Divers want marine sanctuary in waters around Blue Heron Boulevard bridge

Sun Sentinel - 

Scuba divers are asking Palm Beach County to begin the process of designating the waters around the Blue Heron Boulevard bridge and Phil Foster Park as a marine sanctuary.

The move is intended to stop the collection of tropical fish for aquariums.

County Commissioner Karen Marcus said divers approached her to request the sanctuary designation, which the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission would have to approve.

She was surprised to learn that the waters around the park and the bridge have become an internationally recognized hot spot for divers and underwater photographers.

"This is a beautiful place, and I think biologically it's very important," said George Burgess, a zoologist who studies fish and the director of the Florida Program for Shark Research at the University of Florida. "It's a treasure."

Burgess and Lad Akins, of the Key Largo-based Reef Environmental Education Foundation, say many rare species inhabit the area, including sea horses, frogfish, chain pipefish, striped croakers and pipehorses, which look like a cross between a sea horse and a pipefish.

The REEF database lists 289 fish species reported from the Blue Heron bridge area.

Underwater photographer Suzan Meldonian produced a book called "Under the Bridge: The Creatures of a Coastal Inlet," featuring more than 500 images of fish and other marine life found in the waters around the bridge and park.

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