This week’s spotlight is on the Network Pipefish of Lembeh. Lembeh is home to many species of Pipefish, all beautiful and interesting in their own way. This lovely image was captured by our guest, Manuela.
The Network Pipefish is also known as the Banded Pipefish, Yellow Banded Pipefish and the Reticulated Pipefish. The scientific name is Corythoichthys Flavofasiatus from the Family, Syngnathidae.
You can find these pretty Pipefish within the reef or amongst the rubble on the ocean floor. They can be spotted throughout the Indo-Pacific region anywhere from two metres to twenty five metres in depth. The Network Pipefish grows to approximately 18 centimetres in length and likes to feed on small invertebrates. Just like it’s relative, the Seahorse, the male Pipefish is the caretaker when it comes to the offspring. The female lays a sheet of eggs, attaches them to her male partner who then incubates the eggs for approximately one month.
Lembeh Strait is an absolute treasure trove for photographers seeking out the perfect Pipefish photo! Also seen this week were the Robust Ghost Pipefish, Mimic Octopus, Wunderpus Octopus, Reticulated Star Gazer, Ribbon Eel, Banded Snake Eel, Longhorn Cowfish, along with the Painted and Giant Frogfish.
This week on Lembeh we’ve had the pleasure of Csaba joining us during his Dive Master training with Two Fish. He has been training in Amed, Lombok and Bunaken, and finishes off here in Lembeh. A persistent ear infection kept him topside for a few days, but it cleared up in time to complete his Skin Diver Workshop and Equipment Exchange. Well done Csaba – welcome to the world of Professional Divers!
Lembeh was again the place for another Open Water Diver to take the plunge and become certified! Jeckie completed his Open Water Course with flying colours this week. Well done Jeckie! He loved it so much, he is also going on to do his Advanced Open Water.
Our guests this week were from Germany, Canada, Belgium, Singapore, Spain and the United Kingdom.
Happy Bubbles!