EXCURSION INCLUDES 3 DIVES!
Our new boat is almost finished! We will be the only regularly scheduled dive boat to the beautiful Blue Hole. These excursions begins early, leaving the dock about 6am and returning around 4pm. We go straight to Dive and Snorkel The Blue Hole on arriving at Light House Reef. Then we do a second dive outside Half Moon Caye (The Bird Santuary), after which we have lunch on Half Moon caye and Tour the Bird Sanctuary.
A third dive will be done at Long Caye at Light House Reef, after which we head back home. Light House Reef is famous for the Great Blue Hole but it also have some of the best dives in the world.
Finally, dive THE GREAT BLUE HOLE leaving from Placencia The Great Blue Hole is the largest ocean sinkhole in the world. Made famous by Cousteau/Calypso investigation in the 1970s, it is the only blue hole that can be plainly seen from outer space. An inner space descent is a spooky sojourn into an emerald world nearly devoid of marine life. The focus here is an underslung cathedral that cuts back beneath the lip of the blue hole. Hanging from the ceiling are rows of craggy stalactites, some more than 30 feet long. The depth (120 to 130 feet maximum) allows for only a short visit which, to some, is a nearly religious experience.
The Great Blue Hole is a large underwater sinkhole off of the coast of Belize. It lies near the center of Lighthouse Reef, a small atoll 45 miles from the mainland and Belize City. The hole is circular in shape, over 1,000 feet across and 400 feet deep. It was formed as a limestone cave system during the last ice age when sea levels were much lower. As the ocean began to rise again the caves flooded, and the roof collapsed.
On-shore caves of similar formation, as large collapsed sinkholes, are well known in Belize.
Jacques-Yves Cousteau declared it one of the top ten scuba diving sites in the world. In 1971, he brought his ship, the Calypso, to the hole to chart its depths.
Investigations by this expedition confirmed the hole's origin as typical Karst limestone formations, formed before rises in sea level in at least four stages, leaving ledges at depths of 70, 160 and 300 feet. Stalactites were retrieved from submerged caves, confirming their previous formation above sea level. Some of these stalactites were also off-vertical by 10° - 13° in a consistent orientation, thus indicating that there had also been some past geological shift and tilting of the underlying plateau, followed by a long period in the current plane. HALF MOON CAYE NATURAL MONUMENT
home of the legendary Boobie HatchWHAT TO SEE
The most famous inhabitants of this island are its Red- footed Boobies which nest in the Ziricote thicket at the western end of the caye. Emanating from the colony, which also has nesting Magnificent Frigate Birds, is a rather fishy smell, and a cacophony of screeches and squawks as the birds come and go, feeding chicks and shading them from the intense midday sun. It's the most spectacular site, and' there's - viewing platform in the heart of the colony that lets you enjoy the birds from up close. Somehow they seem too busy parenting to take much notice.
The Boobies live on the caye for about 10 months of the year. Nesting starts around mid-December and the young hatch around March. Chicks are full grown in a matter of months and then its off to the open sea. Flying fish are their favourite food, caught at night when the fish are nearer the surface. Half Moon's Boobies are a bit special because most are white, instead of the much more normal brown colour found around the Caribbean. So even though they look so different, they are still the same species, because they can still interbreed and produce fertile off-spring (this is the definition of a species).
Over 120 other types of bird have been seen on the caye. Most are migrants, and the falls of these little birds can be quite spectacular if you're there when there's a winter norther passing through.
Completely different from the birds, there's another group of inhabitants on Half Moon which has only recently been fully examined by ecologists, and up to now has caused a certain amount of confusion. It's the lizard and gecko populations, which have been found to be quite unique! The grey and black Spinytailed Iguana (or wish-willy) is the normal reptile resident of the cayes, and: is on Half Moon in abundance. The Green Iguana though is normally found only on the mainland's river banks. It must have been introduced way back to spice up the menu of lighthouse keepers. Only juveniles and females are actually green though, and males are just orange- brown.
