It has been so great to see how fascinated our Snorkel Venture guests are becoming with frogfish. The frogfish was really not on the radar for many snorkelers. With muck snorkeling becoming ever more popular, the frogfish is starting to become a must find. With their incredible camouflage and bizarre looks it is great when we find them. For our best places to see them, Indonesia is definitely at the top. With great chances to find them in all our Indonesia Snorkel Venture trips.For me one of my favourite places to find them is in Alor. Alor is not only famed for its stunning reefs, but also regarded as one of the best muck areas in Indonesia. For those not sure what muck snorkeling is we have a great previous blog by Alex explaining (What is muck snorkeling) all about it. With eagle eyed guides we always hope we can find them on the reefs or in the muck. With them coming in all different shapes, colours and sizes. Frogfish are part of the Antennariidae family, which is a type of anglerfish that includes about 50 different species. They’re found in ocean waters all over the world and have a wide range of shapes and sizes. They have modified pectoral fins that resemble hands, which allow them to “walk” along the ocean floor looking for prey. The astonishing camouflage is called a type of aggressive mimicry, a strategy of resembling something else to gain an advantage over your prey. This means potential prey, like small fish or crustaceans, can pass by and never see the well camouflaged frogfish, allowing them to attack the prey at a close range. Frogfish have a dangling lure, which is a type of modified fin called an illicium. It can resemble a worm or shrimp
It has been so great to see how fascinated our Snorkel Venture guests are becoming with frogfish. The frogfish was really not on the radar for many snorkelers. With muck snorkeling becoming ever more popular, the frogfish is starting to become a must find. With their incredible camouflage and bizarre looks it is great when
Belize has a reputation for being some of the best reefs the Caribbean can offer, especially around the Turneffe atoll. It goes without saying when I found out I would be leading the Turneffe tour, I was excited. Not only for snorkeling, but the opportunity to visit Mayan temples. Belize was a hub for the Mayan civilisation, leaving plenty of ruins and temples to observe. Altun Ha was a great example of the Mayan stonework and ancient ways. For those that have not been definitely a great experience. After a big lunch it was time to head out to the boats and meet the crew for Turneffe. Turneffe atoll is famous for its marine biodiversity. With regular sightings of dolphins, sharks, and turtles (Even manatees and crocodiles) just to name a few. Not to mention the beautiful reef fish in abundance. With all this on the doorstep of the Turneffe island resort. Heading out with our infamous guide JV and crew we were in good hands and plenty of laughs to be had. Having always lived and worked in the Pacific you always feel very spoiled with how good our reefs are. I can only say that Belize was certainly living up to its reputation. Stunning soft corals everywhere with gigantic elk horn corals. It was incredible. Not only that, it was so colourful and pristine. The few times I had been to the Caribbean i was always “oh this is nice, but not amazing”. This was fantastic. Full of fish and soft fan corals waving in the motion of the ocean. One day leaving the resort, within about two minutes the boat was being pursued by dolphins. With no hesitation the crew got us ready and we went. Normally interactions with dolphins are pretty fleeting. Here they kept coming
Belize has a reputation for being some of the best reefs the Caribbean can offer, especially around the Turneffe atoll. It goes without saying when I found out I would be leading the Turneffe tour, I was excited. Not only for snorkeling, but the opportunity to visit Mayan temples. Belize was a hub for the
It is easy to say that French Polynesia is exactly how you would imagine it to be. A remote tropical paradise. As you fly into Tahiti over the island's fringing reefs and lagoons, you can see why it is so rich in marine biodiversty. The scenery of the big volcano in the background with lush greens making their way down to the blues of the ocean, is exactly like you see on the postcards. This is definitely one of my favourite trips we offer at Snorkel Venture. I love the remoteness of being out in the middle of the Pacific on a big catamaran, cruising the atolls. I first really started to hear about the Atoll Fakarava on the BBC documentary The Blue Planet with David Attenborough. It was famed for its wall of sharks in the passages. The passages are the gaps that lead to the open ocean, allowing water to flow through the atoll. Taking a short flight from Tahiti we headed to Fakarava. Passing over pristine reefs and atolls. Once landed we were greeted by locals at the airport and adorned with beautiful flower necklaces. A traditional way of greeting and welcoming people to the islands. Jumping on board our boat the Aqua Tiki ii we wasted no time and set sail South towards the South Passage. A 4 cabin catamaran with a large galley and spacious deck area. Made the perfect setting for our first sunset cocktails and briefings on the boat. For me personally sleeping on yachts is the best night's sleep. The sound of the ocean and gentle rock of the boat, is a great combination for a perfect night's sleep. Especially when inside the atoll. With an early start and short sail we had arrived at the famed South Passage. With us being
