Can you see me? Once again I am drawn to the detail of what is under the water. It is so easy to swim past these small Halimeda thickets growing out of the sand within a seagrass bed. Indeed, the amazingness of this calcareous green alga is often overlooked, with it being responsible (along with Parrotfish pooh) for much of the beach material we toady call sand. Shoal Bay East for example, one of the whiter sandy beaches in Anguilla is made up almost entirely of it. I am digressing however. Yet this photograph illustrates that Halimeda has another function also. Believe it or not it can be utilised by juvenile fish as a safe haven or even longer term habitat. If you look closely towards the center of the image you will see some tiny little eyes looking back at you. These belong to an exceptionally mini juvenile filefish just starting to make its way out in the world. So cute it makes me smile.
Originally posted on Instagram @sea_anguilla with the text: Can you see me? Juvenile filefish hiding among Halimeda incrassata in the seagrass beds of Little Bay. These seagrass areas, despite not being popular with divers, often house wonderous treasures such as this. They are also important foraging areas for Green Turtles and a nursery for many reef fish species.