Bonaire's Tiny Treasures
So… the little stuff. Where do I even begin?
I guess the real beginning is somewhere near the dawn of life itself—cell evolution and all that. But if I try to wrap my head around that, I’ll be lost forever (trust me, I’ve tried). So instead, I start with something just a little bigger: plankton, eggs, juveniles, and all the nearly invisible wonders of the ocean. From now on, let’s just call them the little stuff.
Here on Bonaire, most people are drawn to the beauty of the reef— sea turtles, fish, coral landscapes. And I get it. It’s breathtaking. But for me, the real magic begins when I slow down, shift my perspective, and challenge myself to find creatures I never even knew existed.
Diving all over the world has taught me one undeniable truth: anything can be alive. That flicker of movement? That speck of color? Life is everywhere if you know how to look. So here I am, exploring the reef of Bonaire with a fresh set of eyes, hunting for the hidden world of the little stuff.
Macro Dictionary
And because I’m a bit of a nerd who’s completely obsessed with the ocean and its tiny, magical inhabitants, I made my own macro dictionary. A personal guide to everything I’ve discovered here in Bonaire.
A
- Arrowcrab
- Anemone Squad Shrimp
- Aglaja
- Armina
- Atlantic Pygmy Octopus
B
- Brotula
- Basket Star
- Brittle Star
- Batwing Coral Crab
- Bumblebee Shrimp
- Blistered Grass Anemone
- Brown Crinoid Shrimp
- Black Urchin Shrimp
- Banded Coral Shrimp
- Beaded Sea Cucumber
C
- Copper Lobster
- Christmas Tree Worms
- Corkscrew Anemone
- Corallimorph
- Comb Jelly
- Chaetopterid Worms
- Clinging Crab
- Cowrie
- Cyphoma
- Chocolate Lined Topsnail
- Chiton
- Crinoid
D
- Decorator Crab
- Diamond Back Squid Egg Case
E
- Elkhorn Coral Crab
- Elisia
- Eyespot Costasiella
F
- Flabellina
- Flat Worm
- Flamingo Tongue
- Frogfish
- Fire Worm
- Flaming Reef Lobster
- Flaming Box Crab
- Fileclamb
G
- Glaudi Clown Crab
- Glass Slug
- Gold-Fringed Cerberilla
H
- Hydroids
- Hermit Crab
I
- Isopods
J
- Jewel Urchin
- Jolthead Porgy
K
- Knobby Anemone
L
- Lettuce Sea Slug
M
- Mantis Shrimp
- Music Volute
N
- Neck Crab
- Nimble Spray Crab
O
- One Tooth Simnia
P
- Pink Circled Simnia
- Petersen Cleaner Shrimp
- Pyrosome
- Pipehorse
- Pipefish
- Pencil Point Urchin
- Peppermint Shrimp
Q
- Queen Conch
- Queen Trigger Fish
R
- Red Snapping Shrimp
- Red Heart Urchin
S
- Sea Goddess
- Spotted Cleaner Shrimp
- Siphonophores
- Sea Horse
- Sea Pearl
- Sun Anemone Shrimp
- Skeleton Shrimp
- Squad Anemone Shrimp
- Sea Spiders
- Simnia
- Seahare
- Sea Angel
- Sand Dollar
T
- Toothpick Shrimp
- Twoclaw Shrimp
- Teardrop Crab
- Tunicates
- Tritonia
- Tiger Tail Sea Cucumber
U
- Urchin Shrimp
V
- Venus Girdle
- Viper Moray
- Voluta Snail
W
- Wire Coral Shrimp
- West Indian Sea Egg
- Whitefoot Shrimp
X
Y
- Yellow Lined Arrowhead Crab
Z
- Zoanthid