19/06/2026
Tiny illusionists of the reef. Redhead Coral Gobies (Paragobiodon echinocephalus) live exclusively in mated pairs inside Seriatopora hystrix corals, whose dense branches create near-impenetrable hideaways. Their scaleless, mucus-laden skin carries clusters of poison cells for an added layer of defense.
Aquarium experimentation in the 1990s revealed that coral gobies have the unconventional ability to change s*x more than once (bi-directional s*x change) during their lifetimes—the only group of reef fishes presently known to do so.
But their most remarkable adaptation: surviving up to four hours out of water during spring tides, recycling a single droplet over their gills to extract every last molecule of oxygen available.
Small in size but extraordinary by design.
You can find these photos on pages 64–65 of our book Under WATER!
