DK Travel : Cancún and the Yucatán : Top 10 Reef Animals

Cancún and the Yucatán : Top 10 Reef Animals

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1. Fan Corals

Delicately veined fronds coming up from the ocean floor, which wave graciously in the undersea currents.
2. Sea Cucumbers

Tube-like creatures with a tough, spiny skin that can be seen lying motionless on the seabed or in clefts in the coral.
3. Snappers

Among the commonest fish here, yellowtail, blackfin, and other snappers move in huge, gleaming shoals.
4. Angelfish

Spectacularly colorful fish, with a fan-like shape and luminous stripes and patches in yellows and electric blue.
5. Sergeant Majors

Bright, darting, little fish, recognizable by their black and yellow vertical stripes.
6. Pufferfish

Bizarre fish that, when provoked, inflate themselves by taking in water in order to deter attackers.
7. Parrot Fish

These come in many varieties and sizes, but most are very colorful and look as if they are smiling amiably.
8. Rays

Spotted eagle rays, elegantly waving their “wings” as if to fly through the water, are common around some of the Cozumel reefs.
9. Barracudas and Sharks

Many varieties are found around the Yucatán reefs – but attacks on humans are almost unknown.
10. Turtles

Now endangered, sea turtles come ashore to lay their eggs on sandy beaches along the southern Riviera.