Mating Mandarins

Mandarinfish are very colorful, but elusive, members of the dragonet family. They are native to the Indo-Pacific region and are usually no more than 2-3cm long. At dusk, they begin an elaborate mating ritual where several males try to entice females to mate. When a couple decides to go for it, they zoom up in the water column and the female latches onto the pectoral fin of the male for the mating. You have to be very quick on the shutter to get them. I captured this image in the waters off Malapascua, Cebu, Philippines