Scott W. Michael is an internationally recognized writer, underwater photographer, and researcher that specializes in elasmobranchs (i.e., sharks, skates and rays) and coral reef fishes. He has studied the behavioral ecology of sharks in New Zealand and the Gulf of California. His passion for cartilaginous fishes resulted in his first book, Reef Sharks and Rays of the World (1994). He subsequently moved further down the food chain and began researching the behavioral ecology of reef fishes. Scott researched the behavior of frogfishes in the lab and in the field and has studied a variety of other coral reef fishes during his extensive travels. In 1998, he wrote the first of a six volume series on the fishes that inhabit coral reefs entitled Reef Fishes. He has since written A Pocket Expert Guide to Marine Fishes (1999), Aquarium Sharks and Rays (2001) and Reef Fishes Volume 2 (2003).

Scott is a partner in a massive web-site project, www.coralrealm.com, providing much of the written and photographic content. (Coral Realm is a web-site for those that love sharks and rays, reef fishes and invertebrates.) He has also been a scientific consultant for National Geographic Explorer and the Discovery Channel. Scott has been writing a monthly column and article for Aquarium Fish Magazine since 1994. His articles have also appeared in Freshwater and Marine Aquarium, Sea Scope, Sea Frontiers, Discover Diving, a number of annual publications and scientific publications.

Scott’s research and photographic endeavors have led him from the Sea of Cortez and Cocos Island in the Eastern Pacific, to various points in the Indo-Pacific, including the Red Sea, the Maldive Islands, Fiji Islands, Papua New Guinea, Australia and Japan. He spends at least one month in Indonesia every year.

A marine aquarist since boyhood, he has kept marine fishes for more than 30 years, with many years of extensive involvement, including a period of retail store ownership, in the aquarium trade. Scott resides in Lincoln, Nebraska with his wife Janine Cairns-Michael (a displaced New Zealander) and his golden retriever “Ruby.”

ABSTRACT:

My Favorite Fishes!

There have never been as many fishes available to the marine aquarist as there are today. Not only are collectors shipping a greater variety of fishes from sites around the world, more fishes are being successfully raised in captivity. In this presentation I would like to share information on and photos of some of my favorite bony fishes (sorry elasmophiles, no sharks or rays!). We will look at species in a number of different groups, including some anthias, dottybacks, wrasses, shrimp gobies, frogfishes and many more! We will discuss the natural history of these fishes as well as their husbandry requirements. Special attention will be paid to some of the “new” species that are now available to hobbyists.