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Ocean Calling

Ocean Atlas · Caribbean

Caribbean

Jamaica

Caribbean reef diving with hawksbill and loggerhead turtles, and a strong plant-based food culture.

Clear shallow water and a small boat off Seven Mile Beach, Negril
Seven Mile Beach, Negril · Photo: Intyaud Banton on Unsplash
Exploring

Ethics pass, with care. We found a way to visit this country that meets our animal-welfare standard, as long as we work with the right local operator. Checked by Ocean Calling on 30 Sep 2026. Sources: Jamaica country page, WIDECAST; Sea Turtle Recovery Action Plan for Jamaica, WIDECAST and UNEP, 2011; Dolphin Cove Jamaica, Wikipedia.

🧭 Travel advice, checked 5 Oct 2026. The UK FCDO does not advise against travel to Jamaica (page updated 6 May 2026, still current on 6 Oct 2026). It notes hurricane damage in the western parishes and some health risks. Sources: UK FCDO travel advice, Jamaica Advice differs by passport: check your own government before you plan.

ScubaTurtlesSharksCoral reefs

Why Jamaica

Around Port Antonio and Negril, Caribbean reef diving brings hawksbill and loggerhead turtles, rays and occasional nurse sharks, alongside a strong plant-based food culture. Diving runs all year, and December to April is drier, with less storm risk.

Conservation-led. Ocean Calling guests never chase, touch or bait animals.

United States of AmericaHaitiDominican Rep.BahamasMexicoBrazilColombiaPanamaCosta RicaNicaraguaHondurasEl SalvadorGuatemalaBelizeVenezuelaGuyanaSurinameFrancePuerto RicoJamaicaCubaTrinidad and TobagoPort Antonio and Negril, Jamaica

When to go

Dec-Apr. Timing changes by place and by animal, so check each place below.

We have researched this place and keep learning about it. There is no trip here yet.

Our ethics check

Can we travel here ethically?

Ethics pass, with care

Good with the right operator. Here is how we choose.

Jamaica has hawksbill and loggerhead turtles on its reefs, and the reefs need care, since national monitoring rates their average health as poor. Captive dolphin parks on the north coast sell swims with dolphins, and we never join them. We dive quietly at sites with community conservation, keep space from turtles and never touch or feed any animal.

Checked 30 Sep 2026. Places change, so we look again every year.

Sources for this check
Places we are exploring

Where in Jamaica

Short notes from our research. Wildlife is never guaranteed.

Port Antonio and Negril

Exploring

Caribbean reef diving with hawksbill and loggerhead turtles, rays, and a strong plant-based food culture.

🤿 In the water: Reef fish, Hawksbill and loggerhead turtles, Rays, Nurse sharks (occasional)

When: Dec-Apr. Diving runs all year. Dec to Apr is drier, with less storm risk.

Animals

Animals recorded in Jamaica

Tap an animal to learn how it lives, where it travels and how to meet it respectfully.

