The Cliff Villa Peninsula (Klif Villa Schiereiland) is a

promontory A promontory is a raised mass of land that projects into a lowland or a body of water (in which case it is a peninsula). Most promontories either are formed from a hard ridge of rock that has resisted the erosive forces that have removed the s ...

where two currents meet on the north-westerly point of the island of

Curaçao Curaçao, officially the Country of Curaçao, is a constituent island country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located in the southern Caribbean Sea (specifically the Dutch Caribbean region), about north of Venezuela. Curaçao includ ...

(a country within the

Kingdom of the Netherlands The Kingdom of the Netherlands (, ;, , ), commonly known simply as the Netherlands, is a sovereign state consisting of a collection of constituent territories united under the monarch of the Netherlands, who functions as head of state. The re ...

in the

Caribbean The Caribbean ( , ; ; ; ) is a region in the middle of the Americas centered around the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, mostly overlapping with the West Indies. Bordered by North America to the north, Central America ...

). Cliff Villa Peninsula is known to be the premier dive destination for drift diving in the region. The two currents stir the nutrients in the waters 40 ft under th
Cliff Villa
This turbulent water is called Watamula which comes from the Dutch word Watermolen meaning “water mill.” The Curaçao government has taken steps to protect the site. Spear fishing and breaking or removing shell or coral is strictly prohibited. A coral bleaching event in Curaçao in 2010 recorded a loss of 1% of its living corals. Corals near Westpunt were most heavily impacted with 10% affected. Cliff Villa is also an

artisanal fishing Artisanal, subsistence, or traditional fishing consists of various small-scale, low-technology, fishing practices undertaken by individual fishermen (as opposed to commercial fishing). Many of these households are of coastal or island ethnic grou ...

location targeting

pelagic The pelagic zone consists of the water column of the open ocean and can be further divided into regions by depth. The word ''pelagic'' is derived . The pelagic zone can be thought of as an imaginary cylinder or water column between the sur ...

and

demersal The demersal zone is the part of the sea or ocean (or deep lake) consisting of the part of the water column near to (and significantly affected by) the seabed and the benthos. The demersal zone is just above the benthic zone and forms a layer o ...

species. Fish species with the highest market value that are caught in this area include

wahoo The wahoo (''Acanthocybium solandri'') is a scombrid fish found worldwide in tropical and subtropical seas. In Hawaii, the wahoo is known as ono. The species is sometimes called hoo in the United States. It is best known to sports fishermen, a ...

, mahi mahi,

Yellowfin tuna The yellowfin tuna (''Thunnus albacares'') is a species of tuna found in pelagic waters of tropical and subtropical oceans worldwide. Yellowfin is often marketed as ahi, from the Hawaiian , a name also used there for the closely related bigeye ...

, Blackfin tuna, queen snapper and

grouper Groupers are a diverse group of marine ray-finned fish in the family Epinephelidae, in the order Perciformes. Groupers were long considered a subfamily of the seabasses in Serranidae, but are now treated as distinct. Not all members of this f ...

. Carnivorous fishes are found in low abundances across all zones of Curaçao. There is no shortage of

damselfish Damselfish are those fish within the subfamilies Abudefdufinae, Chrominae, Lepidozyginae, Pomacentrinae, and Stegastinae within the family Pomacentridae. Most species within this group are relatively small, although the four largest speci ...

and

lionfish ''Pterois'' is a genus of venomous fish, venomous marine fish, commonly known as the lionfish, native to the Indo-Pacific. It is characterized by conspicuous aposematism, warning coloration with red or black bands and ostentatious dorsal fins tip ...

(an

invasive species An invasive species is an introduced species that harms its new environment. Invasive species adversely affect habitats and bioregions, causing ecological, environmental, and/or economic damage. The term can also be used for native spec ...

) which inflict significant damage to native reef communities and corals. Cliff Villa Peninsula is a refuge for

Melocactus ''Melocactus'' (melon cactus), also known as the Turk's head cactus, Turk's cap cactus, or Pope's head cactus, is a genus of cactus with about 30–40 species. They are native to the Caribbean, western Mexico through Central America to northern S ...

also called Milon di Seru (Dutch) or Bushi (

Papiamentu Papiamento () or Papiamentu (; ) is a Portuguese-based creole language spoken in the Dutch Caribbean. It is the most widely spoken language on Aruba, Bonaire, and Curaçao (ABC islands (Leeward Antilles), ABC Islands). The language, spelled ...

) which grows in abundance on the cliff. The cactus has an extensive root system that threads through the lime rock. Pulling the cactus up will break the root system and cause the plant to die. The cactus is native to the Caribbean and South-Central American region.

has approximately 40 species. Cliff Villa Peninsula is located in the center of the Watamula nature preserve. Watamula north of Cliff Villa Peninsula is part of a larger network of parks which will be connected by ecological corridors.

References

{{Recreational dive sites, reereg Landforms of Curaçao Outdoor recreation Underwater diving sites in the Caribbean Marine conservation Fishing industry