Trip Report Scuba Diving in Roatán, Honduras - January 2020 (4K)

[EvilOtter]

Here is the video from our last trip to Roatán in January 2020. We had an amazing time diving with Barefoot Divers, Roatán and Jackson's Dive Centre.

This video is a bit of a departure from my usual fare. Through our time in Roatán, we have become acutely aware of the precarious state of coral reefs as a direct result of climate change and other human-related stressors. As such, I feel compelled to share what we have learned and the dim future that may lie ahead.

I would like to make special mention of the Roatán Marine Park and Bay Islands Reef Restoration for the excellent work that they continue to do to support these fragile ecosystems. Please share with your friends and do your part to save our coral reefs.

 

[Snodge]

always like your vids! Cool to see a mantis shrimp out of his hole and then to see it grabbing a flamingo tongue, crazy cool!

How were the barrel sponges doing? Saw a few sick ones last year and kinda afraid of what I'll see this spring.

 

[aviator8]

Love to see your videos. Thanks for posting. I noticed something you probably already know but in case you did not see it. When shooting into the sun the white lettering on your lens face is reflecting back from the inside of your dome. You can take a black sharpie to the letters and it will help.

 

[Ripple in still water]

Beautiful, as always (I recently checked out your other videos on Youtube). I'll look for some of this stuff off the palapa at Barefoot Cay next month.

 

[EvilOtter]

Thank you all for the kind comments! I'm glad that you enjoyed it.

How were the barrel sponges doing? Saw a few sick ones last year and kinda afraid of what I'll see this spring.

The sponges and tunicates were in great shape. That said, there was ample evidence of brain and maze corals recovering from bleaching due to the high water temperatures last summer although I did not observe significant mortality. Also, the acropora seem to have been unaffected.

When shooting into the sun the white lettering on your lens face is reflecting back from the inside of your dome. You can take a black sharpie to the letters and it will help.

That's a fantastic idea! I will definitely do that. I certainly noticed the problem with that clip but I really liked it and my heart would not let me cut it out. Such are the advantages when no one is paying for your work!

I'll look for some of this stuff off the palapa at Barefoot Cay next month.

Super fun! The palapa is a great spot for critter crawling and it's nice to be able to do your own thing, as a photographer, without holding up a group. There is always something interesting to find in there. Just be sure to look up from time to time to see the eagle rays as they pass by!

 

[kmarks]

Thanks for sharing!

After a terrible experience with AKR as part of a Carnival Excursion (never again, never ever again) 5 years ago, I'm finally going back to Roatan at the end of April, this time spending a whole week there. This video has me looking forward to it now even more for two reasons:
1) SEA HORSE! I've never seen one in the wild and they've been at the top of my list forever.
2) Macro! I borrowed a macro wet lens for a dive in Cozumel last year and just got one for myself for this trip, so I'm happy to see that it looks like I'll have plenty of use for it. Mine actually came with black ring stickers to put on the camera's lens to prevent that reflection @aviator8 mentions.

Did that mantis eat that flamingo tongue, shell and all? Or did I just miss the part where he spit it out?

 

[EvilOtter]

I’m sure that you will enjoy your week at a dive resort as opposed to a half-day cruise ship excursion. There is great macro all over Roatan but particularly on the south side. Good luck finding a seahorse. There are many out there but they do not always arrive on schedule. If you dive with Barefoot, they can take you to see Johnny and Pedro, the two in my video.

As for the mantis shrimp, I was really lucky to get that shot. He was hanging out in a shallow barrel sponge where he posed perfectly for several other divers and photographers in my group. As I floated in for my turn, my heart sank as he took off and scooted over the edge. I floated past the sponge and descended to the base where we suddenly found ourselves eye to eye. After checking me out for 10-15 seconds, he leapt on to the sea fan and proceeded to assault the cyphoma, popped it into his mouth and took off for good. Needless to say, I was flipping out!