Finding Nemo

Eilat - Gulf of Eilat/Aqaba, a 'finger' of the Red Sea, which is in turn an 'arm' of the Indian Ocean. 40 degrees C, 27 degrees C at night , 25-29% humidity.
Eilat is on the extreme southern tippy tip of Israel with border crossings to Jordan and Egypt at east and south ends of the city respectively.

Coral reef swimming was not as good as I expected it to be. It was several dimensions *better* than I expected it to be! If you ever get the chance to visit any coral reefs I strongly suggest you seize the opportunity. No photograph or even movie can really convey the beauty of coral reef wildlife. To share the same waterspace, to watch as they move languidly about the reefs 'kissing' the coral.. to see the iridescence or pearliness of their scales change with every movement. A mere flick of pectoral fins and tail send them sailing magestically by you, around you, below you. You don't even need scuba diving gear.. I just used simple goggles and snorkel.. something I haven't done for about three decades but as long as nothing leaks it is wonderfully easy and allows you to view everything clearly for as long as you wish. You soon learn to pace yourself with the fish .. no huge effort, just a twist here, a little skulling there and allow yourself to sail by or simply hang over the habitat, watching the delights from above. I haven't identified everything I've seen yet but I'd like to share a few of the characters.

The most obvious and common fish we saw all over the place were Sergeant Majors (Abudefduf saxatilis) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sergeant_major_(fish) a large damselfish, mainly yellow above, pearly offwhite below with several vertical dark bands along the flanks. They seem totally unafraid of the swimmers and appear in a range of sizes, most about the size of two hands.

(The other most common fish was very similar in shape and size all pale but with 'sparkles' on the flanks. Haven't found that one yet. )

Next in frequency would probably be the famous forgetful 'Dora' of Nemo fame though Dora doesn't do this gorgeous fish justice at all. The Yellowtail surgeonfish zebrasoma xanthurum is a gorgeous velvety indigo blue colour with vivid yellow wings and tail and about the same size range as the sergeant majors. There are several similar fish that have this name but this is the species that lives in the Red Sea. Be careful! They got the name because their fin can cut like a scalpel. Rule one in coral wildlife ... touch nothing!

Another fish I was delighted to see up close, only because I'd seen so many photographs, was the Picasso Triggerfish. http://www.fishbase.org/Summary/SpeciesSummary.php?id=25420 I followed a few of these around a little because they are so extraordinary in appearance and tickle the sense of humour.

Then there were numerous species of grouper, wrasse, angelfish and parrotfish, each one more delightful and gorgeous than the last if that were possible. The range of colour and design on these fish was just a total delight to witness. In our section of beach was one huge rock with several types of coral and numerous sea urchins, and all the above were seen around it.. that was before I even got to any more serious reefs. I passed over that rock I don't know how many times and almost every time found something new and fascinating. An awesome huge damselfish type.. black as midnight with two great emerald bands down its flanks.. I saw those several times sailing by majestically.. A delightful little brilliant yellow chap covered with scores of tiny rings of shining blue, 'kissing' the fence separating the public beach from the reserve stretch.. numerous parrotfishes of various sizes with a pearly pastel rainbow design, mostly swimming in open water or foraging on the sea bed.. wrasse working the rock and coral coloured rose wrapped in light green lace. Good stuff was passing to and fro, between and around that fence all the time, it was worth scanning regularly. The fence was encrusted with barnacles and some coral that also attracted the attention of the passersby.

I swam out and around the coral reserve.. that part of the beach is protected, entry only permitted with a guide.. the first time I accidentally swam under the marker line and entered the zone, and swam around the first reef mass in absolute wonder.. (I didn't get caught, but husband and daughter wagged their fingers at me.. I don't think they quite believed it was an accident;) The second time I knew better and respected the boundary line . you can see the reefs perfectly well without actually entering the zone.. and at the second reef mass saw something that totally filled me with adrenaline. There, lurking by the reef right ahead of me was a lion fish! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lionfish I had seen these magnificent orange, black white fish countless times in photographs but to actually be face to face with one, give or take a few metres, is a different thing altogether. There it was, spreading its fearsome array of spiny fins, loaded with venom. My first impulse was to swim away as quickly as possible. When I had calmed my nerve a little I made another pass and took a longer look, from a respectful distance of course. It still frankly terrified me but it was obvious it was not interested in swimming in my direction and was quite happy where it was by the reef, and that was fine with me. By the by I noticed a bunch more fish I hadn't seen earlier including a few delightful Red Sea Anemone Fish Amphiprion bicinctus (Nemo, yeah I found Nemo!:) How could I leave a reef without seeing at least one of these delightful orange clown fish.? http://www.scubatravel.co.uk/anemonefish.html

Later my husband took one of the boys to look at the reef masses .. I told them where to find the lionfish, and my 11 year old son found an octopus! He grabbed me to show me and we watched it swim and spread fleshily on the sea floor. If they weren't so fascinating, they'd be loathsome.. there is something about the way they 'shloob' along that seems almost obscene but were were utterly enthralled, especially as it was adjusting its skin colour constantly as it went along to blend in. Amazing. Husband took a series of pictures of it and I'm not sure of what else yet. This was all just over twelve hours ago. It was my 11 year old who had persuaded me to go down there in the first place and I'm so glad now I went!

As for birds, Eilat was a bit of a strike out.. not migration season and the local bird population is quite sparse, and we found nothing new, but who cares after all the above! Feral pigeons, House sparrows and Senegal doves were common along the waterfront.. as in Jerusalem. Collared doves were the first coos I heard in the valley and several pairs of yellow vented bulbuls were foraging and flitting amongst the acacias quite enthusiastically in the early morning. We noticed some graceful warblers and I heard a jackdaw. I also heard some Tristram's grackle calls before dusk. Familiar beloved birds, I don't take them for granted at all.. I just hoped to see something new. No fish eating birds at all.. not one.. that amazed me.

A pleasant breeze blew down the dry wadi all night which was just barely enough to cool us down.. we all slept almost naked in our tents with no covers. Despite all this none of us suffered ill effects from the heat but for a mild sunburn, and we used copious amounts of factor 30.. now we're using aloe vera. We're all very fair skinned, and I was on to everyone all the time to wear hats, drink, stay cool. The Red Sea helped a lot, it was gloriously cool.

To compensate for the relative dearth of birds I insisted on dropping by my favourite wadi.. Eyn Geddi, a constantly flowing stream by the Dead Sea with an abundance of wildlife. We didn't have time to go into the reserve but even outside we noticed a bunch of Tristram's grackles and some soaring Fan tailed Ravens high over the canyon. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fan-tailed_Raven On the way back husband noticed a bee-eater which did not match our local birds in colour or call. Probably a Blue-cheeked or a Little Green Bee-eater but dang it, I missed seeing it! We did see a bachelor herd of wild ibex, every one a big daddy with horns that must have been quite a headache to carry around!

All in all I was highly satisfied with the trip.