Iniistius aneitensis Juvenile

Here's another macro photo from way back that I dug up and cleaned up on a rainy afternoon in Palau, the same day I processed the red-margin shrimp goby photo I posted a couple of days ago.

This is a juvenile pale razorfish (Iniistius aneitensis) with its mouth open. I photographed it in early 2009 while I was visiting the Lembeh Strait.

Iniistius aneitensis juvenile
Juvenile Iniistius aneitensis, Pale Razorfish (License image)

If you've ever seen one of these, you'll know how haphazard and unpredictable their swimming can be. As I recall, getting the fish to be comfortable enough to pose for a side-on portrait with its mouth open took a lot of time (and grumbling).