| Faimly: Serranidae | |
Epinephelinae sp. |
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We videotaped a small pale grouper, likely in the genus Cephalopholis or Epinephelus, which appears to be a new record from Samoa. |
Cephalopholis sp. |
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We videotaped a small reddish grouper in the genus Cephalopholis, which appears to be a new record from Samoa. |
Pseudanthias sp.1 * |
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We confirmed the presence of this undescribed Pseudanthias, the description of which is in press by Randall and Pyle, based on specimens from Fiji and elsewhere. |
Pseudanthias sp.2 * |
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We confirmed the presence of this second colorful undescribed Pseudanthias, the description of which is in press by Randall and Pyle, based on specimens from Fiji and elsewhere. |
Pseudanthias sp.3 **? |
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We videotaped a small yellowish Pseudanthias at a depth of 73 meters. It somewhat resembled a young P. pleurotaenia, but no adults of that species were seen in the area. |
Pseudanthias hutomoi |
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We videotaped several individuals of what is almost certainly Pseudanthias hutomoi at a depth of 76 meters. This is a new record for Samoa. |
Faimly: Apogonidae | |
apogonid sp. 1 & sp. 2 **? |
There were at least two different species of apogonids along the small ledges at around 100 meters (1st ledge, 2nd ledge). Without specimens, it would be impossible to identify the species, which may be new, and are almost certainly new records for Samoa. |
Faimly: Malacanthidae | |
Hoplolatilus marcosi |
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We observed and videotaped a group of at least four or five individuals of this very distinctive species of tilefish - a new record for Samoa. |
Faimly: Labridae | |
Bodianus c.f. bimaculatus *? |
At one point along a small ledge at about 100 meters, we saw a group of small yellow wrasses of the genus Bodianus. They looked most similar to B. bimaculatus, but there appear to be two closely-related but distinct species assigned to this name, and it's not certain which of the two we saw in Fagatele Bay. In any case, at the very least it is a new record for Samoa. |
Cirrhilabris n.sp.1 * |
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This large and spectacular new Cirrhilabrus was only recently discovered on deep-reefs in Fiji (click here and scroll down to the log entry for April 4, 2001 to see another image of this fish), and has yet to be named. Its most striking feature is a prominent lanceolate tale on the males. |
Cirrhilabris n.sp.2 ** |
We observed many individuals of a different Cirrhilabrus species unlike any other known species. It was too small to capture adequate images with the video camera (typically on the order of about 40mm SL)
but we observed large aggregations of them quite closely. The males are generally darkish with some stark yellow and white markings dorsally. |
Novaculops n.sp. **? |
In the same depth and habitat that we observed the small Cirrhilabrus and Paracheilinus, we saw several small Novaculops that were whitish with a reddish stripe along the side of the body. We also saw (but were unable to capture on videotape) a larger
Novaculops clearly unlike any other known species in the genus, which is likely to be the terminal male phase of the smaller pale species. |
Paracheilinus sp. **? |
Along with the groups of small brown & yellow Cirrhilabrus were equally large numbers of an equally small species in the genus Paracheilinus.
It most closely resembled P. carpenteri, but the pattern of lines on the side of the males was quite distinct. Like the Cirrhilabrus, it was abundant
over sandy areas at depths in excess of about 50 meters (165 feet). In any case, it is the first record of the genus in Samoa. |
Faimly: Pomacentridae | |
Amphiprion clarkii? |
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We saw a solitary anemonefish in an anemone at a depth of 60m on the sand slope. Its coloration more closely matched that of A. clarkii than that of A. chrysopterus. If the former species, it is a new record for Fagatele Bay. |
Chromis n.sp. ** |
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An apparently new species of Chromis was abundant on the small ledges out in the sand at 100 metrs depth. These were similar to another new species from Palau, but appeared to be distinct. |
Faimly: Pomacanthidae | |
Centropyge heraldi |
John Earle observed a single individual of this species at a depth of 220 feet. It had a black marking on the soft dorsal fin, typical of the "woodheadi" form of this species. It is the first record of this species from Fagatele Bay. |
Centropyge multifasciata |
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We saw several individuals of this species, and managed to capture one juvenile on videotape. It's a first record for Fagatele Bay. |
Faimly: Pinguipedidae | |
Parapercis n.sp. ** |
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We captured on videotape an apparently new species of sand perch, in the genus Parapercis. This species appears similar to another new deep-reef Parapercis from Papua New Guinea. |
Faimly: Ostraciidae | |
Ostracion whitleyi |
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We videotaped a single female individual of this species, which has never before been recorded from Samoa. |