Hawking around

This is a slightly different hawk to those we usually see, a long nosed hawkfish. Hawkfish are so called because they typically find a perch and stay there before launching off to grab prey, just as some hawks do. The long nosed bit should explain itself.

This one was hiding in the same type of gorgonian fan favoured by the pygmy seahorses. He kept moving away across the fan and I was running out of non-decompression time. Just as I was about to give up he moved to the other side of the fan blocking me completely. Finally I found a hole in the fan and shot this picture through it. I think it really shows how effective their bright pattern is as a camouflage.

I found this one a little later on the trip and it was slightly more cooperative.