About half a mile off Hurghada, in the Egyptian Red Sea, there is the grim 40 year old wreck of the Minna - a Soviet-build minesweeper - lying on its side at 32 metres. In one of those striking contrasts beloved by divers, delicate soft corals (Dendronephthya hembrichi) have grown underneath the bow. Amongst them I was delighted to find an ornate ghost pipefish (Solenostomus paradoxes: 5 cms.). The fish's distinctive camouflaged body shape and colours helped it to blend into its environment; potential predators would have difficulty in detecting it. It feeds on mysids and tiny benthic shrimps.

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Size: 3852px × 3082px
Location: Shipwreck of Minna, Hurghada, Egypt
Photo credit: © Terence Dormer / Alamy / Afripics
License: Royalty Free
Model Released: No

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