418 Dive Log Australasia JUNE 2026.pdf

Yongala is home to Queensland Cod

Always try to photograph the eyes. Good eye contact makes the shot!

couple of shots so as not to disturb them. If they wake up and bolt from their sleeping bag, they cannot make a second sleeping bag as they have a limited supply of slime. They have to spend the night unprotected and run the risk of being smelled by a predator or of getting attacked by parasites.

Once fully digested, the coral slurry is passed out of the cloaca of the parrotfish as pure white coral sand. Whenever you are diving in the tropics, much of the coral sand has been passed through the digestive system of Parrotfish and is in fact parrotfish poo! Bumphead Parrotfish produce several tonnes of coral sand each year. The coral slime is stored in their mouth. There are two possible explanations as to why they sleep in a bag of slime. One is that the coral slime obviously smells identical to the coral, masking the smell of the fish. Predators hunting at night, mainly hunt by smell. Therefore, the Parrotfish has developed what I call ‘invisible smelliness’ , a state of unsmellability! We all know some deluded humans think like this and believe that they smell like roses all the time. The other theory from Dr Lexa Grutter, is that the slime bag prevents parasites such as blood sucking isopods from getting to the parrotfish skin. The Parrotfish does not get attacked by parasites. I much prefer the first explanation but someone needs to verify it. However, the second explanation also has some merit. Photographing Parrot fish at night is challenging. It is quite rare that you encounter one in the open. They mostly are deep inside staghorn coral and within their sleeping bag. However, occasionally, you can get a clear shot, especially if you dive one hour after sunset when they are fully asleep. I am always careful to take just a

Bump Head Parrot fish

Experiment with your composition using front on shots versus side on shots.

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Dive Log Australasia #418 JUNE ’26

www.divelog.net.au