Alex Mustard / Yellowtail tang (Zebrasoma xanthurum) male and female turn belly to belly during spawning to ensure fertilization. Temple, Ras Umm Sid, Sharm El Sheikh, Sinai, Egypt. Red Sea. This action is very fast...

Alex Mustard / Southern stingray (Dasyatis americana) two swimming over sand bar, under stormy sky. Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands. British West Indies.

Alex Mustard / Dugong (Dugong dugon) male and juvenile Golden trevally (Gnathanodon speciosus) swimming over Seagrass (Halophila stipulacea) meadow. Marsa Nabaa, Marsa Alam, Egypt.

Alex Mustard / Green turtle (Chelonia mydas) resting on sea floor and two juvenile Golden trevally (Gnathanodon speciosus). Marsa El Shouna, Marsa Alam, Egypt.

Alex Mustard / Three Pink anemonefish (Amphiprion perideraion) living in a purple skirted magnificent sea anemone (Heteractis magnifica) on a coral reef, below a small island. Misool, Raja Ampat, West Papua, Indones...

Alex Mustard / Whale shark (Rhincodon typus) close to the camera with a golden trevally fish (Gnathanodon speciosus) and outline of another whale shark behind , in the plankton-rich green waters of La Paz bay, Baja...

Alex Mustard / Midnight snapper (Macolor macularis) shelters in a cavern on a coral reef with white soft corals (Scleronephthya sp.) and solderfish. Vavuu Atoll, Maldives. Indian Ocean

Alex Mustard / School of White collar butterflyfish (Chaetodon collare) pack together above a coral reef. North Male Atoll, Maldives. Indian Ocean

Alex Mustard / Orange painted frogfish (Antennarius pictus) fishing. Here the frogfish is illuminated by a snooted strobe and the background sand lit with a red LED torch. Bitung, North Sulawesi, Indonesia. Lembeh S...

Alex Mustard / Thorny seahorse (Hippocampus histrix) gripping onto a sponge. Bitung, North Sulawesi, Indonesia. Lembeh Strait, Molucca Sea.

Alex Mustard / Pair of Western clown anemonefish (Amphiprion ocellaris) spawning orange eggs on the rock beneath their Magnificent sea anemone (Heteractis magnifica) home on a coral reef. This photo shows the larger...

Alex Mustard / Two female Common seahorses (Hippocampus kuda) fighting over territory on the seabed. The brief fight was preceeded by a ritualised, synchronised parade. Bitung, North Sulawesi, Indonesia. Lembeh Stra...

Alex Mustard / Common seahorse (Hippocampus kuda) female wrapping her prehensile tail around piece of wood on the seabed. Bitung, North Sulawesi, Indonesia. Lembeh Strait, Molucca Sea.

Alex Mustard / Whitemargin stargazer (Uranoscopus sulphureus) sets an ambush in the sand at night. Bitung, North Sulawesi, Indonesia. Lembeh Strait, Molucca Sea.

Alex Mustard / Reef lizardifsh (Synodus variegatus) at a cleaning station, being cleaned by Holthuis anemone shrimps (Ancylomenes holthuisi). Bitung, North Sulawesi, Indonesia. Lembeh Strait, Molucca Sea.

Alex Mustard / Portrait of a tarpon (Megalops atlanticus) on a coral reef. East End, Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands, British West Indies. Caribbean Sea.

Alex Mustard / Portrait of a male short snouted seahorse (Hippocampus hippocampus) in sea oak seaweed (Halidrys siliquosa). Devon, England, United Kingdom. British Isles. English Channel. North East Atlantic Ocean.

Alex Mustard / Forster's hawkfish (Paracirrhites forsteri) on a coral reef. Jackson Reef, Tiran, Sinai, Egypt. Strait of Tiran, Gulf of Aqaba, Egypt.

Alex Mustard / Tiger cardinalfish (Cheilodipterus macrodon) male mouth brooding a clutch of eggs behind his sharp teeth. Gubal Island, Egypt. Strait Of Gubal, Red Sea.

Alex Mustard / Yellowtail tang (Zebrasoma xanthurum) male courting a female prior to spawning at dusk on a coral reef. Temple, Ras Umm Sid, Sharm El Sheikh, Sinai, Egypt. Red Sea.

Alex Mustard / Bengal snapper (Lutjanus bengalensis), Bannerfish (Heniochus diphreutes) and Fusiliers (Caesio sp.) diving towards coral reef to avoid predators. North Ari Atoll, Maldives. Indian Ocean.

Alex Mustard / Oriental sweetlips (Plectorhinchus vittatus) pair. South Ari Atoll, Madlives. Indian Ocean.

Alex Mustard / Giant mottled eel (Anguilla marmorata) in river with villagers washing clothes in background. Ambon, Maluku Archipelago, Indonesia. Banda Sea, tropical west Pacific Ocean.

