Quickly, after finishing breakfast, we gathered our gear for the final time and headed to the boats excited for two more dives. We stayed on the North side of island today because of the calm water, the first dive site of the day was Sandhole. After submerging and swimming along the reef wall for 10 minutes we came upon a small hawksbill sea turtle feeding. They are identified by their narrow head and hawk like beak and they are also on the critically endangered list internationally. Their biggest treat to extinction is from people searching for their prized shell which is used to make ornaments, jewelry and other decorative items. They can grow to 3 feet and length and can weigh between 100 to 154 pounds as fully grown adult. Their narrow head allows to get food from crevices and coral reefs eating sponges, squid and shrimp. Another fish we saw swimming around the reef were yellowfin damselfish, they can be identified by their blue body and yellow tail fin. They can grow up to a foot long and eat algae and zooplankton they find around the reefs they inhabit. We then rose the the boat and took a five minute boat ride to the final dive site of the trip.
We arrived at the final dive site, Ocean Pointe, just a couple minutes from the resort, sad but excited for the last dive. One of the coolest fish we saw on this dive was the yellow Stingray. It can be identified by their small body, yellow and brown spots on the top of their body and a white or pale yellow underside. They can grow to be two feet in width, they feed on the sandy floors of the ocean eating shrimp, small fish and clams. They use their fins to stir up the ground searching for food and even have the ability to sense very weak electric signals created by other animals. Large fish and sharks are their main predators, using their poisonous barb and the ability to hide themselves under the sand when they feel threatened. Another fish I saw resting on top of a piece of coral was the ballon fish, identified by their box shape and brown and white body. They use their highly elastic body, inhaling large amounts of water, turning themselves into a ball and if bitten into, the fish are poisoned. One ballon fish has enough poison to kill thirty adult humans. They feed mainly on algae, which is found on a lot of reefs and among coral. We then finished our final dive and returned to the resort enjoying a good lunch.
After finishing dinner and watching the sunset, we went to the conference room for a final prayer service. During the prayer service we reflected on the week we have had on the island, reflecting on the turtle center, stingray city, documentary and the over all diving experience. This was and amazing opportunity and has really enabled me to see an entirely new underwater world, that I never had the chance of viewing before the trip.
