Discover the amazing underwater world of the Pacific Basin
The Pacific
Basin is home to thousands of species of fishes. Some live in the open ocean, but many of the species live near the islands to take advantage of the food and shelter of the reefs that develop around islands. As you can see, many reef fishes are brightly colored and/or extravagantly marked. The
colors may serve to warn predators to stay away, act as camouflage, or attract mates.
The designs may mimic a dangerous fish in order to scare away predators, confuse
potential predators, or they
can help a fish blend into the background. One particularly interesting
thing to be aware of--fishes don't necessarily see all the same colors that humans
do. Pair that with the differences in lighting underwater, and a fish that looks
brightly colored to a human might blend in very well with a rocky outcropping
that looks rather dull. More?
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Description: This website provides information about the discovery of the Asian swamp eel (Ophisternon bengalense) in Florida by United States Geological Survey scientists.
Description: This website provides a taxonomic checklist of fishes from brackish and freshwater environments of Hawaii, including information on status, distribution, habitat and origin.
Description: This website provides information about the ALL Species Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to the complete inventory of all species of life on Earth within the next 25 years.
Description: This website provides information about the various shark species in Hawaii, including photos, identification, habitat, and threat to humans.
Description: This website provides information about the biodiversity of Polynesia and Micronesia, and includes resources such as maps, species lists, and a glossary.
Publisher: Conservation International
Date Validated: 7/13/2005
Subject Headings: Birds, Mammals, Plant; Algae & Fungi, Fish
Description: This website provides a checklist by Family of Hawaii's marine fishes. Links to individual Family categories provide photos, descriptions, and habitat information.
Description: This website provides information about the marine life and environment of Hawaii, and includes announcement of talks, tours and exhibits on marine environmental topics.
Description: This website provides a searchable database of fish species found in Hawaii. Results returned are a list of species that match the search criteria.
Description: This website provides access to a Java-based photographic catalogue of deepwater and coral reef fishes of Guam, presented as part of the official Guam website. Photographs are accompanied by species names.
Description: This website provides access to the Fish Osteology Zooarchaeology Reference Collection Database and is searchable by order, family, genus and species, common and local names, locality and status (whether endemic, indigenous, or non-indigenous).
Description: This website provides access to a searchable database of fish species found in Fiji. Results returned are a list of species that match the search criterion along with specimen and taxonomic information (synonyms) if requested.
Taxonomy Database Search Options
Mapping Service
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