Alex Mustard / Striped mackerel (Rastrelliger kanagurta) shoal swimming with open mouths, filtering for zooplankton. Marsa Shouna, Port Ghalib, Marsa Alam, Egypt. Red Sea

Alex Mustard / Schools of Pacific creolefish (Cephalopholis colonus) and Panamic sergeant major (Abudefduf troschelii) swimming through sun beams inside an underwater cavern. Los Islotes, La Paz, Baja California Sur...

Alex Mustard / Striped mackerel (Rastrelliger kanagurta) mouth wide open as it swims through the water, filtering zoopankton with its gill rakers. Marsa Shouna, Port Ghalib, Marsa Alam, Egypt. Red Sea

Alex Mustard / Warty / Clown frogfish (Antennarius maculatus) male portrait, Anilao, Batangas, Luzon, Philippines, March

Alex Mustard / Ribbon sweetlips (Plectorhinchus polytaenia) USAT Liberty Wreck, Tulamben, Bali, Indonesia. Java Sea

Alex Mustard / Grey seal (Halichoerus grypus) young seal silhouetted against the sun as it dives after breathing, Lundy Island, Devon, UK, Bristol Channel, August

Alex Mustard / Brandt's cormorant (Phalacrocorax penicillatus) hunts for a meal in a school of Pacific chub mackerel (Scomber japonicus) beneath an oil rig. Eureka Rig, Los Angeles, California, USA, September

Alex Mustard / Tompot blenny (Parablennius gattorugine) portrait, Swanage Pier, Swanage, Dorset, UK, English Channel, August

Alex Mustard / Brandt's cormorant (Phalacrocorax penicillatus) hunts for a meal in a school of Pacific chub mackerel (Scomber japonicus), beneath an oil rig. Eureka Rig, Los Angeles, California, United States of Ame...

Alex Mustard / California sea lion (Zalophus californianus) adult female swimming through sunbeams in an underwater cave. Los Isotes, La Paz, Mexico. Sea of Cortez, East Pacific Ocean.

Alex Mustard / Great white shark (Carcharodon carcharias) from above. Guadalupe Island, Baja California, Mexico. East Pacific Ocean

Alex Mustard / Leafy seadragon (Phycodurus eques). Wool Bay Jetty, Edithburgh, Yorke Peninsula, South Australia.

Alex Mustard / Spotlight goby (Gobiosoma louisae) looking out from inside a Yellow tube sponge (Aplysina fistularis), growing on a coral reef. Bloody Bay Wall, Little Cayman, Cayman Islands, British West Indies. Car...

Alex Mustard / Nassau grouper (Epinephelus striatus) yawning on a coral reef drop off. San Salvador island, Bahamas. Bahamas Sea, Tropical West Atlantic Ocean.

Alex Mustard / Lion's mane jellyfish (Cyanea capillata) with feeding tentacles spread swimming in the sun in shallow water. Gulen, Norway. North East Atlantic Ocean.

Alex Mustard / Maldivian anemonefish (Amphiprion nigripes) shelters against a closed magnificent sea anemone (Heteractis magnifica). Male Atoll, Maldives. Indian Ocean.

Alex Mustard / Great hammerhead shark (Sphyrna mokarran) female at night with Bar jacks (Caranx ruber), South Bimini, Bahamas. The Bahamas National Shark Sanctuary. Gulf Stream, West Atlantic Ocean.

Alex Mustard / Great hammerhead shark (Sphyrna mokarran) swimming over a sandy seabed, accompanied by Rainbow runners (Elagatis bipinnulata) South Bimini, Bahamas. The Bahamas National Shark Sanctuary. Gulf Stream,...

Alex Mustard / Red and black anemonefish (Amphiprion melanopus) in a Bulb tentacle sea anemone (Entacmaea quadricolor). Kri Island, Raja Ampat, West Papua, Indonesia, South East Asia. Dampier Strait, Tropical West P...

Alex Mustard / Maldive anemonefish (Amphiprion nigripes) shoal swimming in the current flowing over a Magnificent sea anemone (Heteractis magnifica). Baa Atoll, Maldives. Indian Ocean.

Alex Mustard / Hedgehog seahorse (Hippocampus spinosissimus) female moves over a sandy seabed. Dauin, Negros Island, Philippines. Bohol Sea, tropical west Pacific Ocean.

Alex Mustard / Red Irish lord (Hemilepidotus hemilepidotus) resting on a yellow sponge, in front of red soft coral (Eunephthya rubiformis). Browning Pass, Port Hardy, Vancouver Island, British Columbia. Canada. Nor...

Alex Mustard / Colourful reef scene with Leather corals (Sarcophyton sp.), Soft corals (Dendronephthya sp.) Seafans (Melithea sp.) and fish, including Magenta slender anthias (Luzonichthys waitei) and Scalefin anthi...

