Shallow water surrounds Cayo Largo, evidenced by the lighter shade of blue around the island's perimeter. While the water south of the island appears clear enough to reveal the underlying ocean floor, the water on the north side of the island is cloudy. This cloudy water indicates that sediment is washing off the land surface and into the water or is being stirred up from the shallow sea floor.

Cayo Largo del Sur, also known simply as Cayo Largo, is a little island in the Caribbean Sea no more than 25 kilometers (15.5 miles) long and 3 kilometers (1.9 miles) wide. It is the second-biggest island in Cuba's Canarreos Archipelago. Christopher Columbus is said to have visited the island on his second expedition in 1494, and Sir Francis Drake may have also stopped on the island during his circumnavigation of the globe. Pirates also likely used the island as a base. Today, pristine beaches, scuba diving, and wildlife draw tourists to the island, but no people live there permanently; locals who work in the hotels stay for about 20 days, then return to their families on nearby islands. Map of Central America and the Caribbean The Caribbean (pronounced or ) Sea is a tropical sea in the Western Hemisphere, part of the Atlantic Ocean, southeast of the Gulf of Mexico. ... Christopher Columbus (ca. ... Sir Francis Drake. ... Look up pirate and piracy in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Scuba divers. ...

Cayo Largo is a limestone island, formed over millions of years from the remains of marine organisms, such as the ones that build coral reefs. Living coral reefs form one more attraction for tourists on this island, although coral bleaching has stressed some reef communities in the Caribbean. The northern coast of Cayo Largo consists largely of mangroves and salt pans. Limey shale overlaid by limestone. ... Some of the biodiversity of a coral reef. ... Warm pink and yellow tones show where sea surface temperatures in the Great Barrier Reef were warm in the top image. ... Central America and the Caribbean (detailed pdf map) The Caribbean (Spanish: Caribe; French: Caraïbe; Dutch: Caraïben; Portuguese: Caribe or Caraíbas) is a region of the Americas consisting of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (most of which enclose the sea), and the surrounding coasts. ... Above and below water view at the edge of the mangal. ... Salt pans can refer to: Salt pan (geology), a flat expanse of ground covered with salt and other minerals, usually found in deserts. ...

References

• Cayo Largo del Sur. NASA Earth Observatory. Retrieved on 2006-05-01.

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