Diving is full of surprises, especially the Indo Pacific. New species of fish and marine life are being discovered on a regular basis in this underwater paradise. Even though divers come prepared to look for the many fish known to be in this area, finding them can sometimes be a difficult task. One of the most difficult fish to spot is the Ghost Pipe Fish. They are masters at camouflage, hiding among crinoids, plant life or mimicking sticks, sea grass, and other underwater vegetation, depending on the species. This ability to camouflage themselves in their underwater habitat, puts them on the list of creatures for whom divers search. Ghost Pipefish are sexually dimorphic so the male and female are easily distinguishable. The male is about ½ the size of the female. During breeding season, the Ghost Pipe Fish will change their color and their shape to camouflage themselves even better. The Ghost Pipefish belong in the same family as the Sea Horse, but unlike the Sea Horse, the female Ghost Pipefish harbors the eggs in her pouch, instead of being carried by the male. Ghost Pipefish are an external skin-brooding species, which means the eggs are enclosed into a pouch and attached inside. This only occurs on the inside surface of the pelvic fins of the females and they are the brooders in this species. The female’s pelvic fins are larger than the males and the female is also larger than the male. The female’s pelvic fins are expanded and connect to the body and to each other to form a brooding pouch. She will fan the eggs by opening and closing her pelvic fins. The females will carry the eggs in this pouch during the incubation period. This allows the female to move the babies to a protected site for survival and also decreased the risk of them being eaten during the developmental stage. A normal brood size may be up to 350 babies. The young are expelled from the pouch at birth. The small babies start out as larvae, drifting in the ocean currents as maturity is gradually reached. They will then settle on the ocean floor, transparent in color, until it finds its way to the reef to reproduce. At this stage, the Pipefish will now take on shape and color, camouflaging itself on the reef. Ghost Pipefish will find a mate and pair off in a union that can be observed for many days. Once fertilized the cycle repeats itself. Ghost Pipefish grow to approximately five inches long and the float almost motionless, with their head and mouth facing downward, by floating around a similar background, they are almost impossible to see. They feed on tiny crustaceans which they suck through their long snout. Ghost Pipefish grow to approximately five inches long and the float almost motionless, with their head and mouth facing downward, by floating around a similar background, they are almost impossible to see. They feed on tiny crustaceans which they suck through their long snout. The Ornate or Harlequin Ghost Pipefish are both colorful and distinctive. They are found living around crinoids, featherstars, gorgonian fans and black coral bushes. Their coloring and body shape help them hide or stay camouflaged. The key to this ability to camouflage is the skin flaps that these fish use to mimic feathers. Harlequin Ghost Pipefish can be found in shallow tropical and sub tropical waters near coral reefs, rocky drop-offs, or seaweed beds. They usually are found in depths of 9 to 75 feet. I found numerous pairs while diving in Bunaken, and many of the females were brooding babies. Their colors varied and included red, orange, black, and semi-transparent. Robust Ghost Pipefish do not have the skin flaps of the Ornate Ghost Pipefish. Their bodies are elongated and mostly smooth, but they do have the distinctive pelvic fins like other Ghost Pipefishes. I also saw many pairs of these fish on the reefs and near algae in the coral rubble vegetation off the coast of Bunaken, and in the muck at Lembeh Strait. Many of the females were brooding eggs in their pouches. They also float, or hover, almost motionless with their mouths facing downward. With smooth bodies, they resembled twigs or sea grass floating in the water and were easily missed by divers. With coloring in shades of light to dark brown, they can also be found in shades of grey to bright green. These are the largest of the Ghost Pipefish growing to a maximum length of 15 cm or almost six inches long. An exciting moment of my trip was finding a Red Robust Ghost Pipefish which is very rare to see. Ghost Pipefish are so difficult to spot and are such an oddity that when spotted a large group of divers can be found surrounding and gawking at these little “Ghosts”. They are typically a solitary species, but most of the ones we saw were paired with a mate, which may have indicated a mating season. . Even though these are not extremely rare to find on the reefs, their camouflage hides them so well that they are missed by most divers. During my trip, I saw many of each of these varieties, but because they “hide”, there is always a rush of adrenaline upon “bumping” into one of these ghosts that lurk in the reef and muck Coral bleaching, pollution and destructive fishing methods are all a threat to the Ghost Pipefish. A further threat to their numbers is the home aquarium trade.
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Kelly WalkottenI am a nature, wildlife and underwater photographer. I love to travel and capture the story. Archives
October 2020
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