Alex Mustard / Portrait of a Severn's pygmy seahorse (Hippocampus severnsi) at Mioskon Island, Raja Ampat, West Papua, Indonesia. Dampier Strait. Tropical West Pacific Ocean.

Alex Mustard / Yellowbelly hamlets (Hypoplectrus aberrans) pair spawning at dusk (artifically backlit). Hamlets are hermaphroditic species. George Town, Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands. Caribbean Sea.

Alex Mustard / Black hamlet (Hypoplectrus nigricans) and Yellowbelly hamlet (Hypoplectrus aberrans) spawning at dusk. As this genus is quite recently evolved hybridization is still possible. Hamlets are one of the...

Alex Mustard / Saddleback anemonefish (Amphiprion polymnus) in anemone home, Anilao, Batangas, Luzon, Philippines. Verde Island Passages, Tropical West Pacific Ocean.

Alex Mustard / Common ghostgoby (Pleurosicya mossambica) with another fish in its mouth on soft coral (Dendronephthya sp.). Tulamben, Bali, Indonesia. Java Sea

Alex Mustard / Harlequin sweetlips (Plectorhinchus chaetodonoides) cleaned by a pair of bluestreak cleaner wrasse (Labroides dimidiatus). South Atoll, Tubbataha Atolls, Tubbataha Reefs Natural Park, Palawan, Philipp...

Alex Mustard / Spaghetti garden eels (Gorgasia maculata) stretching up out of their burrows on a rubble slope, with Mysiid shrimp swimming around their bodies near the seabed. Dumaguete, Dauin, Negros, Philippines....

Alex Mustard / Napoleon wrasse (Cheilinus undulatus) super male, patrolling coral, Ras Mohammed Marine Park, Sinai, Egypt. Red Sea

Alex Mustard / Nassau grouper (Epinephelus striatus) watched by a diver on a coral reef. San Salvador island, Bahamas. Bahamas Sea, Tropical West Atlantic Ocean.

Alex Mustard / Scissortail sergeants (Abudefduf sexfasciatus) swimming over hard corals (Acropora sp.) on shallow reef at sunset, split level view. Gubal Island, Egypt. Red Sea.

Alex Mustard / Group of predators hunting together, in an example of 'Nuclear foraging'. The Moray eel (Gymnothorax javanicus) flushes out prey, and is followed by a Napolean wrasse (Cheilinus undulatus) and a Bluef...

Alex Mustard / Large whip goby (Bryaninops amplus) with a parasitic copepod (with two trailing egg ribbons) perched on Red whip coral. Whale Rock. Fiabacet Islands, Misool, Raja Ampat, West Papua, Indonesia. Ceram S...

Alex Mustard / Colourful reef scene with Coral grouper (Cephalopholis miniata), map puffer (Arothron mappa) and Panda butterflyfish (Chaetodon adiergastos). Tank Reef, Fiabacet Islands, Misool, Raja Ampat, Indonesia...

Alex Mustard / Oceanic whitetip shark (Carcharhinus longimanus) accompanied by pilotfish (Naucrates ductor) as it cruises beneath the surface of the Red Sea, close to Little Brother Island. The Brothers Islands, Egy...

Alex Mustard / Portrait of Blacktip grouper (Epinephelus fasciatus) resting in Barrel sponge (Xestospongia testudinaria) Mabul Island, Sabah, Borneo, Malaysia. Sulawesi Sea.

Alex Mustard / Eyes of Margined sole fish (Brachirus heterolapis) on its camouflaged body. Saonek Island, Raja Ampat, West Papua, Indonesia. Tropical West Pacific Ocean. Dampier Strait.

Alex Mustard / Pink anemonefish (Amphiprion perideraion) looks out from its host Magnificent sea anemone (Heteractis magnifica) Anilao, Batangas, Luzon, Philippines. Verde Island Passages, Tropical West Pacific Ocea...

Alex Mustard / Reticulate stargazer (Uranoscopus sp.) emerging from the sand. Bitung, North Sulawesi, Indonesia. Lembeh Strait, Molucca Sea.

Alex Mustard / Shoal of Bar jacks (Caranx ruber) hunting school of Silversides fish (Atherinidae) in coral cavern. East End, Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands, British West Indies. Caribbean Sea.

Alex Mustard / Close up of tiny (10mm) Pygmy seahorse (Hippocampus bargibanti) living disguised in Muricella sp. sea fan. Bitung, North Sulawesi, Indonesia. Lembeh Strait, Molucca Sea.

Alex Mustard / Busy coral reef community feeding on plankton, with Scalefin anthias (Pseudanthias squamipinnis), Soft corals (Dendronephthya sp.) and Fire corals (Millepora dichotoma), making up classic Red Sea scen...

