Robust Ghost Pipefish

Photo: Susanne Spindler · CC BY-NC-ND

Larger and plainer than its ornate relative, the robust ghost pipefish blends into seagrass beds and algae-covered rubble at Masaplod Norte with cryptic green and brown mottling. Their concealment is so effective that guides often locate them by searching methodically along seagrass blade tips where pairs orient to drift with the tidal flow.