Cairns Marine

09/09/2026

FISH NERD CHALLENGE 🔎🐟

We have been getting right into the fine detail lately, and this is one of the easier close ups we have captured of this particular creature. There is quite a bit in the image to work with, especially compared with some of the far more devious angles sitting in our photo library.

One hint only: these are remarkably intelligent creatures.

What is it?

Common name will get you on the board. Scientific name earns full Fish Nerd honours, and bonus points for explaining which small detail gave it away.

Tomorrow at our usual 6 pm answer time, we are going to be slightly annoying and make you wait another hour. Instead, we will share several more images of this beautiful animal from different angles, simply because they are too good not to enjoy.

Jump in at 6 pm, have a look through the extra photographs and get your final answer lodged. The answer and winners will follow at 7 pm.

Reverse image search remains the digital equivalent of peeking at the answer sheet. 😂

08/09/2026

THE ULTIMATE AQUARIUM CRUSTACEAN

Blood Shrimp, Lysmata debelius. Surely one of the best looking shrimp in the ocean, and probably the ultimate aquarium crustacean.

The unfortunate part is that ours do not make life easy.

For us, collecting Blood Shrimp means deep diving in the Coral Sea. They are uncommon, and targeting them takes a full day using the entire boat and crew. By the time you add vessel time, fuel, crew and the dive effort, it is a costly exercise for a relatively small number of shrimp.

Cleaner shrimp are collected on the same trips. That is also why Australian cleaner shrimp carry the value they do. If the market will not support the real cost of putting the boat out there, we simply cannot afford to target them. It is not complicated. It is simple economics.

The same Blood Shrimp come from Sri Lanka very cheaply and in large numbers. We are genuinely not sure how they manage to find so many. Ours have clearly missed the memo about gathering somewhere shallow, close and convenient. The habitat and abundance there must be very different from what we see here. 😂

We only get them from the Coral Sea, although they have also been seen on the Great Barrier Reef and down through the Swains.

This is one of those animals where the price is not about the size of the shrimp. It is about everything required to put one in an aquarium.

We have a couple left from last week’s Coral Sea unload. Not many, and certainly not something we see every trip.

Still the best looking shrimp out there.

08/09/2026

We’ve heard Mel may be on her way back tomorrow, and we’re certainly hoping she is.

She has only been away for a few days, but she always makes a spectacular difference to the place. The team notices it, the tanks notice it, and the usual level of organised chaos just is not quite the same without her.

This is roughly how we imagine her return. A quiet entrance has never really been Mel’s style.

We’ve cleared the aisle and told the seahorses to be ready, just in case.

Fingers crossed we see her tomorrow, riding back in at full gallop. 😂

05/09/2026

G’day, reefers! 🪸

The fabulous folded Trachyphyllia geoffroyi is now available at Cairns Marine!

Sustainably collected from the pristine waters north of Cairns, these spectacular corals feature distinctive folds, beautiful natural colouration and plenty of character. They’ll make an impressive addition to any reef aquarium.

Numbers are limited, so contact our team soon to secure yours!

🌏 Available to Australian and international trade clients.

05/09/2026

Could be a late night…. Looks like there are a few good questions popping up all over the place!

Everyone should know Cairns Marine - Australia's most established e...

04/09/2026

THE BLOKE BEHIND CAIRNS MARINE

A lot of people following this page know our fish, corals, boats and divers. Far fewer know much about Lyle Squire Jnr, our Director.

The title came later. Lyle has always been a diver first.

He began diving, fishing and collecting marine life in the waters off Far North Queensland, became an Australian fishing champion at 18, and went on to build decades of experience in technical and rebreather diving, vessel operations, marine life collection, husbandry and international live animal transport.

Over more than 30 years, he has worked with everything from tiny reef fishes and corals through to sharks, rays and major public aquarium projects around the world.

That practical background still shapes the way Cairns Marine operates today. Know the habitat. Understand the animal. Collect selectively. Handle it properly. Follow its care all the way through.

It has also left Lyle with a collection of stories that would sound thoroughly embellished coming from almost anyone else. In his case, the facts normally do most of the heavy lifting.

This Sunday, Lyle joins Aquariums Anonymous to talk about marine life collection, particular species, diving, corals, vessels, public aquariums and whatever else people throw at him.

Add your questions to the original Aquariums Anonymous post and tune in Sunday night. https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1EwrEdE1PB/

We cannot promise a short answer. We can promise there will probably be a story. 😂

04/09/2026

🦈 Meet one of Australia's smallest whaler sharks
Laura's Water Column - Week 1

Over the past few years, Cairns Marine has had the opportunity to work with the Australian whitecheek shark (Carcharhinus coatesi), a little-known, coastal dwelling northern Australian species that reaches less than a metre in length (adult females max-out at under 90cm).

Through collection, husbandry, successful breeding and the birth of a pup earlier this year, we've had a rare opportunity to learn about this species in human care, something that, to our knowledge, had not been achieved before.
What we learn ex situ helps us fill-in the knowledge gaps for this species in the wild.

Despite being one of the smallest whaler sharks, C. coatesi is calm, confident and full of surprises, with behaviours that differ in some fascinating ways from its larger relatives.

Our pup was born at just 38 cm total length and has already grown to 66 cm in six months, giving us an even greater opportunity to understand this remarkable species through every life stage.

💙 Sometimes the smallest sharks provide the biggest insights.

04/09/2026

🌊 Welcome to Laura's Water Column

Each week I'll be sharing insights into what we do at Cairns Marine, with stories from behind the scenes, beyond the viewing window, and from the animals and systems that keep us learning every day.
We'll explore a wide range of species and topics, from husbandry, welfare, collection and handling to water quality, breeding, research projects, and the occasional species that's written its own rulebook.

Most importantly, I'd love your feedback.
Are there topics you'd like me to cover? Something you've always wondered about? Let me know in the comments and I'll add it to the list.

I hope you enjoy this little glimpse into our world.

See you beneath the surface.
Laura 🤿🔬🐚🐠🪸🌊

P.S. No question is too simple or too obscure. If you're curious, there's a good chance someone else is too!

03/09/2026

Everyone knows Mel. Why? Because she's a fish nerd… but unlike the rest of us, she's in a league of her own. 🤓🐠
A genuine hobbyist at heart, Mel doesn't just know what our clients want — she knows what their clients want. That's a pretty handy person to have looking after Domestic Sales!
If Mel has a fault, it's attempting to provide a level of service beyond the capabilities of a normal human. 😂 She doesn't really have clients anymore; she has friends throughout the industry, and genuinely loves sharing the incredible animals she gets to see at Cairns Marine every day.
Competitors have tried pretty hard to lure her away over the years — we're pleased to report they've been spectacularly unsuccessful. 👀 Mel has stuck with CM through thick and thin and is always one of the first to put her hand up when there's a problem to solve.
Outside CM she's an avid fisher, collector of… well, pretty much anything, and apparently thinks putting on a suit of armour and jousting at medieval festivals is a perfectly reasonable recreational activity. True story. ⚔️😂
A character of wild contrasts — rather fitting for someone surrounded every day by one of the most diverse collections of marine life you'll find anywhere.
Passionate, loyal, slightly mad and an absolutely integral part of Cairns Marine.
That's our Mel. 💙