A rare fish with an unkempt red mane that made headlines around the world when it was photographed on the Great Barrier Reef has been brought to life in a children’s book launching in Cairns this week.
Underwater macro photographer John Magee has created Hairy Harry, an eco-minded redhead character based on the hairy ghost pipefish, for a children’s book called Hairy Harry’s Very Hairy Day which he hopes will inspire a love of conservation.
“Diving and photography are my hobbies and I’ve been heading out to the Great Barrier Reef with Passions of Paradise every week for the past four and a half years,” Mr Magee said.
“They have the best moorings where I can indulge my curiosity for the many macro creatures on the Great Barrier Reef. I dived under the Passions catamaran one day at Hastings Reef and found some red algae on the seabed. Then I noticed an eye looking at me and it was a hairy ghost pipefish.
“In 30 years of diving I have not seen another and I’ve only heard of one other person who has seen a hairy ghost pipefish on the Great Barrier Reef.
“I went back to the same spot with Passions of Paradise a couple of days later and found him again. I took a couple of hundred pics over four dives and then posted my best one on a Facebook page for macro photographers all over the world.
“Two days later I checked the post and it had 34,000 likes. I started getting calls from newspapers, scuba diving magazines and even National Geographic.
“My photograph has featured in The Australian, National Geographic, the BBC and Australian Geographic. It was a finalist in the Australian Geographic Wildlife Photographer of the Year and has been used for studies around the world.
“I had the idea for a children’s book that would encourage the next generation to conserve the Great Barrier Reef. Hairy Harry is a vain, but shy character who needs to go to the hair salon before he can talk to leaders from around the world about the delicate environment that he lives in and issue a plea for people to protect his home.”
Mr Magee, who left Northern Ireland 35 years ago for Australia, chose Nightingale Books in the UK to develop illustrations from his famous photograph and publish his story book.
Passions of Paradise Chief Executive Officer Scotty Garden said Mr Magee’s macro photographs were on display on the Passions catamaran and created a talking point for passengers.
“John has been a great supporter of Passions for many years and I’ve dived with him many times, but I have never seen Hairy Harry in person,” he said. “Our passengers love chatting to John about the hairy ghost pipefish when they see him on the boat and he is a great source of information about the macro creatures on the Great Barrier Reef.”
Hairy Harry’s Very Hairy Day, published by Nightingale Books in the UK can be ordered from Amazon, Pegasus, and Booktopia.
