Marine life you might meet.

Protected

Green sea turtle

Tortuga verde (peje blanco) · Chelonia mydas

Grazes on seagrass and algae, and often lets divers watch from a respectful distance.

Protected

Hawksbill sea turtle

Tortuga carey · Eretmochelys imbricata

Look for the narrow, pointed beak and overlapping shell plates. It feeds on sponges on the reef.

Nurse shark

Tiburón gata · Ginglymostoma cirratum

Rests under ledges during the day and hunts at night. Calm, but it can bite if grabbed or cornered.

Green moray

Morena verde · Gymnothorax funebris

Opens and closes its mouth to breathe, not to threaten you. Keep your hands out of holes in the reef.

Caribbean reef shark

Tiburón de arrecife del Caribe · Carcharhinus perezi

A calm, curious shark of the outer reefs. Give it space, stay still and enjoy it.

Protected

Antillean manatee

Manatí antillano · Trichechus manatus manatus

A gentle giant that grazes on seagrass. Never touch, chase or feed one, and give it room to surface.

Spotted moray

Morena pintada · Gymnothorax moringa

Speckled black on white. It hides in holes by day and hunts in the open at night.

Southern stingray

Raya del sur · Hypanus americanus

Rests buried in the sand with only its eyes showing. Watch where you put your hands and fins, and never step on or grab one.

Tarpon

Sábalo · Megalops atlanticus

Big, silver and prehistoric-looking. It often hangs around piers and structures, especially at night.

Goldentail moray

Morena cola dorada · Gymnothorax miliaris

A small moray covered in tiny yellow spots. It peeks out of holes in the reef and rarely leaves them by day.

Goldspotted eel

Tieso de manchas doradas · Myrichthys ocellatus

A snake eel, not a sea snake. It hunts through the sand with its head down, and its dark-ringed spots give it away.

Hogfish

Capitán · Lachnolaimus maximus

Named for its long snout, which it uses to root in the sand for shellfish. The first dorsal spines are long and trailing.

Spotted scorpionfish

Rascacio · Scorpaena plumieri

A master of camouflage with venomous spines. The best reason to watch where you put your hands.

Porcupinefish

Guanábana · Diodon hystrix

Big eyes for hunting at night. It puffs up when threatened, which is stressful for it, so never provoke it.

Porkfish

Canario · Anisotremus virginicus

Yellow stripes and two black bars across the head. Often hangs out in small groups near ledges.

Yellowtail snapper

Colirrubia · Ocyurus chrysurus

A bright yellow stripe runs to its forked tail. Curious, and often follows divers around the reef.

Blue tang

Barbero · Acanthurus coeruleus

Young ones are bright yellow; adults turn blue. They graze algae in schools, which helps keep the reef healthy.

Parrotfish

Cotorro · Scaridae

Scrapes algae off dead coral, and the ground-up rock comes out as sand. At night many sleep in a mucus “sleeping bag”.

French angelfish

Isabelita negra · Pomacanthus paru

Adults often swim in pairs. Juveniles are black with yellow bands and clean parasites off other fish.

Squirrelfish

Candil · Holocentrus adscensionis

Big eyes and red color for hunting at night. By day it waits under ledges.

Red hind

Cabrilla · Epinephelus guttatus

A small grouper covered in red spots. It rests on the bottom and waits for prey to come close.

Spotted trunkfish

Chapín moteado · Lactophrys bicaudalis

Its body is a hard, boxy shell covered in black spots. It swims slowly, sculling with its fins.

Spotted drum

Payasito punteado · Equetus punctatus

Long, flowing fins and black-and-white stripes. Shy, and usually found under ledges.

Flying gurnard

Gavilán · Dactylopterus volitans

Walks over sand and seagrass on its front fins, then opens bright blue “wings” when something startles it.

Jackknife fish

Verdugo · Equetus lanceolatus

A tall black-and-white fish that stays close to ledges and holes. It’s shy, so move slowly.

