It is no surprise that Palau is consistently rated the top dive destination in the world. Our first exploration after the burial cave is a mysterious tidal stream and system of marine lakes. The kayak is the perfect vehicle as we sneak up the stream in just a few inches of water at mid-tide. The bottom is white sand, the shores are mangrove swamp. These marine lakes and the mangrove swamps are the incubator for many species of fish, including rays, turtles, parrot fish, juvenile barracuda.
Mangrove swamps are essential to the health of the reefs.
Ron is giving me another lesson in zoology. He scoops up a handful of beautiful sand dollars. Next he s overboard to show me a unique species of starfish, with Velcro-like tentacles and a hard underbody. Or the creature that polishes its shell to a micro-glaze as a defense against the pincers of a predator crab. Ron seems to know the evolutionary history of all that grows below, around, and above us.