My wife and 7yo are putting together a book of the creatures we’ve encountered in the anchorage that's been home for most of 2020 - Samaná in the Dominican Republic.

Thread . It’ll keep getting longer, until the book is finished.

We spend at least a couple of mornings a week exploring the shallows. And my wife takes the kids when I'm working so they get some extra time, too.

Most creatures found by one of the kids.

1 - Yellow Stingray.

Found in shallow water (less than 1 foot) in mix of sand, turtle grass and rubble. Markings gave good camouflage. Diameter of disc approx. 5 inches.

2 - Spotted Sea Hare.

Found in less than 6 inches of water in mix of turtle and manatee grasses. Tide receding, and it could move short stretches completely exposed. 7yo thinks it was during a mating period as we also discovered egg bundles in the grasses.

3 - Sharpnose Puffer.

Found swimming next to the hull of our boat in the anchorage (7m deep). 7yo scooped it into a tub of water to identify. It was about 2.5 inches long.

4 - Sand Diver.

5yo caught this 25cm long fish accidentally whilst fishing from the dock.

Water depth was about 1.5m, and the fish was hidden under the sand, striking the baited hook unexpectedly.

5 - Spiny Brittle Star.

Found alongside at least three other species of brittle star under rocks amongst rubble.

The tide was low, 7yo hypothesizes that at higher tide there might be more predators around, as we never find any at high tide.

6 - Slippery Dick.

As the tide fell, a couple of these were stranded on the sand. Perhaps corralled by predatory fish into the shallows.

This fish was only a couple of inches long. We sometimes see them darting around the pools left by low tide, usually on their own.

7 - Slate Pencil Urchin.

7yo found these under rocks in very shallow water at low tide. Both approx. 3in in diameter.

Some spines were encrusted with growth, perhaps algae. If you look closely, you can see a hermit crab is hitching a ride on one urchin!

8 - Golden Spotted Eel.

We were lucky to spot this 2ft long Snake Eel exploring the between rubble and sea grass in the shallows (about 1ft deep). We’d only just hopped out of the dinghy!

9 - Sargassumfish – 5/7yos bring large clumps of sargassum onto the boat to check for creatures; they were thrilled to discover this Sargassumfish.

It was extremely well camouflaged, with feathery, plant-like growths all over its body that perfectly mimic the sargassum.

10 - Bar Jack - also known as birthday breakfast Jack. Caught on his 7th birthday dinghy trolling across the bay. Very tasty.

Big bar along its back and on its bottom tail fin. We have seen a couple when diving, too.

11 - Bandedarm Brittle Star – found alongside some other brittle star species under rocks at low tide (around 10cm of water).

12 - Reticulated Brittle Star – found at the same time as the Bandedarm and Spiny Brittle Stars

13 - Circle-marked Brittle Star - found at the same time as the Bandedarm and Spiny and Reticulated Brittle Stars.

14 - Blue Runner (top and 3rd of these four fellows on a line)

We have seen and eaten less of this jack species than the Yellow Jack, but they are not uncommon. These two tasty specimens, 5-6” long, were caught while bottom fishing.

15 - Yellowtail Snapper (above photo, 2nd from top) - This 6” fish was also tasty.

We have seen juvenile schoolmasters in the bay as well, but no other examples of this species. Identified by his yellow stripe which is vivid in younger fish.

16 - Squirrelfish (above photo, bottom) – also called “big eyed yuck fish” on our boat. This 6” fish was caught along with his fellows when we were bottom fishing. His fellows were eaten. He was not.

17 - Ciliated False Squilla - Found at low tide in rubbly area. 2” or so in length. Difficult to catch- tends to burrow under sand and rock- and rarely seen, especially in the later months of the year.

18 - Sargassum Swimming Crab – scooped up regularly from sargassum floating into the bay. Often found with a number of other juvenile creatures using the sargassum as cover and a floating home. Our crab’s carapace was only 2cm or so wide, they grow to 6cm.

