New online Bonaire Dive Guide.

[tursiops]

Some similar efforts have been put on REEF.org , creating a database for fish sightings around the caribbean.

I'm 100% with wwguy on this one, and your attempt to say it is like the REEF surveys is an insult to REEF.

 

[Azur Salino]

I'm 100% with wwguy on this one, and your attempt to say it is like the REEF surveys is an insult to REEF.

I never said that this is the same as REEF nor it intends to be, please don't twist my words, i'm not insulting anyone of meaning any offense.

I was plainly trying to make clear how useful a fish databse could be.

 

[Kharon]

If you read the website rules or just interact with it you will notice that there is a series of "vulnerable species" (like seahorse and frogfish) that have special considerations. If you add a frogfish marker, for example, the website will hide the depth of the sighting and also moderate precise descriptions of its location.

Sounds like a very sneaky way for you to get other divers to supply you with specific locations that you keep to yourself. If you really wanted to protect these "vulnerable species" the information wouldn't be collected at all.

 

[Azur Salino]

Sounds like a very sneaky way for you to get other divers to supply you with specific locations that you keep to yourself. If you really wanted to protect these "vulnerable species" the information wouldn't be collected at all.

The fact that you are implying that we built an entire website just to keep a few locations for us is just ridiculous.
Also, this website is targeting the tourists. We locals don't need this as much as them since we dive everyday in our reefs and have a more accurate idea of where to find stuff, and we see it everyday. We do see frogfish everyday. You are missing the point.

I won't be discussing this issue any longer here since the tone of this thread is apparently not polite anymore.
But i really appreciate all the well intended comments that have been posted here.

As a conclusion, i would like to clarify the aim of www.bonairedivers.org. There is a bigger picture than just finding fish.

- An ample database will provide useful information about fish distribution over the time, rather than especific locations. This info is valuable and can be filtered to find out which fishes can be seen often in a particular divesite, what time in the day and their frequency through the year. There is no other tool, as far as i know, that allows you to do find this information anywhere else. There are many people that find this very interesting and valuable.

- Adding markers to the map serves also as a way of commenting your dives, upload your pictures and sharing your experience. It's not only a tool to find a fish. Anyone can use the website and its tools as they find more convenient.

- Sharing "vulnerable species" sightings is safe because no clues of its location are given, just the nearest divesite. And it is still worth sharing because you can always share your pictures of it and it contributes to the general distribution of that species in the database.

I hope everything is clear now and you understand that this website is well intended and will also try to create awareness about our environement.
I suggest that you explore and play the website fully before commenting.
You can send an email thru the website with all your concerns, and with your input we can create a better website that suits everyone.

Thanks

 

[howswedeofme]

Just a FYI - the new book "Dive Guide Bonaire/Duikgids Bonaire" that is for sale at the Dive Friends locations was available in both English and Dutch at the three DF locations we stopped in when we visited in January 2015. We purchased the book both as a guide and a souvenir and found it very helpful as a map, parking guide, and for suggested dive entry locations. My husband and I were both new to shore diving and felt much more comfortable going to each site after reading about what to expect the night before.