Spectacular snorkeling in Palau - Part 2
02.07.2019
Devil scorpionfish; spotted this venomous species while snorkeling around the dock of Sam's Dive Shop
Tiny (but very colorful) mandarinfish; in 1985, the first President of the Republic of Palau was shot to death in his driveway with the assassin never identified
This was my view for 8 days; I could watch the tides in the distance but wished the country had some nice beaches to enjoy
Diving in Jellyfish Lake is not allowed: 1)bubbles from tanks can be harmful if they collect beneath the jellies' bell and 2)at about 15 m below the surface, there are high concentrations of hydrogen sulfide, which can be absorbed and cause death
In addition to golden jellyfish, there are moon jellyfish in Jellyfish Lake; this species is 10-16 inches in diameter and drifts with the currents
This famous Natural Arch in the Rock Islands is 15 meters long and 9 meters high; sometimes during high tides boats can pass underneath it
There are no natural beaches around the main part of Palau; the islands all look like this with the only exception being a man-made beach at the Pacific Palau Resort ($99 for a day pass!)
Black-tip reef shark; there are many Seventh Day Adventists on the island who close their businesses (including the largest grocery store) on Saturdays
Bluestreak fusiliers; this species will dart into the coral as I get closer and always seem to move as a group
Pincushion sea star; this unusual species creates its own little habitat by providing shelter for small shrimp that hide under it, and copepods that live on its' outside
Colorful clams; Palau became more well-known to Americans after the television show Survivor was set in Palau in 2005
Feather duster tube worm; they have a crown of feeding appendages or radioles in two fan-shaped clusters projecting from their tubes
All of the rock islands have been undercut over time by water/wave action; this makes many of the islands look like forested mushrooms
It's a 45 minute boat ride from Koror to the island and then a 15 minute hike up and down a hill to reach Jellyfish Lake; rangers are there to check your $100 Rock Islands permit
It's very impressive that the Palau government has limited development despite having pristine islands and great snorkeling areas
Eclipse butterflyfish; the sun was very intense so, like others, I wore a shirt in the water to keep from getting sunburned
Gorgeous red sea fan on the side of the wall; the colors underwater were amazing snorkeling but also diving despite the photos that are heavy on the blue spectrum
Shy clownfish; the distinctive crossroads of three of the world’s main ocean currents at Palau causes the incredible variety of sea life
Saddled butterflyfish; this species is found at depths between 0 and 30 m in coral reefs and feeds on filamentous algae, small invertebrates, coral polyps and fish eggs
You can see how large the titan triggerfish is when compared to the many pyramid butterflyfish; they are also much bigger than the other triggerfish
Clown triggerfish; there was a tremendous variety of reef fish snorkeling along Big Drop-off and they photograph better than when diving
Bouquet of carnation coral; we saw species of this soft coral in a variety of shades of orange, lavender, pink and red
Oriental sweetlips pair; they are a species of grunt but their more common name sounds so much better
Pyramid butterflyfish; several times we had to tell Chinese visitors to not stand on the coral and they even try to swim right over you as if you're not there
Posted by VagabondCowboy 18:28