Bonaire is fringed by a coral reef which is accessible to divers from the shore along the lee side of the island (facing west-southwest).
The entire coastline of the island was designated a marine sanctuary in 1979, an effort to preserve and protect the delicate coral reef and the marine life that depends on it.
There are more than 350 species of fish and sixty species of coral living in Bonaire's reef.
Boulder Star Coral (Montastraea annularis) is the most common coral, according to a 2011 survey.
In 2011, biologists discovered a new species of jellyfish in Bonaire, the highly venomous Bonaire banded box jellyfish, tamoya oboya.

Bonaire is also famed for its flamingo populations and its donkey sanctuary.
Flamingos are drawn to the brackish water of the island's lagoons, which harbors the shrimp upon which they feed.
Bonaire is home to one of only four nesting grounds for the Caribbean flamingo.
Located in the Pekelmeer in the southern part of the island, no human entry is permitted in this sanctuary.
In the 16th century, Europeans introduced sheep, goats, pigs, horses and donkeys on Bonaire, and the descendants of the donkeys, goats, and pigs roam the island today.

Bonaire is also home to the ecologically vulnerable yellow-shouldered amazon parrot, Amazona barbadensis.
Bonaire is fringed by a coral reef which is accessible to divers from the shore along the lee side of the island (facing west-southwest). The entire coastline of the island was designated a marine sanctuary in 1979, an effort to preserve and protect the delicate coral reef and the marine life that depends on it. There are more than 350 species of fish and sixty species of coral living in Bonaire's reef. Boulder Star Coral (Montastraea annularis) is the most common coral, according to a 2011 survey. In 2011, biologists discovered a new species of jellyfish in Bonaire, the highly venomous Bonaire banded box jellyfish, tamoya oboya. 
Bonaire is also famed for its flamingo populations and its donkey sanctuary. Flamingos are drawn to the brackish water of the island's lagoons, which harbors the shrimp upon which they feed. Bonaire is home to one of only four nesting grounds for the Caribbean flamingo. Located in the Pekelmeer in the southern part of the island, no human entry is permitted in this sanctuary. In the 16th century, Europeans introduced sheep, goats, pigs, horses and donkeys on Bonaire, and the descendants of the donkeys, goats, and pigs roam the island today.
Bonaire is also home to the ecologically vulnerable yellow-shouldered amazon parrot, Amazona barbadensis.
Bonaire