04-08-2015, 10:10 PM
My understanding has always been that parrot fish bite off dead coral with their beaklike mouths to get at the algae. Then they poop out sand. You can hear them merrily crunching while you snorkel and scuba dive. One of the problems I see in Jamaica is that poor Jamaicans get pushed off beach properties by big players as soon as that property is seen to have value for generating tourist dollars. I can see why they might not be all gung ho to support the tourist industry. In the late 1960's, fisherfolk lived on a lot of the Negril beach, and the ocean was pristine, teeming with fish and lobster. They had crude composting toilets, and their carbon footprint was minimal. The Hills, Mom, Dad and twin sons Dafton and Dalton suddenly got a property tax bill that they had no hope of paying, and were forced to sell. Others did not have proper title even though they had lived on their land for a long time. Along came the businessmen to pave and overbuild, and voila, the Negril of today was born.