Frogfish and Abalone in Lembeh Strait

March 26 – 27 –We’ve seen a number of frogfish this week and they seem to be unusually mobile. Frogfish are ambush predators, blending into their environment by barely moving until prey comes within reach. In a flash, so fast in fact it is barely discernable on video played back in slow motion, they expand their cavernous mouths and hoover in their victims. My favorite was a beautiful green Giant Frogfish, Antennarius commersoni, bouncing along the bottom like a beach ball. We followed it from 20 up to 12 meters where it finally stopped, presumably in a favorite feeding spot. 

 Our dear friend and managing director of Eco Divers, Cary Yanny, is diving with us tonight. Cary is spending the month on property acting as dive manager and overseeing the completion of the new resort spa. This gives us the rare opportunity to spend some valued time in her company, even if it is only fleeting moments between her many duties. I’ve been teasing the busy lady about writing a story entitled “A Day in the Life of Cary – Resort Manager Extraordinaire,” so here goes.  Yesterday morning before breakfast, she dealt with a disconcerting crisis in the spa when a cat wandered into the open building, knocked over an open paint can, traipsed through the spill and performed an Irish jig, which left little white paw prints all over the recently installed hardwood floors. During breakfast she leapt up from the table to shoo a bird that had flown into the restaurant window. Just before lunch, she jumped fully clothed into the resort’s swimming pool to rescue a four-foot monitor lizard that, whether there on purpose or accidentally, was proving a formidable obstacle to guests waiting to bathe. Cary, ever the trooper, deals with one unforeseen happenstance after the other with grace, forbearance and good humor, pausing every now and again to regain a bit of sanity by repeating to herself the timeworn mantra, “ At least I do not have a boring life.” 

 

Our Cary

 Ned will take over here to describe a few details about last night’s dive:

 

 

Asses ear Abalone

 The second abalone, which is going to take a bit of research to pinpoint its species name, is only an inch across. It is much easier to recognize as an abalone by noting the spiral of the shell and the series of respiratory holes near the shell’s outer edge. 

 

Abalone

 

Shield Shell