^^ This delightful little fellow is a Nimble Spray Crab (Percnon gibbesi)
There’s a reason Bonaire is considered a diver’s paradise: the reefs around the island are a protected marine park, which prohibits any contact with the reef or its creatures. I am firmly committed to no-contact diving, and not just in Bonaire, so… every single shot you see on my pages was taken without touching anything. This often involves me hanging upside down over a piece of coral, trying to be still in moving water… you get the drift…
The crab above (carapace about half an inch long) was hiding waaay over the side of the coral in a crevice, peeking out at me, smug in the knowledge that I would not be able to get his picture. But upside down me has a TON of patience, particularly when the subject is this tiny and adorable.
When we came upon this Green Sea Turtle (Chelonia mydas), below, he was as hanging vertically just as shown, with one arm – er, flipper? – draped over the coral (turtles are allowed to touch things underwater) and he didn’t move an inch. Too sleepy! I took this single shot of him and apologized for disturbing his nap.
Next, a creature I’ve rarely come across and never before have gotten a picture of. I still can’t say I’ve gotten a great picture, but I’ve got one good enough to share. There are several varieties, but this one looks to me like a Dark Mantis Shrimp (Neogonodactylus curacaonsis), because the base of the eyestalks is orange, and the purplish-blue claws. This is another one that runs and hides at the first sign of the paparazzi. Again with the hanging upside down Bridget, staring at a little hole in the coral waiting for some miniscule somebody to poke its head (eyeballs) out. These are the shots I love best; when I don’t know if I’ve gotten anything at all until the SD card is out of the camera and plugged into the laptop.
Another interesting critter is the Bearded Fireworm (Hermodice carunculata). If this sounds like something you don’t want to touch, regardless of marine park rules, you’d be right. Close up, they are striking, but don’t get too close, because all that fuzzy-looking white stuff along the creature’s edges isn’t soft and cushy; those are venomous bristles, my friends:
And here’s a pair of fireworms that seem like they want to get busy… but, you know, ouch!
Finally, a simply gorgeous shot of a baby Spotted Drum (Equetus punctatus). One of my faves.
A few more of my favorite shots from this trip are in the gallery below:
