Gorgeous Butterfly Fish have "eye spots" near their tails to confuse their predators.
These huge French Angel Fish are beautiful to watch.
This 2 foot long Grouper swam so close to me that I started to wonder if it was going to take a bite out of me.
This Porgy has the funniest face - with his big buggy eyes and plump Angelina Jolie lips.
Garden Eels hide in their holes as you approach.
Sometimes there's a whole forest of them - it makes for a really spectacular effect to see them hide one by one as you approach, almost like a wave.
I liken Trumpetfish to samurai warriors or ninjas... they are stealthy predators...
...and have a cute little goatie on their chins.
Parrotfish are often the most colourfish in the sea. If you listen closely when you dive, you can actually hear them crunching on the coral.
This fish is currently being cleaned by 3 different shrimp (can you see them all) at what is called a cleaning station. These shrimp actually climb inside the mouth and gills of the fish and eat all the parasites -- and, get this, the fish love it!
Black Durgeons are beautiful to look at with their iridescent turquoise lines. They also swim in a funny way moving their top and bottom fins instead of the more traditional fins (side and tailfin).
This Lizardfish (Sand Diver) is very tough to spot due to its excellent camouflage and immobility.
The revered Drum Fish with their crescent-shaped elongated fins is one of the most ornate fish in the sea.
When the fish are young, the fins are especially long and impressive.
As the Drum fish are rare, it is a special find to see not just one but three juveniles at once. (Unfortunately, the three juveniles didn't all fit in this picture)
Bottom dwellers such as this Flying Gunard are boring to watch (they just sit around on the sand all day) until they open their colourful "wings" to ward off predators.
Sharks were common at several of the dive sites we visited and they often glided by us divers no more than a foot or two away. One shark even darted on several occasions for fish schools -- it sent many a diver jumping out of the water fast.
We had a huge school of 7 to 8 dolphins swim with the boat. It reminded me of rush hour back in Toronto, since they were swimming so close together and constantly in each others way.
