Soft coral & jungle above

Masked angelfish (12 inches long)

Red soft coral with one black crinoid

Pink anemonefish (2-3 inches long) above purple anemone

Blue-ringed octopus (2 inches): only the size of a plum, this is one of the most poisonous creatures in the ocean (if he bites you, you're dead within 15 minutes). In other words, look but don't touch!

Tiny banded pipefish (2 inches long) on brown coral

Six-banded angelfish (14 inches long) among soft corals

Coral trout (12 inches long) beneath sea fan with glass-fish

Nadia photographing giant clam (2ft wide by 5 ft)

Mandarinfish (2 inches long) mating at dusk at Lembeh. These "twighlight quickies" involve pairs rising 6-12 inches above the rubble and--about 3 seconds later (even faster than most humans!)--completing the "act" by releasing their respective fluids in a puff and bolting back into the reef.

Mandarinfish mating (again!): The larger female (rear)found a healthy young maile, so they mated several times. Catching them "in the act" (and in focus!) is an exercise in frustration, so getting two shots of this pair was one of the highlights of the trip for me.

Tiny crab (1/4 in. across) on sea cucumber

Fire urchin - well named for the intense pain caused if/when its spines inject fiery toxins upon contact (my knee "contacted" about 80 spines)...

Coleman shrimp in fire urchin

Coleman shrimp (1 in.) in fire urchin - closeup

Pygmy seahorse (1/2 in. high) - this is a pregnant male

Ornate ghost pipefish adult

Flatworm (1 in.) near surface with his reflection

Stargazer (5 inches across)

Frogfish (also called angler fish) (8 in. long, 5 in. across)

Barramundi (2 ft)

Coral trout (12 inches)

Giant clam (5 ft. across) with diver far behind

Schooling barracuda (2-3 ft)

Mantis shrimp (4 in. long)

Crinoid with trees and sky above: this was one of several photos taken at "The Passage" in shallow water looking up through the surface at the trees above.

Coconut octopus (2 inches) hiding in shell: too small to use a coconut, this little guy is practicing using two shells as his hiding place.

Mimic octopus (8 inches long)

Mimic octopus

Mimic Octopus

Solar-powered nudibranch (6 inches long): If you look closely, you can see the "branches" inside, upon which this little guy grows algae to live on.

Pipefish (3 inches long) are related to seahorses, and have wonderfully "intelligent" looking eyes.

Porcelain crab (1 in. across) in carpet anemone

Squid at night

Sue and Jack with giant clam

Sweetlip snappers (10-12 in.)

Emperor angelfish (12 in.)

Bobbitt worm (and yes, it is named after the fellow whose wife chopped off his you-know-what!)

Archer fish (4 inches) with his reflection in surface: these fish swim along the surface beneath overhanging trees. They spot insects on the tree branches above and "spit" water to knock the insects into the water so they can eat them.

Bumphead parrotfish (2-4 ft long): This is the closest I've ever gotten to one of these schools ("gangs" seems more appropriate). Parrotfish eat hard corals, digest the organic material, and the "outcome" is sand. In fact, much of the world's sand is believed to be parrotfish poop!

Bumphead parrotfish feeding: we counted over thirty of these 100+lb monsters, which raised quite a cloud (reminded me of buffalo) when they stopped to feed like this. Note that the coral already looks dead; this appeared to be one of the places where lazy fisherman had used dynamite, a practice that devastates the reef.

Pink anemonefish (1 in.) in partially closed anemone

False clownfish (1-2 in.) in fully closed anemone

Cockatoo waspfish (5 in. long)

Cockatoo waspfish (4 in.)

Decorator crab (4 in.) with anemones "planted" on his shell

Orangutan crab (1 in. across) in hammer coral

Crinoid (5 in. across) swimming up: Crinoids are usually seen perched atop corals so they can feed (with their feathery arms) on passing plankton. Occasionally, however, one can be seen swimming to reach higher ground.

Pygmy cuttlefish (2 in.) on grey sponge

Demon stinger (5 in.) buried in sand

Demon stinger on top of sand

Tiny frogfish (1/2 in.)

Clown frogfish (5 in.)

Clown frogfish (3 in.)

Hairy frogfish (5 in.) "fishing" by wiggling his lure -- if a little fish comes to investigate, he will be eaten in one quick gulp!

Hairy frogfish

Orange frogfish face

Another orange frogfish's face

Goatfish school

Shrimp goby with his shrimp buddy: this is a symbiotic relationship, in which the goby stands watch, while the shrimp excavates and maintains the hole they both live in.

Golden sweepers, or "glassfish" (1/2 in. each)

Hatchet fish

Jacks

Jawfish peeking out of his hole

Nudibranch

Nudibranch

Nudibranch

Nudibranch

Nudibranch

Nudibranch

Nudibranch sex

Blue-ring octopus looking threatening

Blue-ring octopus swimming

Coconut octopus in coconut

Coconut octopus in small shell

Coconut octopus on sand

Hairy octopus (1/2 in. high)

Hairy octopus (1/2 in. high)

Parrotfish

Ornate ghost pipefish - juvenile

Ornate ghost pipefish adult

Ornate ghost pipefish (3 in. long)

Ornate ghost pipefish pair

Puffer

Pygmy seahorse - "plucked chicken" type

Pygmy seahorse "blending"

Pygmy seahorse - tiny (1/8 in. high)

Pregnant male pygmy seahorse (1/2 in. high)

Rare yellow pygmy seahorse (1/2 in. high) - by eating the coral on which they live, "pygs" blend (in color and texture) amazingly well.

Blue ribbon eel (adult) - 2 inches visible

Juvenile ribbon eel (3 inches visible)

Pair of 6-banded angelfish

Ambon scorpionfish

Sea snake - very poisonous, but docile and uninclined to bite

Shrimp (1/4 in. long) on sea cucumber

Shrimp (1/4 in. long) on sea cucumber

Hingebeak shrimp

Shrimp

Shrimp with eggs inside

Snake eel hiding in sand

Snake eel swimming

Black snapper with cleaner wrasse

Squirrelfish

Stingfish

Stingfish

Sue and Linda with giant clam

Clown triggerfish

Unicornfish school

Slender Unicornfish

Unicorn fish

Wobegone shark

Coris wrasse

Coris wrasse face

Bi-color Angelfish (5 in.)

Regal angelfish (6 in.)

Two-spot angelfish (7 in.)

Barracuda cleaning station

Batfish

Yellow jack

Cardinalfish (1.5 in.)