Lizardfish

Lagarto · Synodus sp.

Sits still on the sand, propped up on its fins, then darts up to catch small fish swimming over it.

Smooth trunkfish

Chapín liso · Lactophrys triqueter

A boxy fish with white spots on dark skin. It blows jets of water into the sand to uncover food.

Foureye butterflyfish

Mariposa ocelada · Chaetodon capistratus

The black spot near its tail looks like an eye, so a predator may aim for the wrong end.

Banded butterflyfish

Mariposa rayada · Chaetodon striatus

Usually seen in pairs, picking at the reef. Bold black bands across a white body.

Sergeant major

Sargento · Abudefduf saxatilis

A bold little damselfish with five dark bars. It guards its patch of reef and often comes right up to divers.

Palometa

Palometa · Trachinotus goodei

A silver pompano with long dark fins, often in small groups in the shallows near shore.

Seahorse

Caballito de mar · Hippocampus spp.

Small, slow and well camouflaged on sand, seagrass and structures. Move slowly, don’t touch, and keep your fins off the bottom.

Flamingo tongue

Lengua de flamenco · Cyphoma gibbosum

A small snail that lives on sea fans. The spotted pattern is its living skin. The empty shell is plain, so please don’t collect them.

Cushion sea star

Estrella de mar cojín · Oreaster reticulatus

A big, thick sea star found on sand and seagrass. Never lift it out of the water.

Common sea fan

Abanico de mar · Gorgonia ventalina

A soft coral that grows across the current to filter food. Don’t touch or kick it.

Batwing coral crab

Juey dormido · Carpilius corallinus

A big, heavy crab that comes out at night. Look, but keep your hands to yourself.

Caribbean reef squid

Calamar de arrecife · Sepioteuthis sepioidea

Travels in small groups and changes color in a blink. Hover still and they often come to look at you.

Octopus

Pulpo · Octopus spp.

A master of disguise that changes color and texture. Look for piles of empty shells at the entrance to its den.

Christmas tree worm

Gusano árbol de Navidad · Spirobranchus giganteus

Tiny, colorful spirals that live in coral. They vanish in a flash if you get too close.

Protected

Pillar coral

Coral pilar · Dendrogyra cylindrus

Grows in tall, fuzzy columns. It is listed as endangered under the U.S. Endangered Species Act.

Caribbean spiny lobster

Langosta común · Panulirus argus

Hides in holes with only its long antennae showing, and comes out to feed at night.

Slipper lobster

Cigarro español · Scyllarides aequinoctialis

No long antennae: it has flat plates instead. Most often seen on night dives.

Arrow crab

Cangrejo flecha · Stenorhynchus seticornis

A small crab with a pointed head and very long, thin legs, often hiding near sea rods.

Banded coral shrimp

Camarón boxeador · Stenopus hispidus

Red-and-white banded claws and long white antennae. It cleans fish that visit its hole.

Pederson cleaner shrimp

Camarón limpiador de Pederson · Ancylomenes pedersoni

A see-through shrimp that lives in anemones and cleans parasites off the fish that visit.

King helmet

Gallinita · Cassis tuberosa

A big sea snail with a striped lip. It hunts sea urchins in sandy areas.

Sea cucumber

Pepino de mar · Isostichopus badionotus

Cleans the sand by slowly eating it. Leave it where it is.

Giant hermit crab

Cangrejo ermitaño gigante · Petrochirus diogenes

Carries an empty shell for protection and moves into a bigger one as it grows.

Sponge brittle star

Estrella quebradiza de esponja · Ophiothrix suensoni

Thin, spiny arms wrapped around sponges and sea fans. Related to sea stars, but much faster.

Long-spined sea urchin

Erizo negro · Diadema antillarum

It grazes algae off the reef. The spines are sharp and break off in skin, so watch your hands and knees near the bottom.