Because much of the water surrounding the island of Cozumel is a national park, marine life abounds. And because the fish population isn't decimated by overfishing, it is possible to see a lot of big fish, lobsters, crab, etc. There is so much to see on virtually every dive, it can be easy sometimes to miss some of the little things. And one of those littler things you don't want to miss are the seahorses.

Because of the current, most of the diving in Cozumel is going to be drift diving. When the current is flowing really strong, it can be all you can do just to keep together with your group. Since seahorses are so small, for the most part you're really going to be watching for them on the shallower dives with less current. We spotted several on Paradise Reef, which is listed as the only dive site accessible from shore. It's a calm, easy dive and is often the location of choice for night dives. Since we were only at 45 feet, we ended up with a 42 minute dive, so we had plenty of time to explore. It was also relatively calm, so we were able to kind of branch off a bit from the group. I managed to find a couple of the seahorses myself (that the guide missed), so I was pretty proud of myself and my powers of observation.

One of the best diving equipment investments I made was an underwater camera. Well, it's not really diving equipment as much as an accessory. But it is so much fun to actually get some good shots of the different marine life. And everyone is fascinated with pictures of seahorses. Although they weren't doing much besides sitting on the sandy bottom and swaying in the mild current, they are still fun to find, watch and photograph. There's just some sort of an air of the fantastic about them, because of how they look. Even non-divers, who get quickly bored with your photos of fish after fish, perk up when you get to the seahorses.

Our best chance of seeing them was over stretches of sandy bottom. They usually have their tails wrapped around a piece of coral or a plant, so it can be very easy to overlook them. You just need to be patient and observant, checking out each likely shape you see. Also, although they don't swim away from divers, they do tend to tuck in their heads, so patience is also required to get a decent photograph.