This identification is based only on where they were found, among the spines of Acanthaster planci, the crown-of-thorns seastar, where Siphamia fusculineata is supposed to live. I cannot see enough detail in the photos to try to distinguish them from the similar looking Siphamia tubifer; both species range from all black to longitudinally striped. There is in the lower photo one contradictory factor. The lowest fish in the photo appears to have rather narrow black stripes, more characteristic of Siphamia tubifer, even though it is in a severed arm of a seastar. We do not know what happened to the rest of the seastar, but the little piece of arm seemed to be getting along. Maybe because there is only a small chunk of the arm present, a few S. tubifer got confused, thinking it was an urchin. Or maybe some S. tubifer are not particularly choosy about the kind of spines they live among.
Created 13 December 2017