Sharks & Rays | Reptiles & Crustaceans | Reef Fish | Invertebrates | Eels
Tobago Marine Life
REPTILES & CRUSTACEANS
Not everything with a shell is a crustacean or reptile but I would need a much bigger website to accommodate all the families, so, if it’s got a shell it’s on this page.
Hawksbill Turtle (Eretmochelys imbriocota)
Without doubt the most common turtle you will see in these waters. You find them island wide and each one seems to have a different personaility. Some are seriously shy, others unperturbed. Every know and then you get one that wishes to interact. However there are, they’re always a joy to meet underwater.
Green Turtle (Chelonia mydas)
An occasional visitor to Tobago but certainly not seen in the numbers of hawksbills. Identification is easiest by the difference in size and postion of the nuchal plate and costal plates.
Leatherback Turtle (Dermochelys coriacea)
There are leatherback nesting sites on both Trinidad and Tobago’s beaches. These fantastic creatures arrive between April and June to lay eggs. They will lay over 80 eggs in each nest and build up to five nests during the laying season. Those higher up the beach produce males while those nearer the waters edge produce females. It’s a wonderful thing to watch but the turtles should not be disturbed and bright lights onshore confuse them and stop them laying. Night dives in the Mt Irvine area increase your chances of seeing them.
Caribbean Spotted Lobster (Panulirus guttatus)
One of two common lobsters in Tobago, the other being the spiney lobster. You should look for the tell tale sign of their antenna sticking out from under corals. On night dives they are often seen running across the reef. Common island wide.
Flamingo Tongue (Cyphoma bibbosum)
One of several cyphoma commonly known as sea snails. Distinguished from spotted cyphoma which have clearly defined spots, and fingerprint cyphoma which have yellow and black tiger like markings, flamingo tongues are bright yellow in colour with black and orange markings. On all cyphoma the colourings is not in the shell which is plain white but a membrane that covers it. Remove the shell from the sea and it turns white as the cyphoma dies.
Banded Coral Shrimp (Stenopus hispidus)
Seen island wide these tiny shrimp are usually inside barrel sponges or under plates of mountainous boulder coral. You’ll first see there long white antenna sticking out from their hiding place. Their cleaner shrimps so they are not afraid of divers or interaction.
Batwing Coral Crab (Carpilius coralinus)
A large resident crab which can be found on most reefs during night dives. You seldom if ever see them during daylight hours. Can grow to 30cm across. Like most crabs will run and hide at the sight of divers.
Yellow Line Arrow Crab (Stenorhynchus seticomis)
A small brightly golden coloured crab with iridescent blue stripes and a almost diamond shaped body this crab baffles most divers who think it some kind of spider. Quite fearless and interacts with many creatures.
Sharks & Rays | Reptiles & Crustaceans | Reef Fish | Invertebrates | Eels
