Lighthouse Reef, Belize
During the night, we exited the calm coastal waters of Belize, where relative protection is offered by the extensive barrier reef that parallels the coast of this wonderful Central American nation. The winds were in our favour, and the skillful navigation of our captain meant that the swells encountered in these exposed waters were hardly felt by our guests on board. The long trip was well worth the day spent at one of the most spectacular snorkeling and SCUBA sights in the Caribbean. Lighthouse reef is one of just four atolls in the Caribbean, as is home to several delightful cayes: small islets formed by the accumulation of reef debris. On Half Moon Caye, this eventually grew up to such an extent as to allow for the growth of several plant species, dominant amongst which are the coconut palms. This islet is also a haven for thousands of sea birds; in fact two species use the islet as a breeding colony. There are over four thousand red-footed boobies nesting in the treetops, predominant amongst which is the white morphotype as opposed to the brown one. Parasitising these wonderfully colourful birds are the magnificent frigate birds, known as kleptoparasites due to their thieving habits. We spent hours of fun watching their acrobatic aerial displays as they drove the boobies to regurgitate the content of their crops. And these were only the wonders seen whilst above water! The SCUBA divers descended an unbelievable wall made up purely by the biological activity of those tiny, unimpressive animals: the coral polyps! What an undeniable argument for the power of teamwork! Snorkelers also traveled through coral heads home to hundreds of tropical fish and invertebrate species, able to display wonderful colours due to the protection they receive from the nooks and crannies contained within the reef structure.
We rejoined the ship at another, larger caye, aptly named Long Caye. Here we had more snorkeling along an enchanting reef, entering the warm tropical waters from our Zodiacs. Meanwhile, our Dive master, Belizean Vicky Showler, took the intrepid divers to a place she named “The Aquarium”: another spectacular wall, which we followed to a shallower area which soon illustrated why the nickname. I have seldom been surrounding by such overwhelming numbers of fish of all species. Five-foot tarpon circled us, as well as massive schools of Bermuda chub and yellow-tailed snapper. These were interspersed with sergeant majors, black durgeons as well as the occasional parrotfish and butterfly fish. It was a truly amazing experience, as we did not know where to turn as the masses surrounded us.
During the night, we exited the calm coastal waters of Belize, where relative protection is offered by the extensive barrier reef that parallels the coast of this wonderful Central American nation. The winds were in our favour, and the skillful navigation of our captain meant that the swells encountered in these exposed waters were hardly felt by our guests on board. The long trip was well worth the day spent at one of the most spectacular snorkeling and SCUBA sights in the Caribbean. Lighthouse reef is one of just four atolls in the Caribbean, as is home to several delightful cayes: small islets formed by the accumulation of reef debris. On Half Moon Caye, this eventually grew up to such an extent as to allow for the growth of several plant species, dominant amongst which are the coconut palms. This islet is also a haven for thousands of sea birds; in fact two species use the islet as a breeding colony. There are over four thousand red-footed boobies nesting in the treetops, predominant amongst which is the white morphotype as opposed to the brown one. Parasitising these wonderfully colourful birds are the magnificent frigate birds, known as kleptoparasites due to their thieving habits. We spent hours of fun watching their acrobatic aerial displays as they drove the boobies to regurgitate the content of their crops. And these were only the wonders seen whilst above water! The SCUBA divers descended an unbelievable wall made up purely by the biological activity of those tiny, unimpressive animals: the coral polyps! What an undeniable argument for the power of teamwork! Snorkelers also traveled through coral heads home to hundreds of tropical fish and invertebrate species, able to display wonderful colours due to the protection they receive from the nooks and crannies contained within the reef structure.
We rejoined the ship at another, larger caye, aptly named Long Caye. Here we had more snorkeling along an enchanting reef, entering the warm tropical waters from our Zodiacs. Meanwhile, our Dive master, Belizean Vicky Showler, took the intrepid divers to a place she named “The Aquarium”: another spectacular wall, which we followed to a shallower area which soon illustrated why the nickname. I have seldom been surrounding by such overwhelming numbers of fish of all species. Five-foot tarpon circled us, as well as massive schools of Bermuda chub and yellow-tailed snapper. These were interspersed with sergeant majors, black durgeons as well as the occasional parrotfish and butterfly fish. It was a truly amazing experience, as we did not know where to turn as the masses surrounded us.
