Now and Then

[stevenq99]

There also seems to be more and larger Lobsters.

 

[tomhooper]

It seems that the turtle, shark, and lobster numbers have increased over the past few years. Now it is unusual not to see a turtle whereas before it was uncommon. I see sharks about every 3rd dive or so and more than a few lobsters.

As others have said, there may be a lot of boats, but rarely do we get mixed up with another group.

 

[DjDiverDan]

I started going to Cozumel in 1990, and have gone pretty much every year, though at different times. From 1996 to 2005, when I had a timeshare at the Plaza Las Glorias, I went every March. Since 2010, its been every December, with a few January, July, and October trips thrown in over the years. I have noticed some long term trends. In my early years in Cozumel, it was a rare and exciting occurence to see a Sea Turtle or a shark. Now, you see Turtles, often more than one, on pretty much every dive. And what used to be only the occasional sleeping Nurse Shark has now become the much more frequent swimming shark, as well as the occasional Reef Shark - saw several juvenile Reef Sharks swimming on two or three dives each of the last 3 December trips, all at the southern end of Palancar, IIRC. But what used to be an abundance of huge groupers has now turned into only the occasional BIG Grouper, and many more smaller ones. And Morays seem to have become both less common and more aggressive - used to see LOTS of Morays, all hiding in their holes in the reef (especially at Cedral and Tormentos, which had tons of Morays); now, there seem to be fewer Morays, but the ones that are there will often come out of the holes and swim with divers - waiting on a free lionfish meal, no doubt. And yes, the Lobsters seem to have become more common and bigger - have seen a few real monsters in recent years.

 

[old gaffer]

I did not dive in Cozumel pre Wilma so can not compare but i Have done 5 weeks of diving on semi annual dives post Wilma and I have seen it improve each year. Having said that I once did a dive at Columbia shallows and the reef was alive with sea life and then did it a year later and it was just ho hum. So it depends on the day. Over all I have never been disappointed.

Gaffer

 

[ggunn]

I did not dive in Cozumel pre Wilma so can not compare but i Have done 5 weeks of diving on semi annual dives post Wilma and I have seen it improve each year. Having said that I once did a dive at Columbia shallows and the reef was alive with sea life and then did it a year later and it was just ho hum. So it depends on the day. Over all I have never been disappointed.

Gaffer

Colombia Shallows was mostly spared by Wilma, so the delicate structures that come up near the surface survived the storm. Other reefs were not so lucky. The turtle population has been steadily growing in more recent years due to their protected status and the establishment of the turtle hatcheries on the island and on the mainland. I do, however, miss the turtle steak.

 

[Darol]

Went right after Wilma and dove the destroyed Cruise Ship Pier, they treated us like Kings the entire trip. I'm really glad we didn't cancel. Also went further south and made a few dives. A lot of clean up and repair was going on, but still a great trip.

 

[ColoDale]

We started diving Cozumel around 1998 and dived pre and post Wilma. We missed hurricane Emily in the same year which did not seem to damage the area nearly as much as Wilma.

Post Wilma many of the reefs were covered in sand. For quite some time we did not attempt to dive Tormentos, Yucab and Tunich due to all the sand. It looked like everything was covered in a permanent blanket of snow. Right after Wilma there was alot of trash in the form of plastic beach chairs, trees, wood poles, a boat or two among the other trash. I was amazed how quickly some areas came back though we could still see sand in channels running off the walls like we had not seen before. Much(most) of the sand and trash is gone now.

Wilma did scour sand away from the bases of some formations and opened up new swimthroughs or enlarged them. I was good to see new things.

Five to ten years ago I still remember the lines of boats going south in the morning. It seems to be almost the same now. Maybe a few less due to the economy lately but I don't think due to current reef conditions. It think they have recovered significantly.

I recall telling myself that after Wilma there were more hydriods but it could just be a perception. I know I was stung before. The sponges seemed to come back in greater numbers. Maybe they grow faster due to fewer competitors for space. There does seem to be more hawksbill turtles and I think more Greens and loggerheads than before. It seems to me that I have seen more seahorses and pufferfish lately after a period of not seeing them. I recall seeing huge lobsters pre Wilma on night dives but I think I do see more during the day now.
We seen more nurse sharks and in the last few years, more reef sharks.

Bear in mind that started diving in 1997 and my diving habits are different now than even 5-10 years ago. When we dive Cozumel now, we tell the captain and DM to pick a spot where no one is diving. In the beginning, it was kind of going with the herd and everybody did one of the Palancars or Colombia sites then went North to a shallower site for the second dive. If there are alot of boats we might do La Francesa and Cedral Pass or Dalila and La Frencesa. We pick sites better now but that may not be possible if we were on a large boat with no choice of dive site or departure time.

I think the reefs are better than 5 - 10 years ago but maybe it's only perception. Defintiely better than post Wilma.

Maybe the people overheard are not doing it right. Maybe they haven't been far North or far South in Cozumel. We rarely see anyone at Punta Sur (Sur). Maybe more off season visits to Cozumel. Or leave earlier in the am or later to avoid the rush. Or...
I avoid people by not being near people.

 

[H2ODoc]

We saw 3 sharks on Dahlala (spelling?) today. I don't think I ever remember seeing a shark in our previous 2 trips to Coz (back in 2007/2008).

Also - VERY few lionfish. We might see one or two per dive at most. And they are tiny.

Not many eels, but some massive grouper, which I don't recall seeing them this large.

 

[Brules]

But what used to be an abundance of huge groupers has now turned into only the occasional BIG Grouper, and many more smaller ones. And Morays seem to have become both less common and more aggressive - used to see LOTS of Morays, all hiding in their holes in the reef (especially at Cedral and Tormentos, which had tons of Morays); now, there seem to be fewer Morays, but the ones that are there will often come out of the holes and swim with divers - waiting on a free lionfish meal, no doubt. And yes, the Lobsters seem to have become more common and bigger - have seen a few real monsters in recent years.

Groupers don't come up anymore as the DM's no longer feed them......I remember seeing some real monsters (500+lbs) in the early 90's......they looked like the submarine they were so big lol.

I def do notice the increase in turtles and sharks, but decrease in moray's.....

 

[Darol]

Brules said:

I def do notice the increase in turtles and sharks, but decrease in moray's.....

Have to agree..........