Another shot from the coral reefs of Bonaire, here’s the elusive Freddie. He’s a Frog-fish. A member of the Anglerfish family, Freddie “fishes” for his food by dangling a worm-like lure in front of his face thereby attracting unsuspecting prey right to his mouth. He is also a master of camouflage – which works to his advantage both for luring fish his way but also for hiding him from bigger prey. This makes it almost impossible for divers to find him, except that he typically doesn’t move very far, once he’s found a spot on the reef that he likes.
To orient you to Freddie’s basic anatomy, his eye can be found between the brownish/whitish features along that right edge. His pectoral fin looks like a stubby foot where he’s bracing himself on the round coral head, also on the right side of the frame, and his tail is just peeking out from the coral head on the left. His dorsal fin is where it should be on the top of the red blob. For divers, including myself, it’s always a thrill to be able to see and photograph someone like Freddie and his relatives, partly because they are so well camouflaged and partly because they are quite rare!
This post is dedicated to my dear friend Dawn at talesfromthemotherland who is recovering from a recent illness.
Amazing!
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It is so amazing to see one of these on the reef and this one was hanging on our “House Reef!” That is, the reef right off the dock from our condo! We went and visited Freddie several times.
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You are so immensely talented Cathy – each picture you post is a delight…
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How do you do that, Cathy. That picture is just splendid… and under water too. I am completely carried away. Not to speak of the pleasure of learning about Freddie… having the prey come to you sounds very sophisticated. Loved this post.
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This little guy was in an area that was relatively tight at a depth of about 15 meters. I had to hover upside-down with my camera to get this shot, and then I rotated it to show Freddie’s original orientation.
Underwater photography is one of my passions and I have gotten better at it over the years – the best shots are those where the photographer approaches her subject slowly and gets as close as possible as most of these things are small. Lighting is important as well as having a decent camera – not to mention some skill in composition all while breathing air from a tank strapped to one’s back and moving with the ocean’s currents. Still, it’s so exciting to get good photographs of these amazing creatures. And it seems that every time I go, I do get better at capturing them!
Thank you, Shimon for your lovely comment!
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I’m so glad you gave us a road map to Freddie’s anatomy, Cathy, because I would never have figured it out on my own. What a cute little fella, I never heard of the frog-fish before, he looks like something a kid would make out of Playdoh!
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I’m glad it helped, Weebs. Even seeing it live and photographing it, I have to look closely to see that eye! This guy opened and closed his mouth a few times while I was taking these shots, but unfortunately not while I was pressing the camera shutter! I had never seen one do that before! And I didn’t have the presence of mind to turn on the GoPro that I also had attached to the camera tray that I use. Oh well! And you’re right, he does look like something made out of very brightly colored Playdoh! I find myself smiling a lot underwater, although no one can tell because of the regulator in my mouth!
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So wonderfully bizarre! Thanks for sharing this other world with us!!!
:):)Kari
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You’re welcome, Kari! It is truly, wonderfully bizarre! I find myself smiling a lot underwater, although no one can tell because of the regulator in my mouth!
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Reblogged this on Lost in The World Map.
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Wow, cool! You do see the neatest things. Jealous! 🙂
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I certainly get to see the neatest things while diving, Jennifer! It was an awesome trip.
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YOU have NO idea how much joy your photos have brought me this week, friend! Your kind words of support, your beautiful images that have sent me off to colorful, sweet dreams, amidst wires and beeps… Each photo was a gift. You are so talented, and I love sharing your vision in each fabulous post! Thanks for the dedication, it has brought a big smile to my face! Happy holidays friend.
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You are most welcome, Dawn. If it can cheer your spirits and heal your body in some small way, it makes me happy! And I’m so glad you enjoy the photos. I have so much fun sharing them. Happy Holidays to you!
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😀
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Beautiful pic … and thanks for the description, which is necessary for me!
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Thank you, Frank. And you’re welcome. These critters are so unusual, I thought it would be helpful for you to know what you were looking at!
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Animal diversity throughout the world is something.
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Thank you for the interesting post, Judy. May your friend Dawn quickly recover and may you both have joyous holidays and a great new year.
Russ
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Thank you, Russ. And may you have joyous holidays as well!
Cathy
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Happy Holidays to you and your family … and stay warm up there!
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Happy Holidays to you and your family, too, Frank. We’re actually enjoying the contrast from Bonaire to Colorado as we got a dusting of snow yesterday and everything is still white!
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A contrast indeed!
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Happy Holidays and thanks for bringing us into your world with your photos and explanations!
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My sister’s goldfish who is so old (at least 6 or 7)it is now silver. Its name is Fred, but unlike Freddie, her Fred is a little less exotic than table salt. This undersea world photo is terrific and like so many of my fellow commenters, I appreciate the pointers about what I’m looking at, too. Merry Christmas, pal.
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Merry Christmas to you, V!. Hope you’re having fun in SF and looking forward to hearing about it when you get back! And thanks! I’m glad you liked the shot.
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You are GREAT at it! I couldn’t find his little eye!
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Thanks. They’re definitely masters of camouflage!
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