Lighthouse Reef is an atoll in the Caribbean Sea, the easternmost part of the Belize Barrier Reef and one of its three atolls, the other two being Turneffe Atoll and Glover's Reef. Lighthouse Reef is located about 80 kilometres (50 mi) southeast of Belize City.[1][2] The atoll is of oblong shape, approximately 35 kilometres (22 mi) long from north to south, and about 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) wide. It forms a shallow sandy lagoon with an area of 120 square kilometres (46 sq mi) and a depth between 2 and 6 metres (6 ft 7 in and 19 ft 8 in) deep.[3]
The reef is one of the best developed and healthiest reefs in the Caribbean, "with an emergent fringing reef, a sloping fore reef with a coral rimmed shelf edge, vertical coral walls, and numerous patch reefs in the shallow central lagoon."[4]
There are several islands, listed here from north to south:[1]
- Sandbore Caye
- Northern Caye
- Half Moon Caye
- Saddle Caye
- Long Caye
- Hat Caye
Lighthouse Reef is known as a snorkelling and diving destination, considered one of the best dive sites in Belize and the whole Caribbean. Notable diving locations are Half Moon Caye Wall, Long Caye Aquarium ("The Aquarium"), Silver Caves, Tres Cocos, and West Point. In addition to these coral reefs, it is also home to the Great Blue Hole.[2]
- ^ a b "Introducing Lighthouse Reef". Lonely Planet. 2015. Retrieved 27 November 2015.
- ^ a b Girma, Lebawit Lily (October 11, 2015). "Diving Belize's Lighthouse Reef Atoll". Moon Travel Guides. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
- ^ "Islands of Belize". Island Directory. United Nations Environment Programme. Retrieved 1 December 2015.
- ^ Robinson, Julianne S. (October 2000). "Lighthouse Reef Atoll Conservation and Protection Project" (PDF). U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) PROARCA/CAPAS. Retrieved 7 December 2015.