It is easy to say that French Polynesia is exactly how you would imagine it to be. A remote tropical paradise. As you fly into Tahiti over the island’s fringing reefs and lagoons, you can see why it is so rich in marine biodiversty. The scenery of the big volcano in the background with lush
These weird and wonderful creatures are always a treat and cool to see. Real crowd pleasers. Probably the closest thing we have to aliens on earth. With the ability to change colours, Shape, and texture makes them fascinating to watch. Living predominantly on the reefs, we are lucky to find them on most of our tours. The most common species we see are the Octopus, Cuttlefish, and squids. Cephalopods can be characterised by their arms and tentacles, incredible camouflage and impressive level of intelligence. Octopuses or octopi, squid and cuttlefish are the most well-known members of the Cephalopoda class of animals. They have all evolved from a common, hard-shelled ancestor (more similar to a nautilus). The word “cephalopod” comes from Greeks and means “head foot,” which perfectly describes animals that have eyes just above their many limbs. Octopus There are around 300 species of octopus and they are found to be in every ocean. known for their high intelligence and their amazing ability to blend into their surroundings. They are some of the most fascinating creatures to observe. The octopus is equipped with three hearts: one that pumps blood through the body (including the 8 arms), and two that pump blood through the gills. It is an interesting fact to know that the octopus does not have tentacles. They are in fact arms. Octopus are the only marine animals, apart from the Cetacean family (Whales & Dolphins), that demonstrate primitive problem-solving and pattern recognition skills. But whatever kind of intelligence they possess, it's different from the human brain, probably closer to a cat. The skin is covered by three types of specialised skin cells, these can quickly change their colour, allowing them to easily blend in with its surroundings. While it is very intelligent they can also be very inquisitive.
These weird and wonderful creatures are always a treat and cool to see. Real crowd pleasers. Probably the closest thing we have to aliens on earth. With the ability to change colours, Shape, and texture makes them fascinating to watch. Living predominantly on the reefs, we are lucky to find them on most of our
In late November of 2021, I had the pleasure of being able to visit a brand new snorkel and dive resort in Indonesia called Kusu Island Resort in southern Halmahera. Halmahera, if you're wondering, is the large odd-shaped island just west of the Raja Ampat area. I was visiting Kusu Island Resort for two reasons, the first was to check it out as a potential resort to run our snorkeling safaris through, and the second was to produce some promotional content for the new resort. As Kusu Island Resort is not 100% open to the public yet because of the seriously annoying restrictions to still in place for foreigners visiting Indonesia, I was the only “guest” and had the whole place to myself for two full weeks. Yes, my job has some serious perks! Anyway, my time was not spent lounging around, quite the opposite actually. I used every bit of daylight and a good portion of the night to explore as much of the reefs and resort as possible to make sure everything is “up to snuff.” Here's what I found. The Resort Upon landing at the Labuha airport on the island of Bacan (pronounced Bachan), just off the southwest corner of Halmahera you'll be met by a member of the Kusu Island Resort team and taken to the nearby port where you'll jump into the resort's comfortable speedboat and driven about thirty minutes to Kusu Island, where the resort is, obviously. The resort has been incorporated into the island in a very natural way and the only evidence you'll see of the resort, in the beginning, is a long—beautifully built pier that extends from the mangroves and ends where the reef drops off into the blue. It's only when the boat is parking on the wooden pier that
In late November of 2021, I had the pleasure of being able to visit a brand new snorkel and dive resort in Indonesia called Kusu Island Resort in southern Halmahera. Halmahera, if you’re wondering, is the large odd-shaped island just west of the Raja Ampat area. I was visiting Kusu Island Resort for two reasons,
