Texas Coral Reefs - Among the Healthiest in the World?

Climate change has affected coral reefs worldwide, leaving the Gulf of Mexico Flower Banks reefs faring better than most. It's a little-dived undersea wonderland, 100 miles off the coast of Texas, that has, so far, eluded the worst effects of warming oceans.

Established 30 years ago and expanded significantly two years ago, the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Refuge encompasses 160 square miles and 17 separate coral banks. Fishermen discovered the area at the turn of the 20th century, where they found it home to more than 20 species of coral as well as the snapper and grouper they were initially searching for.

Nearly 60 species of fish live there, including turtles, sharks, and manta rays. Depths at the sanctuary range from about 55 to 130 feet, and the reefs begin at about 60 feet. As Mary Wiksten (Bryan, TX) reported on her August trip, "We saw huge, healthy brain and star corals and lots of reef fish, cute jawfish in the sand, whopping big loggerhead turtles on the reefs, distant sharks. We dived an oil platform twice and had marvelous visibility. The beams were coated with corals and oysters, home to feisty damselfish, hawkfish, and other reef fishes. Big schools of jacks and chubs swirled nearby."

Aside from Texas divers, few divers from the remaining 49 states visit there. Is it the next hot destination for American divers? Click here to locate companies running dive trips: http://tinyurl.com/mrxudpu9