Part of the lizard group but much smaller are the anoles, the most gregarious of which is the Brown Anole, very common on all Belize's coastal areas, and tolerant of human disturbance. It's often seen on fences and house posts in Belize City for instance. Males are sometimes dotted with lighter spots and the females often have a light stripe of zig-zag patterns down their backs.
The next species, the Green Anole is more brightly coloured. Probably of Cuban origin, It is now found in the Bahamas and south-eastern USA, having most likely jumped ship from cargo boats. How it came to Half Moon though is anybody's guess, but it appears only to have arrived during the 1960s. A nice population inhabits the observation tower. Next is the Giant Anole, the largest type in Belize, known to live all over the cayes of Lighthouse Reef. Its also reported from Cuba and Honduras. These giants can change their colour in a matter of seconds, from green to dull brown and back. It's the male that's really spectacular though, with a white throat, blue forehead and forelegs, pink dewflap and green remainder.
Then most important of all is the Belizean Atoll Gecko. So far, it's still not known from nowhere else on the entire planet, and is Belize's only reptilian endemic! Unfortunately, its entirely nocturnal, so seeing one is not very likely.
Plant wise, the orange-flowered Ziricote are all around, one of just over 40 species growing on the caye. Ziricote trees are used to make the carvings that you'll see for sale especially at tourist sites. Half Moon's other very obvious tree is the Coconut. Originally an inhabitant of the Pacific Ocean, It was only introduced to the Caribbean in the 1500s, with the first written record of its presence on Half Moon from 1720.
In the Marine realm, the natural monument is also spectacular, encompassing a dramatic reef wall which drops to almost 1,000 yards deep. You may see any one of three turtle species as all nest on the caye.
WHEN TO GO
The Boobies nest from mid-December but young only appear around March. By August they have left.
During Autumn you may be lucky and be on the caye during a major fall of migrants. This gives you a very close look because the warblers especially are so tired they are more reluctant to fly off.
VISITOR FACILITIES
The observation tower is the main facility, but the caye also has a visitor centre and one short trail to the Booby colony. Camping is no longer allowed. The extremely picturesque old lighthouse is unfortunately falling to pieces and is dangerous to climb, so please don't. The Natural Monument is managed by the Belize Audubon Society, who have produced a small pamphlet.
The site has a viewing platform amidst the Red Booby colony, reached by bush trail. A considerable increase in recorded visitors has taken place, and is now approximately 120 a week, mainly from dive boats. Facilities include a dock, observation tower, picnic tables, trails, signs etc. Some mooring buoys have been installed.
ESTABLISHMENT HISTORY
14. 7 acres of the terrestrial section of the site was gazetted as a Crown Reserve in 1928 (under the Crown Land Ordinance), making it Belize's oldest site protected for wildlife. Expansion was recommended by the Waight (1968) and FAO (1978). For an undetermined reason, Half Moon Caye was re-gazetted in 1979 (Gazette Notice 1097/1979), but not expanded. This waited until 1982, when the remaining 4 acres of privately owned land on the 44 acre caye was purchased by the government and the BAS. The Caye was subsequently designated a Natural Monument under the National Parks System Act, together with 10195 acres of its surrounding waters (SI 30). It was the first protected area to be designated under this legislation.
