Kona cave reveals new species of fish
Posted: Sep 11, 2007 8:32 pmKAILUA-KONA ยป Marine biologist Marc Hughes was about 100 feet into the dark recesses of an underwater South Kona cave in July when he saw what he had looked for since 1998: an unusual brown fish about 6 inches long.
<img src="http://starbulletin.com/2007/09/11/news/art6a.jpg" align="left">With a flash of his hand, he scooped it up and put it in a pocket. "I was a scuba guide for years. You learn how to catch your fish," he said.
Shortly after Hughes made his catch, tropical fish authority John E. Randall at the Bishop Museum confirmed that Hughes had found a new species in the genus Grammonus.
Hughes informally announced the discovery last week as a means of giving recognition, and hopefully protection, to other sea creatures along the Kona coast that could be threatened by development.
Formal recognition of the fish, including bestowing a new species name, will take about a year, said Randall, who is writing a scientific paper on the discovery.
<a href="http://starbulletin.com/2007/09/11/news/story06.html">via Star Bulletin</a>
<img src="http://starbulletin.com/2007/09/11/news/art6a.jpg" align="left">With a flash of his hand, he scooped it up and put it in a pocket. "I was a scuba guide for years. You learn how to catch your fish," he said.
Shortly after Hughes made his catch, tropical fish authority John E. Randall at the Bishop Museum confirmed that Hughes had found a new species in the genus Grammonus.
Hughes informally announced the discovery last week as a means of giving recognition, and hopefully protection, to other sea creatures along the Kona coast that could be threatened by development.
Formal recognition of the fish, including bestowing a new species name, will take about a year, said Randall, who is writing a scientific paper on the discovery.
<a href="http://starbulletin.com/2007/09/11/news/story06.html">via Star Bulletin</a>