19 - Caribbean Spiny Lobster – we have not yet seen these in the wild. But, we’ve bought them from locals who dive the bay (6-12m depth). Three were quite small, but one was larger, a little less than 1 foot.

20 - Redhair Swimming Crab – we think this is a redhair, because of its two larger lateral spines, 7 pointed sapines on the edge of carapace, 3 spines the first section of claw arms, and claws with red tips and white bands. But its hard to distinguish between swimming crabs!

21 - Mottled Shore Crab – about 1cm across, found on the rocky tideline.

22 - Western Gulf Stone Crab - Found a long time before we decided to write this book. Around 4cm across the carapace so likely a male or juvenile. Females grow up to 10cm.

23 - (Might be) molting blue crab - We think this is a blue crab, which we have seen before in the area, which has recently molted. It's hiding in the seagrass.

Although 5yo is certain that it is a new type of crab entirely. Found in the area our kids know as the sulphur mine.

24 - Tomtate – Hector (2yo) caught this fish while bottom fishing from the boat with a weighted line. The local fishermen use cast nets from on shore.

25 - Barred Hamlet – This fish was swimming around in circles just off our boat at Cayo Levantado, likely injured. Arthur picked it up, and we kept it in a tub for a while.

When we returned him to the sea, Arthur says he waved his fin at us to say bye.

26 - Horse Eye Jack – We’ve not seen many of these. This one, about 4” long, was caught by a local fisherman with a cast net in the shallows.

27 - Houndfish or Flat Needlefish? – Arthur is somewhat obsessed with trying to catch this type of fish, which the locals catch from either on the bridge or wading in the shallows.

It looks too blue-ish green to be a Houndfish; but we’re not sure.

28 - Cushion Sea Star – Arthur freedives for these whenever he has chance, either around the bridge or at Cayo Leventado.

Our largest find was about 40cm, the smallest about the size of Hector’s hand. Normally five-legged though we’ve found a couple with 4 and 6.

Their stomachs are forced out of their mouths to grab prey and start the process of digestion. They have no brain and a water system rather than blood.

Locals scrape out the soft parts to sell to tourists; so Arthur hides them when he sees certain individuals nearby.

30- Florida Swimming Crab – its tough to identify swimming crabs so we’re not sure on this one. Found in the shallows at low tide, about 3 inches across the carapace. We see more of these in the rocks, hiding from predators like the Chain Moray.

31- Slender Filefish – A fishermen caught these in his cast net and gave them to the boys. The larger was 2” long.

32- Impatient Sea Cucumber – the source of many jokes that are funny to a 5/7 year old. Found under a rock, around 6” long, the top covered with cone-like papillae.

33- Green Clinging Crab – found clinging to the bottom of a rock at low tide. Well camouflaged, and only 1” or so across. Nocturnal.

34- Brown Shrimp – found by one of the kid’s friends in a sandy area at a very low tide. Translucent, with brown bands along the back and long antennae. Around 1.5” in length.

35 - Blotched Swimming Crab or Blackpoint Sculling Crab – found hiding under a rock amongst some rubble. It has mottling and some visible banding on the legs; our guess is that it is a blotched swimming crab due to the orientation. But unsure. 2-3” carapace.

36 - Rock-Boring Urchin – frequently seen at low tide in crevices. Most around 2” across, black or very dark red, and strongly adhered to the rocks.

37 - Shorthorn Decorator Crab – tentatively identified because of the amount of growth, but the prominent spikes towards the front of the carapace and bristled walking legs are clues, we think. Their camouflage strategy changes with the seasons.

38 - Convoluted Orange Sponge – Mostly found close to the bridge on the bottom of rocks. The excurrent openings form cones. And hearing your 5yo shout “look at this excurrent opening” is cute.

39 - Red Warty Anemone – found all over the place. Beautiful jewel-like colors, robust-looking, with three rows of short tentacles and warty lumps on their bodies.

