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.
IGUANA BAY, TOBAGO
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Arnos Vale Bay on Tobago’s Caribbean coast is a popular snorkel and diving destination, including night diving in the bay. The Arnos Vale reef extends outward from the bay along the eastern and western fringes, where the reef grows on submerged rocks. Divers can swim through channels covered in corals, sea fans and sponges.
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.
The only Marine Protected Area in Tobago, Buccoo Reef features a fringing reef system with a back reef and a lagoon that are connected to a mangrove ecosystem. The uniqueness of this reef attracted many during the 1950s and 1960s, but decades of mismanagement have allowed large portions of the reef system to be degraded. Some sections of Buccoo Reef are still productive. See Coral Gardens
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.
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.
This quaint bay lies along the Caribbean coast between Castara and Parlatuvier. The bay is lined with coral reef communities including small colonies of the very rare Staghorn coral that can be seen when snorkelling. The deeper coral reefs are dominant in sea plumeas and boulder corals.