When diving in Hawaiian waters one may come across a pair of 10-inch-long fish that just will bring a smile to your face. When I see the bandit angelfish I laugh, as they look like they should be in a Bugs Bunny cartoon. They just do not look real at first, and are one of the most special Hawaiian fish to observe while diving.
When diving in Hawaiian waters one may come across a pair of 10-inch-long fish that just will bring a smile to your face. When I see the bandit angelfish I laugh, as they look like they should be in a Bugs Bunny cartoon. They just do not look real at first, and are one of the most special Hawaiian fish to observe while diving.
They are pure white with a black stripe through their eye that makes them look like they have a robber’s mask on and are ready to star in the latest old-West cowboy movie. They like to frequent deep-water caves where they glow in our bright dive lights while they meander along the cave walls, eating small sponges. This fish does not seem to be afraid of divers or even large predator fish, and due to their diet of toxic sponges they may not be good to eat. They are almost always seen in pairs, and are quite territorial. I have never seen more than one pair on a single hour-long dive and it is just a treat to dive with them as they frequently follow us around like friendly puppy dogs.
Hawai‘i is so isolated in the middle of the Pacific we have many fish species that are endemic, meaning they only occur in Hawai‘i. There are lots of large, colorful angelfish that live in tropical waters all around Hawai‘i, from Mexico, French Polynesia, Palau to the Philippines, but they never made it all the way out to Hawai‘i. The bandit angelfish, on the other hand, is rarely seen anywhere but Hawai‘i, and it is our only large angelfish. So it is quite fascinating to think about where it originally came from and how it evolved here.
Most large angelfish live in calm water in sheltered lagoons, as they are large, round and thin and would get thrashed in large surf, but the bandit angelfish tend to live in deep water here in Hawai‘i, below the wave zone, so they are rarely seen by snorkelers. This probably explains why this fish does not have a Hawaiian name, as it was more then likely never observed in past times.
See the bandit angelfish in action in the video “The World’s Guide to Hawaiian Reef Fish” on the educational website, underwater2web.com, and also follow the marine life educational series on Instagram at terry.lilley.
Aloha from under the surf.
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Terry Lilley, a marine biologist, lives in Hanalei. His websites include underwater-2web.com and www.gofundme.com/5urrm4zw.
I really enjoy the introductions you provide Terry, mahalo.