wild SPS corals, Marshall Islands

[007Bond]

Naw, not the Balteatus wrasse,... this little guy. Thanks,---Rick


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Naw not the Balteatus wrasse, this little guy. Thanks,---Rick

 

[r-balljunkie]

Naw, not the Balteatus wrasse,... this little guy. Thanks,---Rick


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Naw not the Balteatus wrasse, this little guy. Thanks,---Rick

oh, sorry. thats a yellow cardinal fish. i caught them on a wreck dive on the stern of the Prinz Eugene, end of the dive, around 30' of water doing a deco stop of sorts. i scooped about 6 of them, ended up with only one survivor.....im really got my eye on some blue eyed cardinals. looking for the right situation to catch them. its like a cat and mouse game when i try to catch them. i look like Tom, they look like Jerry, round and round. It all about geography and terrain.

i wrangled three new rhomboids. I should have had four, had a nice jumbo male in my net, swam out.....and my computer was about to put me into deco, had to cut it short.

The last few fish I've put into my tank have mysteriously (namely the last three mystery wrasses, very solitary fish, hard to net) disappeared. i think its the rogue crab i have living in my tank. the fish have a tendency of darting and hiding the first couple of days.....i think the crab makes a meal out of them when the lights go out. i have a kebab skewer and a light by the tank...ill get him sooner or later.

i thought i would try a new approach to acclimating fish, verses my normal ocean-bucket-tank approach. my handy dandy tupperware dish with holes drilled into it, with a pyrex cup on top. i know i know, waaay to much hi-tech for some, but thats how i roll. i placed a few pvc elbows inside for hiding places.

its been a couple of days, i took the lid off. one ventured out for a bit, but back to the tupperware. i think all three will venture out tomorrow.

i looked thru the FTS pics. they suck, man oh man. why did i watermark that crap. they might get deleted......they were shot at 800 ISO. terribly grainy. i've been reading more and reviewing the settings on the "good" pics i've taken. i think im going to dumb down on my messing with settings, try to keep it simple.

had some good dives this weekend. Murphy's law, i didn't bring my camera. I found myself in the midst of several baitballs, too many sharks to count, they were coming from every direction.

i would have never thought a few years ago about swimming into a mess of sharks...now i find myself gravitating towards situations like this. total bliss and calmness with an edge overcomes your body as you look into a sharks eyes as they mosey by with little effort.

Speaking of sharks, man oh man, did i ever have a nosy white tip buzz me when i was collecting the rhomboids. i had my buddy with me on net duties (i net a fish, drop one net and perform a whirling dervish trying to keep the fish in the net dance) who was nice enough to stay on watch. its ok if things go bump in the dark at 50'. you dont want a nibble at 130'.....its a long way up.

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[ace_92101]

How did o miss this thread? Awesome stuff.

 

[007Bond]

You get through the whole thing,...once you start its hard to stop.---Rick

 

[BrentH]

Best thread ever!!! Thanks for sharing I think I opted awhile back but wanted to express again ..... I'm really saving to visit Great Barrier Reef in the next few years

 

[BrentH]

Best thread ever!!! Thanks for sharing I think I posted awhile back but wanted to express again ..... I'm really saving to visit Great Barrier Reef in the next few years

 

[r-balljunkie]

How did o miss this thread? Awesome stuff.

Its easy to miss, get buried really quick since i hit you with a glut of eye candy in a single posting. Perhaps i should space it out, nah, get ready to scroll.

You get through the whole thing,...once you start its hard to stop.---Rick

yes, yes, my daydream outlet later in life.....thanks for sticking around rick....perhaps ill catch up with you at a macna event. should i get a R-balljunkie Tee shirt made up, LOL?

Best thread ever!!! Thanks for sharing I think I opted awhile back but wanted to express again ..... I'm really saving to visit Great Barrier Reef in the next few years

your welcome.

Good luck with the trip to the GBR. my mother in law went last year and she was not impressed after coming out here. I'm not saying change your trip, but there's tons of places in the coral triangle to consider (sorry Australian board of tourism).

I'm currently up in B.C. Canada enjoying this phenomena called winter. My wife's father passed away. Nothing like an impromptu trip organized over two days to fly half way around the world. We had/have no winter clothes, but managed to cobble together some remnants of layered clothing and we are surviving up here.

we are really enjoying the "choices" available in the real world...reinforces that this is indeed the last year.

