Spotted drum

Back at Caracasbaii

Caracasbaii, CuracaoThursday we returned to Caracasbaii – we had intended on swimming at the Seaquarium, but the wind was a bit high and because the snorkeling site is in the open ocean, often the waves are just too pushy! The water at Caracasbaii was very warm, very calm, and extremely clear! I’m not sure we’ve ever seen it so clear.

Spotted drum We snorkeled around the wreck as usual, and saw plenty of fish, but a short trek towards the new condo development was a new experience for us. And it sure was a lot of fun! The water is fairly shallow and we got to see some fun fish. One of Pam’s favorite fish is the spotted drum. Usually when we see them, they are hiding under rocks, so we never manage to get a clear shot of them. But this time, one fellow was just drifting along, swimming his song. Here is a movie Pam took of this black and white beauty.

Chain morayWe saw a couple of moray eels – a chain and a golden. We haven’t seen as many eels this time. Usually we spot lots of them, but maybe we were too busy looking at other fish to spot them. I think this is the first chain moray we’ve seen.

Scrawled filefish Another cool fish we’ve seen a lot of, is the scrawled filefish. It’s a very long fish, usually over two feet, but very flat, much like a flounder. It can change color from a deep green, to a bright blue, to light white. It’s very cool, and always catches your eye because of the length.

This last movie is of a lionfish. We haven’t seen any of them, until today, so that’s a good sign. This voracious predator looks lovely, but is totally deadly to the fish in the Caribbean. Pam took this hovering over the wreck. At the end of the movie, the lionfish suddenly darts forward – the speed of this fish is so deceptive. You simply don’t think it can zip along that fast, yet, when it needs to go, it can go!

Spider CrabThe last picture is of a spindly little spider crab. They are about a foot across, but look as a delicate as a feather. Usually they scramble around the rocks, near sea urchins, looking for protection I imagine. This guy was hanging around one of the big pilons in the middle of the bay. Kind of a strange looking beast, eh? See the tiny little blue claws? Not much for eating!

 

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5 thoughts on “Back at Caracasbaii”

  1. hi there, pictures and commentaries are great as usual.Have to tell had a hard time getting to site— words would come up but not your site
    glad I finally got to it.
    It’s getting cold here- enjoy!

  2. I hadn’t thought about it like that Jo, but you’re right! It is kind of like a skunk! haha The spider crab looks so frail, I always think a big wave will wipe him out! We have a nice video of a turtle today – very cool.

  3. Yeah the stinking lionfish… they are on the menu at Caracasbaii in the little beachside place we had lunch. An interesting thing I read on one of the diving sites – they suggested killing the lionfish, and leaving them on the reef so other fish would get used to eating them.

  4. Loved the spotted drum !! Looks like a swimming skunk ! Very pretty. Did not like the spider crab LOL looks just like an actual spider LOL I would freak out if I saw that LOL !! Keep the videos coming guys – I’m loving seeing them and sharing your holiday with you 🙂

  5. We were sorry to see the video of the lion fish, we know what a problem it is. We have not seen one yet on our snorkeling. But we have eaten them on Curacao. They are trying to encourage people to eat them so that they will be fished by locals. They are similar to a sole, very delicate, so needs mild flavours. Try it!

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