Jamaica- Afternoon Day 5

Crab on the beach

For the afternoon we went on a catamaran tour with Red Stripe Catamarans. When traveling I usually avoid tours like this and prefer to find things by myself or get locals that know wildlife to take me to specific places. These tours can give you a good chance to see a lot of wildlife though.

The tour took us to a reef nearby at the far corner of the bay.  On our way there we passes royal terns, fishing boats and a man catching conch in a kayak.

Royal tern

On the catamaran

We went snorkeling on the reef for about an hour or so and I got to see a few things that I hadn't seen in the deeper patchy reef that I discovered on my own. 

Edge of the reef away from the other people

There were squirrelfish, Sergent majors, jackfish, grunts, dusky damsels, blue tang, multiple species of wrasse and many other species.
Blue Chormis are one of my favorite reef fish and there were a fair number of them on the reef here but I didn't see any the day before. 

Blue chormis

 This is a fish I have never seen before but I think I managed to figure out what it is pretty easily.

Indigo hamlet

This reef was definitely well trafficked and that day there were many boats and people around.  I saw some evidence of coral dying 'bleaching' but still saw a lot of healthy coral and many fish. The colouration of certain fish species  (such as squirrelfish) here seamed duller than in other  places where I had seen them.  I am curious if this is indicating declining health of fish on the reef or something else.

Fan corals on this reef were very majestic.

 I saw some things that I had never seen before.

School of unknown fish

 There were a lot of inverts such as sea cucumbers, urchins, worms and conch.

Sea cucumber

 More of one of my favorite reef fish.

Blue chromis

Aurora swimming

We went to a little island at the end of the beach that was near the reef we had gone to that morning. There was a small trail where I saw some interesting birds and insects.

Grey catbird

These very interesting insects were all over this small island.

Unknown insect

Royal tern

Eastern kingbird

Eastern kingbird

Bananaquit

Bananaquit

Spotted sandpiper in non-breeding plumage

Spotted sandpiper?

Little blue heron

Little blue heron

This little blue heron was fishing around the entire time lunch was being cooked and for a while after eating it so I couldn't resist the gorgeous photo opportunity.

Ohh he got something

Last one I promise

I was visiting friends that evening so I didn't go out birding again after an amazing dinner of curried crab and stuffed jack fish that was caught from the catamaran. I do have to take a moment to mention that authentic Jamaican cooking is delicious (If you like spicy food).