Here's some shots from january. i have a trip planned next month to the 'plane graveyard' up in the northern part of the atoll, hope to get some good shots.

the tank sitter seems to have everything under wraps, the rhomboids are looking good and great PE on the corals.

enjoy the pics.

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[tahiriqbal]

Wonderful pics espically the last one. Thank you for taking all the trouble to keep us entertained.

Tahir

 

[007Bond]

yes, yes, my daydream outlet later in life.....thanks for sticking around rick....perhaps ill catch up with you at a macna event. should i get a R-balljunkie Tee shirt made

Sticking around :lmao:...your thread has been my adrenaline boost for the past 4 winters, and soon the crocuses will be poking their heads up for spring 2014 .YAY!!... Thank you!!! Your backyard offshore tank should definitely be a TOTM,... IMO! lol
R-balljunkie Tee shirts....Yah!...you'd be like a rock star moving through the crowd:beer:
My wife and I use to take our dog Gizmo to St. Martin,(French side) an island in the Caribbean. She would be on a St Martin lovers blog talking about our up coming trip and bringing Gizmo along. When we would get their,...seemed like everyone in the airport would be yelling... heyyyyy Gizmoooo,....really funny!

I also want to say thanks Chuck for all your time you spent posting so many beautiful pics. ---Rick

ps,...thinking about starting a thread,... "Best of R-balljunkie" pics. just to see which of your pics the thread followers like the best,...note, I said "The Best of" because it would be very easy to just post them all up:lmao:

 

[reefmutt]

As usual, beautiful tropical paradise shots!
For pure contrast purposes, why not hit us with a couple of Canada's finest mountain shots.
I'm from Montreal but the west and it's mountains always beg me to stay, whenever I visit..

 

[tdb320reef]

What a dream of mine. Awesome pictures!

Its easy to miss, get buried really quick since i hit you with a glut of eye candy in a single posting. Perhaps i should space it out, nah, get ready to scroll.





yes, yes, my daydream outlet later in life.....thanks for sticking around rick....perhaps ill catch up with you at a macna event. should i get a R-balljunkie Tee shirt made up, LOL?



your welcome.

Good luck with the trip to the GBR. my mother in law went last year and she was not impressed after coming out here. I'm not saying change your trip, but there's tons of places in the coral triangle to consider (sorry Australian board of tourism).

I'm currently up in B.C. Canada enjoying this phenomena called winter. My wife's father passed away. Nothing like an impromptu trip organized over two days to fly half way around the world. We had/have no winter clothes, but managed to cobble together some remnants of layered clothing and we are surviving up here.

we are really enjoying the "choices" available in the real world...reinforces that this is indeed the last year.

Here's some shots from january. i have a trip planned next month to the 'plane graveyard' up in the northern part of the atoll, hope to get some good shots.

the tank sitter seems to have everything under wraps, the rhomboids are looking good and great PE on the corals.

enjoy the pics.

<a href="http://photobucket.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://i143.photobucket.com/albums/r158/cchavis/marshall%20islands/01-26-201437of44_zpsd767a923.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo 01-26-201437of44_zpsd767a923.jpg"/></a>

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[Chicago]

simply awesome.. great pics.. great posts... thanks for all the great stuff. keep it coming..

 

[r-balljunkie]

As usual, beautiful tropical paradise shots!
For pure contrast purposes, why not hit us with a couple of Canada's finest mountain shots.
I'm from Montreal but the west and it's mountains always beg me to stay, whenever I visit..

Out in the boonies visiting my sister-in-laws place in the british columbia interior.

these are genuine Canadian mountain men....gun shooting and beer drinking.

Its cold here.

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[knukles55]

Its easy to miss, get buried really quick since i hit you with a glut of eye candy in a single posting. Perhaps i should space it out, nah, get ready to scroll.



holy sun coral!!!!!!!!or dendros!!!!!

yes, yes, my daydream outlet later in life.....thanks for sticking around rick....perhaps ill catch up with you at a macna event. should i get a R-balljunkie Tee shirt made up, LOL?



your welcome.

