Permit

Photo: awsomeba · © all rights reserved

Large permit move through the lagoon in small schools, feeding on crabs and molluscs in the seagrass beds that cover much of the atoll floor. Their flattened silver bodies and deeply forked tails make them instantly recognisable as they bank and turn in the clear shallow water. The protected status of Banco Chinchorro means permit here reach sizes rarely seen elsewhere in the Caribbean, with individuals exceeding 60 cm common in the lagoon.