The best place to snorkel in the islands near Bali

Mangrove Point was the only place on the island without strong currents and with decent snorkeling; Lee managed to safely get us there twice on a scooter as I hung on for dear life

Pacific bullethead parrotfish; Mangrove Point easily had the best snorkeling we found on the Nusas so we went back for a second day of snorkeling there

Mt Agung is an active volcano and the highest point on the island of Bali at almost 10,000 ft; it has erupted frequently in recent years with the last time being May 2019

Spotted boxfish; this is a male since the females have different colors and patterns; this colorful species can grow to be 10 inches long although they are usually much smaller

Blue blanquillo; I had never seen this species of tilefish before since it usually swims around 70 feet down and would not typically be seen by a snorkeler

Latticed butterflyfish; this is an uncommon species found in areas of rich coral growth within lagoons and protected reef flats and seaward reefs; it feeds mainly on coral polyps and sea anemones

Orange-lined triggerfish; this species is diurnal, solitary, and territorial; it can be aggressive with other fish and erects its first dorsal spine to intimidate opponents and predators

Collector urchin; debris tends to collect on these urchins, hence their name; most collector urchins feed on seagrass fronds - this has an ecological impact varying with the season and abundance of the urchins

Teardrop butterflyfish; this species feeds on filamentous algae, hard and soft corals, crustaceans and worms; spawning is thought to take place in relation to the lunar cycles but this is not certain

Swarthy parrotfish; I loved the colors and it's not one of the more commonly seen parrotfish

Longnose butterflyfish; these fish are more often solitary than other species of butterflyfish; being territorial, longnose butterflyfish patrol their patches of coral with a monogamous partner

Saddled butterflyfish; this species is one of the largest butterflyfishes and in shape it resembles certain angelfishes more than most of its relatives

Much of the coral here had experienced extensive bleaching; there were tons of fish but some snorkel boats were feeding them which is not a good thing

Lined butterflyfish; you don't often see this many butterflyfish together since they typically just travel in pairs (they mate for life)

Sixbar wrasse; this species forms small groups and feeds on planktonic and benthic crustaceans, small fish, fish eggs and fish larvae; an aquarium fish of this species was observed to use a rock as an anvil

Foxface rabbitfish; this species is omnivorous, eating mostly algae and zooplankton; it can end up in the aquarium trade and does a good job of cleaning algae from tanks

Titan triggerfish; Nusa Lembongan used to have a small seaweed farming industry but that has largely disappeared as the waters have become too polluted; speedboats can reach Bali in 30 minutes

Moon wrasse; Nusa Lembongan is only 8 square km in area with a permanent population estimated at 5,000; 7 miles of the Badung Strait separates Nusa Lembongan from Bali

Blackpatch triggerfish; the ferry system from Bali was pretty chaotic and informal but seemed to work OK; I would not want to make the crossing if the seas were rough though