The reef fringes the eastern margins of Castara Bay extending from Heavenly Bay out of the bay. Castara reef is a popular for snorkelling with the rare branching Elkhorn corals close to the rocks. For divers, the reef is dominant in soft coral plumes that make perfect hiding spots for juvenile turtles.
CASTARA REEF, TOBAGO
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Sanga Rock is located in north Charlotteville. The sheltered side of Sanga Rock is home to a unique coral reef dominant in boulder and brain corals. Divers swim around Sanga Rock and explore the walls that are encrusted with the beautiful non-native sun cup corals that resemble bunches of yellow flowers.
On the eastern side of Man-O-War Bay, this reef is accessible only by boat. The rocky shoreline extends underwater to house branching and bouldering corals on submerged rocks and abundant fish life seeking refuge between the reef and the rocks.
Iguana Bay is located north of Charlotteville and can only be accessed by boat. Although there are coral communities, there is little structure, likely because of the exposed wave environment. It is home to some colonies of the incredible rare Acropora cervicornis.
Along the south coast of Tobago are three dives sites. From east to west, they are Cove Reef, Flying Reef and Stingray Alley. Coral reefs in this area are gently sloping and exposed to high currents. These are the haunts of large schools of reef fish including grunts and chub.
Landslide reef runs along the eastern margin of Man-O-War Bay from Pirates Bay out towards Breakfast Bay. This is a shallow fringing reef dominated by hard and soft corals growing along submerged rocks. It is home to rare branching Elkhorn coral.
Hermitage reef lies along the eastern side of Man-O-War Bay, Charlotteville, adjacent to Hermitage Bay. With no coastal development nearby, this coral reef is home to the endangered branching Elkhorn corals in the shallows. Farther down the reef slope, giant mountain star coral colonies extend from 7 m to 15 m in depth, creating underwater structures for numerous marine creatures.