Land animals
Nurse shark swimming over a reef at Fernando de Noronha, BrazilAtlantic nurse sharkGinglymostoma cirratumSeen in 38 countries in the AtlasVulnerableWhitespotted eagle ray gliding over reef and sand in BelizeWhitespotted eagle rayAetobatus narinariSeen in 58 countries in the AtlasEndangeredSouthern stingray resting on white sand, St John, US Virgin IslandsSouthern stingrayHypanus americanusSeen in 33 countries in the AtlasNear ThreatenedRed lionfish with spread fins over sand in Dauin, PhilippinesLionfish (red and common lionfish)Pterois volitans and Pterois milesSeen in 80 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernCaribbean reef shark swimming close over a reef in the BahamasCaribbean reef sharkCarcharhinus pereziSeen in 19 countries in the AtlasEndangeredAntillean manatee swimming in clear blue water, seen from belowAntillean manateeTrichechus manatus manatusSeen in 14 countries in the AtlasEndangeredHawksbill turtle swimming, pointed beak in profileHawksbill turtleEretmochelys imbricataSeen in 88 countries in the AtlasCritically EndangeredLoggerhead turtle at the surface feeding on Portuguese man o' warLoggerhead turtleCaretta carettaSeen in 89 countries in the AtlasVulnerableGreen turtle resting on the reef, shell and head pattern in sharp detailGreen turtleChelonia mydasSeen in 103 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernLeatherback hatchling crossing the sand toward the seaLeatherback turtleDermochelys coriaceaSeen in 76 countries in the AtlasVulnerableTiger shark with clear stripes swimming over a reefTiger sharkGaleocerdo cuvierSeen in 47 countries in the AtlasNear ThreatenedCommon bottlenose dolphin swimming over a seagrass bedCommon bottlenose dolphinTursiops truncatusSeen in 89 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernSperm whale mother raising her fluke beside her calf off DominicaSperm whalePhyseter macrocephalusSeen in 114 countries in the AtlasVulnerableTwo pygmy sperm whales at the sea surface off the Azores, low backs and small hooked dorsal fins showingPygmy sperm whaleKogia brevicepsSeen in 23 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernBlacknose shark swimming in clear blue water, seen from the sideBlacknose sharkCarcharhinus acronotusSeen in 6 countries in the AtlasEndangeredGreat barracuda cruising in open blue water, showing jagged teethGreat barracudaSphyraena barracudaSeen in 84 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernMale magnificent frigatebird perched on a mangrove branchMagnificent frigatebirdFregata magnificensSeen in 52 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernLongsnout seahorse holding a red sponge stalk with its tail against blue waterLongsnout seahorseHippocampus reidiSeen in 25 countries in the AtlasNear ThreatenedNassau grouper with its mouth open, photographed at Los Indios in Jardines de la Reina, CubaNassau grouperEpinephelus striatusSeen in 20 countries in the AtlasCritically EndangeredMasked booby on Ascension IslandMasked boobySula dactylatraSeen in 80 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernQueen conch with a reddish spiny shell resting on seagrass over sandy seabedQueen conchAliger gigasSeen in 32 countries in the AtlasNear ThreatenedAdult brown booby standing on a rock with its bill open against blue sky, PrincipeBrown boobySula leucogasterSeen in 104 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernClose view of a red-footed booby head with blue, pink and red bill and throat skin among green leavesRed-footed boobySula sulaSeen in 91 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernAmerican crocodile resting on a sandy river bank at the water's edge in Costa RicaAmerican crocodileCrocodylus acutusSeen in 17 countries in the AtlasVulnerableCrowd of brown pelicans packed together on a coastal roost, one adult with a pale head and coloured bill facing the cameraBrown pelicanPelecanus occidentalisSeen in 48 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernAmerican flamingo wading in shallow water with its head lowered toward the surface, Yucatán, MexicoAmerican flamingoPhoenicopterus ruberSeen in 47 countries in the AtlasLives on landLeast ConcernCaribbean spiny lobster at the edge of a reef overhang with long antennae trailing across sandCaribbean spiny lobsterPanulirus argusSeen in 30 countries in the AtlasData DeficientYellow stingray resting on a dark reef floor, its round disc covered in pale spotsYellow stingrayUrobatis jamaicensisSeen in 10 countries in the AtlasLeast Concern
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Also in Caribbean
AnguillaAntigua and BarbudaArubaThe BahamasBarbadosBelizeBritish Virgin IslandsCaribbean NetherlandsCayman IslandsCubaCuraçaoDominicaDominican RepublicGrenadaGuadeloupeHaitiHondurasMartiniqueMontserratPuerto RicoSaint BarthélemySaint Kitts and NevisSaint LuciaSaint MartinSaint Vincent and the GrenadinesSint MaartenTrinidad and TobagoTurks and Caicos IslandsUS Virgin IslandsVenezuela

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