Alex Mustard / Male Bullethead parrotfish (Chlorurus sordidus) displaying in late afternoon. Ras Katy, Sinai, Egypt. Gulf of Aqaba, Red Sea.

Alex Mustard / Portrait of Red Sea anemonefish (Amphiprion bicinctus) against open water. Abu Nuhas, Strait of Subal, Egypt. Gulf of Suez, Red Sea.

Alex Mustard / Red Sea anemonefish (Amphiprion bicinctus) in Magnificent sea anemone (Heteractis magnifica), which has closed up in the late afternoon, on coral reef under stormy seas. St Johns Reef. Egypt. Red Sea.

Alex Mustard / Busy coral reef community feeding on plankton, with Scalefin anthias (Pseudanthias squamipinnis), Soft corals (Dendronephthya sp.) and Fire corals (Millepora dichotoma) Ras Mohammed Marine Park, Sinai...

Alex Mustard / Red Sea anemonefish (Amphiprion bicinctus) in front of magnificent sea anemone. Anemone City, Ras Mohammed Marine Park, Sinai, Egypt. Gulf of Aqaba, Red Sea.

Alex Mustard / Portrait of Bandcheek wrasse (Oxycheilinus digrammus) taken during the day. Anemone City, Ras Mohammed Marine Park, Gulf of Aqaba, Red Sea. Sinai, Egypt.

Alex Mustard / Portrait of pair of Bohar snappers (Lutjanus bohar) in their spawning aggregation. Shark Reef, Ras Mohammed Marine Park, Sinai, Egypt. Red Sea.

Alex Mustard / Portrait of Bohar snappers (Lutjanus bohar) in its spawning aggregation. Shark Reef, Ras Mohammed Marine Park, Sinai, Egypt. Red Sea.

Alex Mustard / Vibrant Red Sea reef scene, with orange female Scalefin anthias (Pseudanthias squamipinnis) swarming in front of Fire coral (Millepora dichotoma) feeding on plankton brought to the reef by currents. R...

Alex Mustard / Portrait of female Scalefin anthias (Pseudanthias squamipinnis) swimming in open water, Ras Katy. Sharm El Skeikh, Sinai, Egypt. Gulf of Aqaba, Red Sea.

Alex Mustard / Male Scalefin anthias (Pseudanthias squamipinnis) swimming in open water, Ras Katy, Sharm El Sheikh, Sinai, Egypt. Gulf of Aqaba, Red Sea

Alex Mustard / Portrait of male Scalefin anthias (Pseudanthias squamipinnis) swimming in open water, Ras Katy. Sharm El Skeikh, Sinai, Egypt. Gulf of Aqaba, Red Sea.

Alex Mustard / Portrait of male Scalefin anthias (Pseudanthias squamipinnis) swimming in open water, to feed on plankton. Ras Katy, Sinai, Egypt. Gulf of Aqaba, Red Sea.

Alex Mustard / World War II British motorbikes (Norton 16H) stacked up on the back of truck in the hold of wreck of HMS Thistlegorm, with soldierfish (Myripristis murdjan) swimming above. Sha'ab Ali, Sinai, Egypt. R...

Alex Mustard / Scalefin Anthias (Pseudanthias squamipinnis) swarm over coral reef, with Fire coral (Millepora dichotoma) in the Red Sea in the morning. Yolanda Reef, Ras Mohammed Marine Park, Sinai, Egypt. Gulf of A...

Alex Mustard / Pair of Bar jacks (Caranx ruber) hunting Silversides (Atherinidae) inside cave. Devil's Grotto, George Town, Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands, British West Indies. Caribbean Sea.

Alex Mustard / World War II British motorbikes (Norton 16H) stacked up on the back of truck in the hold of wreck of HMS Thistlegorm, with Soldierfish (Myripristis murdjan) swimming above. Sha'ab Ali, Sinai, Egypt. R...

Alex Mustard / A long exposure renders Bar jacks (Carangoides ruber) as ghostly trails as they swim around a sponge, on a coral reef, at night. East End, Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands. Overall winner of GDT competiti...

Alex Mustard / A portrait of a male Ballan wrasse (Labrus bergylta), showing his bright mating colours. Plymouth, Devon, England, Great Britain. Wreck of the Glen Strathallan, Plymouth Sound, English Channel. Highly...

Alex Mustard,Alex Mustard / A portrait of a Mediterranean anthias (Anthias anthias) against open water. Secca Del Papa, Tavolara Marine Protected Area, Sardinia, Italy. Mediterranean Sea.

Alex Mustard,Alex Mustard / A signal blenny (Emblemaria hypacanthus) displays its showy dorsal fin as it extends out of its tube home. La Paz, Mexico. Sea Of Cortez, East Pacific Ocean.