowledge for this guy. Its favorite place or appearance time and so on.
This seahorse had not had the scientific name longtime from it was discovered. Japanese divers have been calling it Japapigu longtime. Japapigu is the shortens the name from Japanse pygmy seahorse. This name is spreading to the world through the internet, the scientific name is named after this colloquial Japanese name.

Macro : Parablennius yatabei イソギンポ

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Jordan & Snyder, 1900

It is not rare but cute

The Yatabe blenny is a species of combtooth blenny. Two sticks protruding from the head are marks. It is not difficult to see them at the rocky shore in Japan. However, this Yatabe blenny lives at the sandy bottom area. So that his home is the hole of a steel pipe. This pipe is a part of a scaffold that was sunken to make it a fishing reef. This blenny is about 8-10cm. It seems an adult fish. Osezaki, Izu peninsula, Japan. -12m.