Striped Eel Catfish

Plotosus lineatus

Dendrodoris carbunculosa at Dili Rock

Dili Rock was a bit cloudy today...perfect condition for some of the more reclusive creatures to come out and enjoy the day. This Dendrodoris carbunculosa was foraging on the coral rubble at 9 meters. By the way, I just had to touch this guy. He was not slimy and actually harder than I expected.

Napoleon Wrasse

Not the world's greatest photo, but proof of the Napoleon Wrasse at Dili Rock

Red Fire Goby

A few shots from last week

Juvenile Lionfish (~15mm) and the eye of a sand goby (~1mm)

Barred-fin Moray Eel

Gymnothorax zonipectis

Today at Tasi Tolu

The first photo is of a Bent Stick Pipefish, the king of all pipefishes. I'd say this guy was around 30cm, or 12 inches.

Ghost Pipefish

Back in the Saddle

Thanks to Jonathan, Sven, and Paulo for a fantastic dawn dive at Tasi Tolu this morning. Here are a few of the highlights.

Sunday Night Dive

Here are a few shots from the night dive on Sunday at, of course, Tasi Tolu. Flathead, Frogfish, and Demon Stinger

Still Catching Up

Here are a few more photos from recent dives at Dili Rock and Tasi Tolu.

Catching Up

The only excuse I have for not posting these earlier is that we've been too busy diving. We've found so many amazing creatures lately, including a pregnant seahorse. All of these are from Tasi Tolu on Saturday and Sunday night.

Seahorse

Graceful Partner Goby

This is the shy Graceful Partner Goby Lotilla graciliosa with its commensal Red Spot Snapping Shrimp Alpheus rubromaculatus. Unlike most gobies that lie on the sandy bottom, the Graceful Partner Goby seems to hover just above it, constantly flapping it's spotted fins. This is the first pair I've noticed in Timor and had to wait 20 minutes for them to come out for a photo shoot.

Pertamina Pier

Dan and I got up at the crack of dawn on Saturday to dive the pier. This little blenny has made quite a home for himself in the center a soft orange cup coral, Tubastraea faulkneri.

Wonderpus - Tasi Tolu

Jaco Island

Thanks to Dan, Alex, Juvi, Merek, Martin, Annabella, my dive buddy and star videographer Kym, and our tireless and intrepid leader Mark from Dive Timor Lorosae for a fantastic weekend of diving at Jaco Island. For those of you who have not yet had the pleasure of visiting Timor, Jaco Island is part of the Nino Konis Santana National Park on the far eastern tip of Timor. The island is considered a sacred place by the Timorese; overnight stays and inland exploration of the island are prohibited. But the white sand beaches and tranquil coast line are reason enough for a visit. It's about a six-hour drive from Dili, but it's a stunning journey, and the serenity and beauty of Jaco makes the trip well worth the effort.

Of course we all went to Jaco to dive the unexplored reefs and troughs that attract large schools of fish, sharks, turtles, and rays. And we were not disappointed. So where are the photos? Well, anyone who has gotten past the title of UWET.NET knows that I rarely take a picture of anything larger than my hand. And most of the dives on or around Jaco are drift dives, perfect for running into big stuff, but not for tracking down sea spiders.

Having said that, here are a few shots I snapped along the way.

Palette Surgeonfish, Paracanthurus hepatus






















Forster's Hawkfish, Paracirrhites forsteri






















Reticulated Damsel, Dascyllus reticulatus



Please note: Never, ever say Dascyllus reticulatus three times while shaking your dive pointer at your dive buddy!

Mantis Shrimp

Xenocrab from Bob's Rock

More Masters of Camouflage

Here are two masters of camouflage. The first is Prosimnia semperi, an allied cowry that's virtually identical to the branching coral on which it lives. The second animal might be more difficult to see. It's Periclimenes amboinensis, a commensal shrimp that adapts its color to that of its host crinoid.