Half Moon Caye

The Half Moon Caye is located 50 miles southeast off the shore of Belize City. The Half Moon Caye Natural Monument was established in 1982 and was the first reserve to be created under the National Parks System Act of 1981. Half Moon Caye is located at the southeast corner of Lighthouse Reef, the most eastern of the three atolls in Belizean waters.

The caye is approximately 45 acres and is divided into two very distinct ecosystems. The lush western part has rich soils made fertile by guano from thousand of sea birds that frequent the area, whereas the eastern part of the caye is covered mostly by palm trees with sparse vegetation below. The low levels of nutrients and dryness of sand limits plant life in such environment.

It is believed that the caye was formed by the accumulation of fragments of coral, shells and calcareous algae broken down by continuous wave action. In some areas, the seawater and calcium carbonate have chemically bonded to formed flat beach-rocks, cliffs and tide pools. Approximately 4,000 Red-Footed Booby inhabit the caye. The adult booby population of this caye is unusual in having an almost total predominance of the white color phase. Elsewhere the adult boobies are dull brown. This population was a motivating factor for the creation of a National Park on the caye. Booby colonies are a rarity in the Caribbean. The only other similar known colony is on an island near Tobago.

Another interesting bird that inhabits the park is the magnificent Frigate bird that coexists with the booby. This bird can reach a wingspan of seven feet. Almost 100 bird species have been recorded on the caye. Of these species, at least 75 are migrants including ospreys, warblers and more.

Half Moon Wall is an exceptional dive site now included in the newly erected Half Moon Caye National Monument on Lighthouse. Anyone who has the opportunity to dive the offshore atolls should try to dive Half Moon Wall. Here, you can make several different types of dives without moving the boat, and between dives you can take time to picnic or observe the boobie bird colony on Half Moon Caye. It is one of my favorite dives because the reefs are so spectacular and varied.

Located on the south side of Half Moon Caye are two striking reef features. First, the coral formations form a narrow rim at the edge of the wall which, in most places, is only 100-200 ft wide. Second, an extensive gently sloping, seemingly barren sand flat separates the reef rim from shallow reefs along the shore. As you glide down to the reefs 30 ft below, you will see the reef rim has a spectacular development of spurs and grooves. The living spurs are massive coral accumulations subdivided by seaward sloping grooves up to 30 ft deep at the wall. Many grooves are quite narrow, but easily negotiated by a diver. One of the exciting aspects of this dive is entering one of the grooves and following it seaward. Muddy sand floors the grooves and divers should take special precautions not to stir up the bottom with their fins. Many grooves feature pronounced overhangs that locally coalesce to form tunnels, also known as Grover's Grottos. All tunnels are short and straight so no special dive equipment or experience is needed. As the tunnels near the wall they reach depths of 70 ft or more.<./FONT

Large and small marine life abounds on the Half Moon Wall reefs. It is extremely varied because of the abrupt and extensive change in bottom type. If you want to see garden eels, conch, rays, flounder, star-eye hermit crabs and tilefish, check out the sand flats behind the reefs rimming the wall. Manta rays and a variety of reef fish forage in this area regularly, too. On the reef, groupers and yellowtail snappers hide out beneath the coral hanging over the reef canyons. Razorfish and toadfish are another common sight on the reef, adjacent to the sloping sand flat. Large pelagics frequent the reef wall. Spotted eagle rays and turtles are most common, but occasionally sharks and large black groupers visit the area. Most of the large marine life is found more frequently along the eastern part of this dive site, as the large pelagics venture in from the open sea to the east.

All divers should take time to see the spectacular field of garden eels found on the sloping sand flats behind the reefs along the wall. Thousands of eels can be seen from a distance off the western end of Half Moon Caye. But you will only see their graceful, slender bodies protruding from a hole in the sand from a distance. These animals are extremely shy and getting a close look may take considerable time. As you approach them you will see successive waves of eels retreat into their protective sand flat shelters.

Half Moon Caye Wall is one of the best dive sites of the world. It is, as the name says, a wall dive if you ever get to see past the barrier of coral that separates the inner and outer reef. The dive can be done fairly shallow and will never get boring. Abundance of all kinds of marine life make it hard to keep concentrated on just one thing. Should you choose to visit the outer walls, majestic Eagle Rays and Manta Rays are known to patrol this steep abyss. The reef crest comprises a veritable thicket of staghorn coral with other corals also present. The reef drops steeply to a shelf at a depth of about 15 feet (5 m). Along this shelf there is a large expanse of sand which at first glance appears totally uninteresting. It is here, however, that a large community of garden eels is found. From a distance divers will think they are looking at sparse vegetation, but on closer examination each "leaf" turns out to be the upper half of a small eel protruding upright from its hole in the sand. A diver may get as close as 10 to 15 feet (3- 5 m) before they all disappear from sight. Also known as sand eels, there are very few colonies of this mysterious little creature found in Belize, and none allow divers to venture too close.

The sand continues to slope gently until reaching a depth of between 45 and 50 feet (14-15 m). Here divers are at the back of Half Moon Wall, facing an outcrop of coral which rises up Iike a barrier along the very edge of the reef wall. To reach the front of the wall, you can rise up to within 20 feet (6 m) of the surface and swim over the barrier. There are also narrow gaps between the splendid outcrops of coral just wide enough for a single diver. The most interesting route is, as always, to find a tunnel and swim through the archway of living coral. Whichever route is taken, it is nothing compared to the breathtaking scenery

South of Cathedral is Quebrada (the break), a single sand chute through the coral which reaches all the way to the reef wall. This wide ledge in such shallow water is absolutely amazing. The corridor allows divers to swim along inspecting the marine life which hides at the bottom of the coral. Arrow crabs, redbanded coral shrimp and juvenile spotted drums are all there, as well as a good number of green moray eels.