Today we had to board the boat on a dock around the corner of the island. A pretty bad thunderstorm was pushing through when we woke up and the water right out front of the hotel was too rough. Rain aside, we were all excited to get back in the water and visit our first stop: the Big Dipper. It’s known for its steep dips that stretch down well over 100ft. We got our gear on and got right in. The first fish that the group saw was a massive Nassau Grouper. This robust fish has brown and white stripes and a dorsal fin with sharp points. These solitary groupers meet at the same spot off the Cayman Islands every year during the Winter full moon in numbers reaching upwards of 7,000. There, they perform the mating ritual which includes a darkening of their colors and a series of sprints launching reproductive cells so much so that it clouds the water. The rest of the year they hunt basically anything by ambush, they also swallow their prey whole. Further down I saw a large French Angelfish, the background coloration of the fish is black and in the fishes midsection the scales and rimmed in yellow. They have a thin body and are known for their curious nature spending the majority of their lives on the reef. The second dive was at a reef called Chain Reef, known for the massive anchor chain spanning a large portion of the reef (whoever is naming these reefs deserves a raise). On the second dive we saw more juvenile fish, crustaceans, and eels. The garden eel was a very common one that we saw. These eels have the appearance of a flexible black pencil. They burrow in small holes in the sand and extend themselves vertically out from their refuges to snag zooplankton, tiny animals like animal larvae, tiny crustaceans and eggs of various reef animals. They typically live in groups and when they are feeding have the look of reeds sticking out of the ground. Another fish I saw was a cleaning goby, this tiny fish is torpedo-shaped with an iridescent white stripe running down its body. It lives in symbiosis with coral reefs: it gets food from the algae and ectoparasites living on the coral and in return the coral protects the fish from larger predators. It’s these types of relationships that keep a healthy ecosystem running smoothly.
After the dives we also saw dozens of green sea turtles at the Turtle Rehabilitation Centre. The full-grown adults, able to reach 5ft long and 700lbs, were stationed in a giant pool with a beach for laying eggs. Younger turtles were also in tanks, some of the smaller ones being able to be picked up. The center does a great job of providing the public with a new perspective on this incredible animal. I look forward to seeing them in the wild while we’re diving. Tonight we also did a night snorkel. Each pair was given a flashlight and explored the reef right off the hotel dock. Not a minute into jumping in did we see a massive Spiny Lobster. This has long antenna coming out of its head and no claws. Further into the dive we saw four small squid and another tarpon. It was definitely a busy day today, but I’m glad we’re getting so many chances to discover some incredible animals that live in our oceans.
