Spiny Lobster

Photo: ifesbob · CC BY-NC

The painted spiny lobster crowds the lava tube entrances and cavern walls of Vicente Roca North in remarkable densities, their antennae protruding from every crack and crevice. The cold nutrient-rich water supports larger and more abundant lobster populations here than at warmer Galapagos sites, and night dives reveal them walking openly across the reef. They are fully protected within the Galapagos Marine Reserve and show no fear of divers, allowing face-to-face encounters in the beam of a dive light.