One of the most intriguing aspects of diving a coral reef or shipwreck is observing the fish that live there. This handy guide provides you with the identities of the most common fish that you are likely to encounter at La Caleta Underwater Park and where those fish generally live.

Rather than just an identification field book, it is more of a fish finder guide.

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Blackbar Soldierfish

Here is a fish that is hard to miss. It has a bright red body, large eyes and forked tail. The most distinctive marking is a vertical black stripe or bar just behind the gill plate. Because of its sensitivity to light, this fish likes to live in the shadows; under a shady ledge, in a crevice or cave or inside a shipwreck. You will find lots of them living on the wreck of the Hickory.

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Black Durgon

This fish is very easy to identify because it is usually the only all-black fish that you will find living on a coral reef or wreck. It is a member of the Triggerfish family but looks quite different from the other family members. It is so black that it is hard to see the eye and the face of the fish is so rounded that you hardly notice the mouth. Black durgons generally swim in mid-water, above the coral heads or shipwreck, often rising close to the surface.

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Bluestriped Grunt

The grunt is a very common reef fish and there are many different species. This particular species is one of the most abundant and is easy to identify because of its yellow body and neon blue horizontal stripes that pass through the body from the tip of its nose to the base of the tail. This fish likes to congregate in groups or small schools that live on top of coral reefs, often tucked under a soft gorgonian or elkhorn coral branch.

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Barracuda

There is no mistaking the silvery elongated shape of the barracuda. It has a pointy nose, large inquisitive eyes and pearly white canine-like teeth. Most barracudas develop vertical black bands on their body as they grow older, but they maintain their shiny, almost chrome-like coloration. Barracuda generally hang suspended in mid water over the coral reef or a shipwreck.

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Green Moray

This fish is a member of the eel family and can range in color from light to dark green. It ranges in size from 3 to 6 feet long and has a ribbon-like dorsal f