Good luck with the trip to the GBR. my mother in law went last year and she was not impressed after coming out here. I'm not saying change your trip, but there's tons of places in the coral triangle to consider (sorry Australian board of tourism).

I'm currently up in B.C. Canada enjoying this phenomena called winter. My wife's father passed away. Nothing like an impromptu trip organized over two days to fly half way around the world. We had/have no winter clothes, but managed to cobble together some remnants of layered clothing and we are surviving up here.

we are really enjoying the "choices" available in the real world...reinforces that this is indeed the last year.

Here's some shots from january. i have a trip planned next month to the 'plane graveyard' up in the northern part of the atoll, hope to get some good shots.

the tank sitter seems to have everything under wraps, the rhomboids are looking good and great PE on the corals.

enjoy the pics.

<a href="http://photobucket.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://i143.photobucket.com/albums/r158/cchavis/marshall%20islands/01-26-201437of44_zpsd767a923.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo 01-26-201437of44_zpsd767a923.jpg"/></a>

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[reefmutt]

Yeah.. I guess that winter scene is a pretty harsh image to leave this particular thread hanging on..
That winter scene sure is hanging on up here in Montreal these days, though..
Can't wait till it's over..
Btw, Thanks for the pic r ball..

 

[Zacktosterone]

Why are the corals white there but different colors in our tanks??

 

[screamingibis]

How big was that grouper? Filet him up.

 

[r-balljunkie]

Yeah.. I guess that winter scene is a pretty harsh image to leave this particular thread hanging on..
That winter scene sure is hanging on up here in Montreal these days, though..
Can't wait till it's over..
Btw, Thanks for the pic r ball..

it was fun to experience winter for a couple of weeks. so unprepared for the temperatures. it was a bit novel to have to put on snow pants and boots. i have to say when the warm humid salt laden air hit my face as i stepped off the plane was welcoming.

Why are the corals white there but different colors in our tanks??

well thats nature for you. you dont always have screaming bright corals everywhere. most corals are a shade of brown to be honest.

How big was that grouper? Filet him up.

generally speaking we dont eat fish off the reef. native Marshallese do, but they have a more intimate knowledge of what to eat. the risk of ciguatera is too high plus there's plenty of mahi mahi, yellowfin, ohno etc to eat. some guys spearfish and eat off the reef, but most dont.


we finally got high speed internet, whoo hooo. it will make it easier to post for me now.

Here's a video shot by my buddy Brian Greene. the spot is called Troy's coral head.....about 15 minute boat ride from the marina, so easy to get to. we dive it once every 4-5 weeks. its a fun dive, especially when the sharks are out.

its making a resurgence in fish and shark population from its hey-day. over the last three years, we've notice a considerable increase in density


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Some wreck shots, past 100' in depth. Corals are amazingly adaptable....there's not a lot of light this deep.

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[lgull1]

I noticed that your friend Brian Greene said it was shot 12 years ago. He just posted on you tube a month ago that the site no longer exists. You said that the fish are coming back and the sharks. So are you correct or is he?

Great thread by the way. always enough the photos

Thanks

 

[r-balljunkie]

it exists, however its in a state of flux. coral formations dont just disappear, however the levels of fish and sharks do fluctuate. I didnt dive "Troys" for a couple of years whereas it wasn't an exciting dive without all of the sharks and schools of fish. it is slowly coming back, but its hard to say if it will ever be in its glory days of years past. this site is located in the lagoon and not on the open ocean. its hard to tell if there will be a lot of sharks or fish. the only way to tell is to dive it. you get word really quickly if Troys is exciting or not thru the diving grapevine. i have to say, as of lately its been a great dive. i spoke too soon on the last dive when i announced i've never seen a shark eat a fish on the reef before. jinx.

its a spectacle to see a pack of sharks on the hunt a few feet in front of you. At one point of the dive, you could see a dozen or more sharks coming from all directions. Exhilarating.

BTW Brian is in Hawaii now, he's moved on, but is a foremost expert on marshall islands diving, and diving in general.....several fish discoveries under his belt Xanthichthys greenei, Chromis abyssus. Very fortunate to get to dive and collect with him.

a lot of the pics in this thread are from Troy's.

I'll try to shoot some new video soon.