Bahamas Blue Striped Grunts
Bahamas Snorkel Tours take tour participants on an undersea adventure so colorful and exciting, so fanciful it will remain among the most treasured memories. These tours offer a chance to experience amazing sightings of Blue-striped Grunts, fish which are mesmerizing with narrow electric blue, horizontal lines cutting through bright yellow tapered bodies. This stunning fish is seen in small to large groups dotting the utopian crystal under waters of the Bahamas. Blue-striped Grunts are very often joined by French Grunts to form schools that can total one thousand fish.
The Bahamian waters chosen for snorkeling tours, while clear and calm, contain marine life that paints a complete picture of vibrant activity among Blue-striped Grunts. Don't be surprised by bright orange grins as you swim among sparkling shallows and sunbeams dancing through blue water. Related to snappers, Grunts are usually smaller and have dark forked tail and dorsal fins with almost clear ends that stand out against the neon-like colors of this fish. These are easy to use as identifying marks when coming upon Blue-striped Grunts while snorkeling. Each eye is accented with a distinct arched line below it. Listen closely for the grunting sound these fish make when grinding their pharyngeal teeth, which are located in the throat area. Grunting can be heard while feeding, captured, touched or when otherwise distressed. The sound, resembling a pig grunt, is amplified by the "air bladder." Grunts possess powerless teeth in the jaw, with a total lack of canines.
Blue-striped Grunts grow to eight to ten inches, the largest recorded is eighteen inches. These tropical fish are thought to live up to a decade, the oldest known age is twelve years. Nocturnal predators, these particular Grunts feed on shrimp, crustaceans and small fish. Premium spawning season occurs January through April in the Bahamas. The adults of these bright fish thrive at depths of zero to ninety-eight and a half feet and are often seen swimming along rock and sand bottoms near reefs. They make quite an impression peering out of multicolored coral reefs as snorkelers parade past them. Younger fish prefer the safety of grass so while on your Bahamas Snorkel Tours be watchful when near sea grass beds!
The sights below the lovely surface of the Atlantic waters of the Bahamas infuse snorkelers with a definite sense of being soothed while enjoying the most exciting entertainment available. Some underwater enthusiasts have witnessed two adult Blue-striped Grunts pushing against one another with orange mouths wide open. Though there is no complete understanding of this behavior, it is thought to be related to one of two things: mating or territorial defense.
Snorkelers enjoying one of the many Bahamas Snorkel Tours, truly swim into a world known only to ancient shipwrecks and colorful coral wonders that bring to mind ages passed and the natural beauty of an untouched planet. Underwater adventurers experience pristine conditions and tranquility in glorious blue Bahamas water while communing with sea life unaware and unaffected by the rush and stress of modern life.