Frédéric M

Canada - 30-Jun-24 -

I visited San Andrés Island in February 2024 during my trip to Colombia. I spent four nights there. After the arrival day (from Cartagena), the next three were scheduled for scuba diving. I flied back to the continent to Medellín.

For my first day of scuba diving, following the recommendation of a diver I met in Cartagena, I opted for Sharky Diving. This agency, based near the military base on the west side of the island, offers transportation from the city. We did two dives from a boat, at West Point and Point PADI. We saw some beautiful corals and plenty of tropical fish, but few particularly remarkable specimens. During the second dive, moray eels (including one that had completely emerged from the rocks), nurse sharks and flying gurnards were observed. Flying fish jumped out of the water as we moved from one site to the next.

A storm was threatening my other two days on the island. Since the winds were coming from the west, Sharky Diving's dive masters couldn't assure me that they'd be able to go out for the rest of my stay, while the east side of the island was sure to be calmer. So I switched to Divers Team (an agency based in a hotel directly in town and therefore with easy access to both sides of the island) for my second day (the weather ended up being quite nice and both companies were able to go out on their own). We again made two boat dives, to Montañita and Pyramide. Once again, corals and tropical fish were the focus (parrotfish, angelfish, scorpionfish (unfortunately)). The second dive was again the richest in spectacular fauna, as we flipped between artificial reefs at shallow depth. We saw a small moray eel of a species new to me and gigantic southern stingrays.

By the third day, the storm had strengthened, and the harbour master didn't allow the company boats to leave the island. However, we were able to see more large stingrays passing just under the dock.

I also visited the mangroves at Old Point. It's not clear to me whether they're part of this nomination, but they're definitely worth a visit. There are almost 2 km of boardwalks on stilts that cross the mangroves and offer privileged access to this ecosystem. Numerous interpretation panels illustrate the plant and animal species that can be observed. In my case, I counted 25 species of bird, including white-crowned pigeon, yellow-crowned night heron, tricolored heron (picture), green-breasted mango, and Jamaican oriole, but above all the endemic San Andres vireo. This small yellowish passerine is now found only in the mangroves of San Andrés Island.

Overall, this protected area doesn't come close to the Belize Barrier Reef. However, I don't see why Caribbean coral reefs should be limited to a single site (or even two or three). The World Heritage List needs more natural sites to be fully representative of our planet's ecosystems and biological diversity. I believe that this park is home to a rich and varied biodiversity and ecosystems that would justify its inclusion on the World Heritage List. However, the protection of the various sites should be better supervised and ensured by the authorities.