Jibe City is home to some of the only remaining natural patches of the endangered Staghorn (Acropora cervicornis) and Elkhorn (Acropora palmata) corals on Bonaire. Acropora spp. are fast growing, branching corals that provide habitat to a wide array of marine life. In the past these corals used to be abundant around the island of Bonaire where channels had to be cut for boats to get to shore. The Coral Restoration Foundation Bonaire have a few restoration sites around Bonaire growing these corals in hopes to restore the coral reefs with these species. Besides enjoying the corals, we saw spotted eagle rays and a few octopi in the lagoon.
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| Acropora palmata - Elkhorn coral |
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| Octopus |
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Spotted eagle ray
Photo Credit: Emily Dawson |
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Acropora cervicornis - Staghorn coral
Photo Credit: Emily Dawson |
Looks like a forest with all that stag horn coral around, nice picture.
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