Straits of Tiran, Red Sea - An Explosion of Color
Do you know what it's like to be on one of those trips thinking it can't get much
better than this? While on a trip to Egypt after spending a few days site-seeing in
Cairo, and its surrounding area I was thinking what an incredible experience I was
enjoying. How was it going to get any better than taking in the spectacular
pyramids, Cairo museum, sailing on the Nile River, the market places etc. -- it was
like being in an Indiana Jones movie! But I knew after plunging into the tepid waters
of the Red Sea that I was in for a real treat.
My camera was in overdrive. Our first dive on Jackson Reef, in the Straits of Tiran,
revealed a kaleidoscope of color, with a sheer wall veneered in soft corals
( genus Dendronephthya) and scattered stony corals. There were also many of the
fishes endemic to, or most common, in the Red Sea that I had heard about. There were
zebra angelfish (Genicanthus caudovittatus), a representative of the unusual
genus of angels that look more like damselfishes than their fellow family members.
I also encountered my first pair of stunning masked butterflyfish (Chaetodon semilarvatus)
under a table coral and a bluetail trunkfish (Ostracion cyanurus) looking for food
on the scattered sand patches. There were mixed shoals of lyretail anthias (Pseudanthias
squamipinnis), a fish I had seen many times before in the western Pacific, and
striped anthias (P. taeniatus), a Red Sea endemic. I encountered a giant moray that
was literally as big as my thigh and a buried reef stonefish (Synanceia verrucosus).
One of the most beautiful fish on the reefs of the Red Sea, is the yellowband
angelfish (Pomacanthis maculosus), with its lovely purple body, bright
yellow band and long, trailing dorsal and anal filaments. It's usually easy to
approach in this area, no doubt use to the diver traffic. Some of the smaller reef
fishes that left an impression include the orchid dottybacks (Pseudochromis
fridmani), which usually hang around sea fans, Springer's dottyback (P.
springeri) and the twoband anemonefish (Amphirpion bicinctus), which is
only found in the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden and Chagos.
There were plenty of great macro subjects, including Periclimenes shrimp in
bubble coral, Xenia soft coral, many beautifully colored soft corals, and
tasseled scorpion fish (Scorpaenopsis oxycephala). Although we saw few sharks,
we saw one of their shocking relatives, a panther torpedo ray (Torpedo
panthera) and numerous bluespotted ribbontail rays (Taeniura lymma).
Some other highlights: spawning broomtail wrasses, octopus, turtles, cleaning stations,
huge sea fans and crinoids.
One last thing, I survived the attack of the dreaded Titan triggerfish and have teeth
marks on my swim fins as a reminder to steer clear.
We spent our week diving the Red Sea on the Gazhala III. I would recommend if you are
serious about diving in this area, you get on a liveaboard because you are likely to
encounter more diver traffic if you go on day boats. The liveaboards are usually at
the dive sites before the day boats, and of course you can dive later.
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