40 - Elegant Anemone – many of these either side of the bridge in the sand substrate between rocks. Mostly greenish shading (they can be various colors) around 12cm diameter.

41 - Beaded Anemone – also found either side of the bridge, mostly white but occasionally purple. The larger ones (10cm plus) appear wedged in between the rocks.

42 - Key Worm Eel(?) – doesn’t appear in our identification guides and internet-identification was tough. Swimming in the shallows on a very low tide. Tan-green eel, well-camouflaged, perhaps 2 feet long.

43 - American Eel(?) – doesn’t appear in our identification guides. This eel spent a couple of hours swimming along the surface around the boat hulls. Deep, shiny black with a fan like tail and two fore fins. It’s a freshwater eel that was migrating to the Sargasso Sea to spawn.

44 - (Golf) Ball Sponge – We’ve only seen a few of these, one adhered to a rock and the other floating free. Both around 2 inches in diameter.

45 - Foureye Butterflyfish – Caught in a cast net by a local fisherman and given to the boys along with other by-catch. About 1.5 inches in length, beautiful yellow colour and distinctive vertical stripe across the eye and spot near the tail.

46 - Scrawled Cowfish – Another by-catch from local fishermen given to the boys. About 1 foot long, with a rigid body, two horns on the front of its head and a beautiful yellow-blue pattern.

47 - Six Keyhole Sand Dollars – 7yo found these tests (skeletons) while diving at Cayo Levantado. We have only found the six-keyhole variant, and are yet to see one alive…

48 - Variegated Urchins – regularly found in the tidal areas, mostly greenish but with some lavender. They attach debris (like the ‘tests’ of sand dollars, seaweed) to their tops and sides, and take a while to find as a result.

49 - Green Feather Alga - beautiful feather-like leaves that sway gently in the current and provide shelter for small fish and other marine creatures. We think its presence here is seasonal.

50 - Green Net Alga - so similar in appearance and texture to fishing line or fine fishing net that we were planning to remove it from the water! Found in long lengths caught in the seagrass.

51 - White Scroll Alga – Found in patches throughout the tidal zone, especially over sand. The visible parts of the plant appear like a whitish-light brown curl, with horizontal ‘ribs’.

52 - Variegated Feather Duster Worm - They are fairly infrequent, but this may be because they disappear into their tubes as soon as they sense your presence. They are a beautiful pinky color with delicate, fringe-like crown.

53 - Split Crown Feather Duster Worm - Beautiful colored Feather Duster Worms, with fairly dense fringe-like crown split into two halves. Usually found on rocks in the shallow tidal area. Disappear into their tubes as soon as they sense your presence.

54 - Magnificent Feather Duster Worm- Dense, double cluster of fringes in crown, which sway in the current. Colors are banded- we have mostly seen those of reddish-brown shades. Shy.

55 - (Possibly) Brown Fan Worm

Pretty crown banded with different shades of brown-ish red.

Disappear into their tubes as soon as they sense your presence, so not regularly seen. Usually found on rocks and rubble.

56 - Variegated Scale Worm
We have found only one example of this worm in the shallow tidal area, closer to the waters edge within an area of sea grass, beneath a rock that we turned over.

Length was between 1-2 inches. Scales appear like armour.

57 - Stippled Flatworm
We have found one example of the Stippled Flatworm, recently detached from a rock in the shallow tidal area.
Elongated and contracted as it moved along. Beautiful peachy colour with small orange dots on body and skirt-like outer edge.

58 - Spaghetti Worm

We've only seen a couple of these, on one afternoon in the shallow tidal area, very close to shore.

Camouflaged in a tube covered in what looked like small pebbles and bits of shell- it was only recognizable from the long, string like projections.

We left Samana a couple of weeks ago, book unfinished.

Will it ever be finished? Who knows!

I'll update this thread if Arthur wants to work on the book again - we have many more photos to sort through and species to identify...