Situated off the private beaches and cliffs of Land House San Nicolas, this unique site can only reached by boat. Named for its relative abundance of ever rarer black coral, there is a lot to see here.

Elkhorn and brain corals populate the coastline along with parrot fish, damselfish, and angelfish (among others) providing excellent snorkeling. The reef wall starts a hundred yards off shore in 30 feet of water, sloping down to over 150 feet.  Turtles are often seen here, and sea horses and frogfish are just some of the camouflaged natives to keep a careful eye out for. (Photographers, don’t forget your macro-lens.) Frogfish are able to perfectly blend with their background, often favoring sponges for their homes. When they find a spot they like, they’ll spend several months in the same location, letting their food come to them. Their first dorsal spine has evolved into a thin stalk which they use to lure prey close enough to where they can snap them up with their oversized mouths.

The obvious attraction here is the assortment of black corals, generally found between 30 and 100 feet. Most varieties are actually gray, brown, or dark green (not black!). Many form branches looking similar to the branches of a pine tree, while some form long unbranched wire like stalks.

All across the Caribbean, black coral has been over-harvested and sold to jewelers who cut, fashion, and polish the tough material for sale as souvenir trinkets. Fortunately black coral is now protected on Curacao, and it’s now illegal to gather or sell items made from Black Coral. In areas like Black Coral Gardens we hope to see these slow growing colonies flourish back to their historic abundance in the coming decades.