WILDLIFE
The caye's fauna are noteworthy for 2 main reasons. Firstly, the thicket at its western end are used as a the nesting site of the Red-footed Booby, protected in Belize since 1950. Half Moon's colony is unusual in the Caribbean context because of the almost complete dominance (98%) of the white, gold, and black adult colour phase. The majority of the nests are found at the Caye's western end, primarily in Ziricote trees, with a smaller proportion also built in the Busera simaruba and Bumelia retusa bushes. Overall, 85% of the nests are built in these 3 species. The boobies live on the caye for about 10 months. Most start nesting in mid-December. Eggs are laid by January, and incubated for about 7 weeks. The young remain in the nest until about July and have left the caye by late August. From nest counts, the Booby population has been estimated at 1389 in 1958, 1285 in 1975, 1329 in 1978, 1687 in 1979, 1231 nests in 1981, 886 in 1988-89 and 1325 in 1991-92. Bird observations made in 1864 by Salvin recorded Black Catbird on the Caye which no longer is found. This is almost certainly to do with the infestation of rats, which seriously prejudices the survival of most resident fauna. Secondly, the island is significant for lizards, with the work of Moorman (1995) going a substantial way to clarifying the confused records recounted in the literature and held as museum specimens. The caye appears to have 3 species of anole. As well as the ubiquitous Brown Anole (Anolis sagrei), widespread outside Belize and all over the entire coastal zone within, there is a substantial population of the Green Anole (A. carolinensis), probably of Cuban origin but now also recorded in the Bahamas and southeastern USA- It appears to have arrived on Half Moon in the 1960s. The Chant Anole (A. allisoni), recorded on all the large cayes of Lighthouse Reef is known elsewhere from Cuba and Honduras, although this population may represent a distinct form of the species. 2 iguanidae are present, the widespread Spinytailed Iguana (Ctenosaura similis) and more interestingly the Green Iguana (Iguana iguana)- Originally introduced for food during the last of 18th century, it has managed to establish a self-sustaining population, unlike other cayes where it has been introduced . Half Moon also is inhabited by the Belize Atoll Gecko (Phyllodactylus insularis), the only reptilian endemic yet recorded for Belize. To date, it has only been recorded elsewhere on Long Caye of Lighthouse Reef and Long Caye of Glovers Reef. Other reptiles reported are nesting Green Turtles and Loggerheads (Smith et al. 1992), which lay their eggs on the cayes sandy western beach. Reports suggest that this activity has seriously declined in recent years, and there are some reports by tourists that fishermen are still catching turtles within the reserve. Other nesting birds on Half Moon Caye include the Magnificent Frigate Bird, Mangrove Warbler Great-tailed Grackle and a pair of Ospreys. The caye is also an important landfall site for North American avian migrants. In total, roughly 120 species have been. recorded as resident or migrant on the caye. Concerning the vegetation of Half Moon Caye, the eastern half of the caye has only sparse ground level vegetation, growing under mature coconut plantation. The western half, covered by a closed Ziricote forest, has a rich littoral fringe dominated at its southern end by silver-grey Tourniafortia bushes and the White-flowered Spider Lily. In the most recent 2 studies, 43 higher plants were identified, but on comparison. of the plant assemblages, only 28 species (65%) were found in common. This shows a high rate of colonization. and extinction.. In total, 55 species have been tentatively identified for the caye.
Nearby reefs and intertidal zones are very rich in marine species, especially sponges, molluscs, and red and ocean fishes. Scientists have produced a preliminary map of marine habitat and a preliminary study of reef structure has been produced by CEDAM International (1989), who also list coral species identified during a 7 transect survey They identified 4 marine habitat zones namely the Palmata zone, mixed coral and rubble zone, the barren sand flat zone, and the raised coral rim zone.
PHYSICAL FEATURES & CLIMATE
The atoll itself is an asymmetric rimmed carbonate platform, entirely surrounded by a fringing reef rising virtually to the surface. The 4.4 miles of reef within the reserve consist of 4 broad natural zones: a back reef of turtle grass patches and coral rubble; the crest/breaker zone dominated by wave resistant coral species, an outer area of dead coral rock, and an outer coral zone with a well developed spur and groove system. The island itself is a coral sand caye with an accumulation of coral rock along the shore (consequently with very nutrient poor soils), and forms part of Lighthouse Reef (5706 acres), one of only three well, developed atolls in the Caribbean. The back reef is fairly shallow, in the order of a few yards, but part of the reserve does extend to depths in excess of 980 yards. The caye rises to a height of 2.6 yards.
The reserve receives an average of 70 inches of rainfall a year, mainly between June and September. There is a dry season from March to May, and winds are dominantly northeast by east, except for short periods during July to September when cold northerlies reach down from North America. There is a hurricane season, lasting from September to November.
CULTURAL FEATURES
The only cultural resource of the island is the lighthouse. The current one dates from 1930, built on the base of the previous 1848 structure, which itself replaced the first one built in 1820. The lighthouse is however in a bad state of repair. There are also a number of shipwrecks in the caye's vicinity, the most prominent of which is a large freighter.$session
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