Roatan trip: Photography, videos, spots, etc

[EliMelly]

Man I feel like a loser, I've only been snorkeling in the Keys once like 10 years ago. I need to step my game up

I’ve only gone snorkeling in the Hawaiian islands, and scuba diving in Greece. Greece was horrible lol

 

[JoJosReef]

Can't scuba, unfortunately. Major ear pressure regulating problems. Can dive down about a meter or so. I say "snorkeling", but really I just go swimming. Swimmers goggle only and an iron lung!

Been to GBR, islands off east coast Thailand, Bahamas, Grand Cayman, Oahu, St. Thomas, Bahamas. Still so many places to go.

 

[EliMelly]

Can't scuba, unfortunately. Major ear pressure regulating problems. Can dive down about a meter or so. I say "snorkeling", but really I just go swimming. Swimmers goggle only and an iron lung!

Been to GBR, islands off east coast Thailand, Bahamas, Grand Cayman, Oahu, St. Thomas, Bahamas. Still so many places to go.

Next up for me is probably Great Barrier Reef

 

[Slocke]

We are debating a Hawaiian island around Tgiving or Xmas time. Been to any others?

Uhh
You need to go to the Christmas islands at Christmas and uhh maybe the Cook Islands for thanksgiving?

I loved Maui but it helps I was payed. Snorkeling was great and there were a lot more other activities to do like hiking, cool drives, golf etc. However the food was much better (and cheaper) in Honduras but then I guess that’s to be expected.

 

[hsp]

I went to Roatan for just under a week and brought an underwater phone case. Here is some of the better stuff I captured, as well as some of my cool spots and recollections.

Let's start with the easiest-to-show photos of my snorkeling.
A massive ~3ft chain moray, Echidna catenata.

Beautiful princess parrotfish, Scarus taeniopterus

Juvenile princess parrotfish with a female stoplight parrotfish, Sparisoma viride

Male stoplight parrotfish

Juvenile jeweled damselfish, Microspathodon chrysurus.

Adult.

Indigo hamlet, Hypoplecterus indigo

Flamingos tongue, Cyphoma gibbosum on Eunicea laxispica.

Trumpetfish, Aulostomus maculatus hiding in Eunicea sp.

Bridled burrfish, Chilomycterus antennatus.

Juvenile French angelfish, Pomecanthus paru.

Christmas tree worms, Spirobranchus giganteus amongst star coral, Orbicella annularis.

Juvenile blue tang, Acanthurus coeruleus.

Acanthurus bahianus

Juvenile black grouper, Mycteroperca bonaci

Hope @ISpeakForTheSeas and/or @i cant think appreciate the scientific names. That was a lot of work. Work. Now I need a break

So nice. Thanks for sharing! I note many fish that are not "reef safe".

 

[Reefering1]

 

[fishguy242]

Let the man rest...

...

 

[KrisReef]

Sciba

Makes me want to get back into the water.

You bet your wrasse!

 

[Slocke]

The most common and bold striped parrotfish, Scarus iserti

The wrasse the weirdos have been waiting for. The slippery dick aka Halichoeres bivattus

You may have seen some blue headed wrasse, Thalassoma bifasciatum in the turtle video but here’s some more.

My favorite wrasse of the trip was the unfortunately very shy puddingwife wrasse, Halichoeres radiates. I will post a video later.

Bodianus rufus takes the place of the cleaner wrasse here when juvenile though this was a young adult

Finally some juvenile Parrotfish (I believe) above another favorite fish of the trip. The magnificent banded butterfly, Cheatodon capistratus.

 

[Slocke]

Sciba

Makes me want to get back into the water.

You bet your wrasse!

Uhh but that’s a grouper…

 

[KrisReef]

Uhh but that’s a grouper…

I don’t think so, the fin color indicates a juvenile cleaner wrasse, no?

 

[lbacha]

Very nice I’ve dove Roatan a few times and it’s a great place and super easy to dive. You can do a dive head back to shore for lunch then go back out against because the reef is so close to shore

 

[OrchidMiss]

Bodianus rufus takes the place of the cleaner wrasse here when juvenile though this was a young adult

I don't know why this fish, with the name Rufus made me laugh out loud.
Maybe because the background perfectly makes him look like he's got toofs...

 

[Slocke]

I don’t think so, the fin color indicates a juvenile cleaner wrasse, no?

Don’t say that. I always lose these arguments no matter how sure I am I am right
Just ask @i cant think or @Miami Reef

 

[JoJosReef]

I don’t think so, the fin color indicates a juvenile cleaner wrasse, no?

Probably a Halichoeres--there's a lot of them. Methinks it be a Halichoeres homoanalis, the Human Rear Coris Wrasse.

 

[KrisReef]

Very nice I’ve dove Roatan a few times and it’s a great place and super easy to dive. You can do a dive head back to shore for lunch then go back out against because the reef is so close to shore

I have not been to this place but the images are coercive. Looks like a higher nutrient ocean with lots of turtle grass and macrophytes in the near shore area. I want a pillar coral to add to the collection.

Maybe I can get there before I go in the box?

 

[Slocke]

I have not been to this place but the images are coercive. Looks like a higher nutrient ocean with lots of turtle grass and macrophytes in the near shore area. I want a pillar coral to add to the collection.

Maybe I can get there before I go in the box?

It’s got about a 300-5000ft of slowly declining sand with seagrass giving way to rock and coral that goes to about 40ft depth. Then a coral wall that is around 50ft deeper usually that goes around practically the entire north side of the island.

 

[Slocke]

Probably a Halichoeres--there's a lot of them. Methinks it be a Halichoeres homoanalis, the Human Rear Coris Wrasse.

You know with a real wrasse called a slippery dick a human rear wrasse is pretty tame.

 

[JoJosReef]

And we were doing so well!

 

[jsmkmavity]

We are going in november for our first time!