Belize, Ready to be Discovered

The Blue Hole is a round, deep depression in the center of the Lighthouse Reef Atoll.  Its diameter is just over 1,000 feet, with a maximum depth just over 400 feet.  It was made famous by Jacques Cousteau in his 1970s Calypso journey.  In the last ice age, seawater was frozen in glaciers lowering the sea level more than 350 feet, exposing the limestones of the Lighthouse Reef Atoll.  As a result, larger subterranean caverns were created when fresh water flowed through the limestone deposits.  Since this ice age, the top of the cavern has collapsed to form this sinkhole.

Now, the Blue Hole is almost entirely surrounded by living coral. This is where the most diverse and abundant marine life is found.  With 100 feet of visability, through crystal waters, visitors may dive either the north or south side to depths of 100 to 150 feet where the closest caves may be seen.  There is an overhang that shapes a cave-like ceiling that stalactites hang with a width of more than 3 feet and up to 20 feet in length.  As you descend below the ceiling, the bottom of the cave has numerous detached stalactites.  Occasionally you may see a shark or turtle casually swimming by.  Red algae, hydroids and gorgonians cover most of the corals.  You may also find sharing brush, mermaid’s fan algae, elkhorm, club finger, shallow-water starlet corals, giant green anemones and arious urchins.

Half Moon Caye Natural Monument is located in the southeastern corner of the Lighthouse Reef Atoll. One of the caye’s principle inhabitants are Red-Footed Booby, with a population around 4,000 breeding birds. This is considered the only viable breeding Red-footed Booby colony in the Western Caribbean. The colony can be viewed from an observation platform located in the littoral forest on the western end of the caye. Littoral forests are a small, endangered, and fragile habitat. They are essential in providing valuable habitat for birds and reptiles. This includes the Island Leaf-toed Gecko and Allison’s Anole, two lizard species of high conservation that are only found in Belize.

The crystal clear turquoise waters surrounding Half Moon Caye are a protected Marine preserve. They support some of the healthiest fish populations in Belize including the heavily fished Nassau grouper. The reef, including the spectacular wall where the atoll drops away, is decorated by exquisite diverse corals and marine life. Huge corals heads tower over a white sand bottom and eventually drop vertically over spur-and-groove canyons with dense corals. There are many “swim-throughs” and some of the most spectacular sponge formations found anywhere. Larger pelagics such as eagle rays, sea turtles, and groupers are often seen swimming in the blue.