Rush Hour!

Its a Sunday morning and Colombo is relatively quite as I head down to the beach for my weekend diving. Out at sea, a stiff current is running north and schooling fish are congregating around reefs and wrecks. some seeking shelter from the currents, others looking to feed on plankton in the passing water column, and a few others looking to turn some of the smaller fish into their Sunday brunch. At Barracuda reef a school of fusiliers appears out of nowhere and stream pass us like rush hour traffic on a freeway, traveling south to some unknown destination. The fish have passed us almost as fast as they appeared but I was able to catch a few frames before they disappear into the blue. Down on the reef, there are no weekends as fish and other reef dwellers continue the eternal fight for survival.

Pinnacles of life

A few kilometers off the coast of Hikkaduwa are three rocky pinnacles rising from a sandy seabed at around 35m, with the tallest reaching up to almost 18m. The rocks look bare from a distance, but closer inspection shows they are covered in orange cup corals and green tree corals. A few black corals, whip corals and sea fans grow in deeper water while soft corals adorn current swept rock faces. Fish life is profuse. Schooling snappers, a few large sweetlips, angelfish and coral groupers waiting in ambush. Groups of anthias feeding on plankton flutter around the pinnacle tops like underwater butterflies. Today four bluefin trevally make forays among the fusiliers and blue triggerfish schooling above the rocks in a hit or miss game of underwater potluck dining. Welcome to Kirala Gala, considered by many to be the premier dive site in Hikkaduwa. But regardless of which dive site is the best there's no debating that these submerged rocks are definitely pinnacles of life.

Rocking it in Hikkaduwa!

Where better to photograph the typical rocky underwater terrain of Hikkaduwa than the aptly named "Hikkaduwa Gala" or Hikkaduwa rock. Smooth granite humps and scattered rocky boulders create an underwater landscape of small caves, canyons and swimthroughs. Coral growth is sparse but the rocks provide shelter to numerous reef fish, octopus, sea stars and sea urchins. Larger predators such as giant trevally and king mackerel make sporadic visits in search of fish that stray too far from shelter. With decent viz and gentle currents its a relaxed easy dive and a chance to experiment with some wide angle photography.

Gorgonian Garden

Off the coast of Colombo, Gorgonian Garden is one of our favorite dive sites. A garden of sea fans at a depth of around 35m creating a fantasy world of reds, yellows and oranges framed against the blue water. Sea fans are not uncommon on other dive sites around Sri Lanka but we have never come across such a dense aggregation of healthy fans. Some as large as a diver stand tall over the flat seabed, often with several feather stars sitting on top of them to find a good vantage point to catch passing plankton. Large sea fans tend to grow in areas subject to strong currents and this site is no exception. The local fishermen call the reef "Hulang Paraya" or windy reef due to its exposed location, and strong currents tend to sweep the reef on most days. However on our last dive we have near perfect conditions with flat seas, light currents and visibility of 20-25m.  The good conditions are ideal for exploring the reef and we chance upon a large coral head teeming with fish, an action packed oasis of life within the silent and serene world of sea fans.

Far Away in the Andamans

Located nearly 900 km east of India the Andaman & Nicobar Islands are some of the few remaining unexplored islands in the world. Rain forests, mangroves, and pristine beaches above water contrast with rocky pinnacles, coral reefs and thousands of fish. Some islands are inhabited by indigenous tribes that have little to no contact with the outside world. Havelock Island is one of the few islands open to and developed for tourism and is the main gateway for scuba diving in the Andamans. Around Havelock, reefs teem with marine life. From colorful soft corals and clouds of anthias, to multihued reef fish, large groupers and napolean wrasses to schools of barracuda and trevally. Get away from the chaos of mass tourism, get away from the chaos of cities and a million people, get away to the Andaman Islands where life moves at the pace you want it to.

Medhufaru

In February we dive the wreck of 'Medhufaru', a Maldivian ship sunk off Mt. Lavinia in 2009. In less than two years the wreck has become an oasis for marine life. Thousands of fusiliers school around the wreck while colorful reef fish swim around like marine butterflies. In its death, the ship has given life to the ocean. What was once a symbol of industry and engineering is now a piece of living art, providing sustenance to fishermen and enjoyment to divers. 

Angelface

Close up of a semicircle angelfish (Pomacanthus semicirculatus). This species is common on coral and rocky reefs in Sri Lanka, being most common on reefs with ledges and caves, as well as shipwrecks. Large angelfish are territorial, and males tend to defend a harem of several females. They are capable of making a loud clicking or thudding noise with their swimbladders and it is not uncommon for divers to hear this if a large angelfish is disturbed. Angelfish posses a cheek spine, as is visible in this photograph. This is the main distinguishing characteristic between angelfish and the closely related butterflyfish that do not posses such a spine.

West coast season begins!

The winds have abated giving us flat seas on the west coast of Sri Lanka, but the rains have persisted into late November. Visibility is still low on inshore reefs but there's still plenty to see. The nutrients have been attracting large schools of fish, and as usual the small critters are out in their numbers. This is the perfect time to get out the macro lens as we wait for better visibility and great dives in the coming months.

Fish doctor

A cleaner wrasse attends to an adult grey sweetlips at a cleaning station at Hani Faru in Maldives. During the day this cleaning station is frequented by mantas that come into the small bay to feed. But during dusk once the celebrities depart, its the turn of all the other regular citizens of the area. When a fish approaches a known cleaning station, cleaner wrasses will get to work grooming their 'clients', picking away at dead skin and removing pesky parasites. And unlike human doctors or salons the only payment they ask for is a tasty snack! Check out a previous post of a moray eel being cleaned in Negombo, Sri Lanka

Manta madness

Its 10am on August 5th, Hani Faru, South Malhosmadhulu Atoll, Maldives. A southwesterly wind blows across turquoise seas on a clear sunny morning, and divers and snorkelers from around the world have gathered in anticipation of something special. Its been nearly two months since my last dive and I'm as eager as a first time snorkeler on a tropical vacation. Two mantas are feeding in the bay, but its a relatively quite morning so far. Well at least by Maldives standards! Then a few more mantas appear, and as more plankton gets swept into the small shallow bay a few more appear, until we are surrounded by around 25 large manta rays. Oblivious to the divers the large rays jostle with each other, sometimes bumping into divers as they twist and turn in a feeding frenzy. Seven to ten mantas swim behind each other forming 'manta trains' with their cephalic fins extended in order to channel plankton rich water into their large mouths. It was magical. It was madness. Hope you enjoy the pictures!

Help save manta rays and sharks. Say no to shark fin soup, shark meat, manta ray meat and stingrays. 

Marvels of evolution!

Sharks are one of the great successes of evolution on earth. A basic design so good its remained unchanged for millions of years. Ruthlessly persecuted by humans due to a lack of understanding and indiscriminately slaughtered to satisfy the growing need of people craving shark fin soup these beautiful creatures are now a rare sight in most waters. Shark numbers in Sri Lanka have declined drastically and now they can only be seen in a few places around our coast. Black tip reef sharks such as this can still be seen in places such as Pigeon Island and Bar Reef, but like many other species their future remains uncertain. In his book "Reefs of Taprobane" Arthur C. Clarke states that in his first dive in Sri Lanka he got better pictures of sharks than in two years on the Great Barrier Reef in Australia. A sharp contrast to the present day, where in most parts of Sri Lanka, seeing sharks is as rare as seeing a mermaid!

Pigeon Island

Healthy coral reefs abound in the shallow waters around Pigeon Island in Trincomalee. Once devastated by a Crown of Thorns starfish infestation these reefs have now recovered completely. But this balance is now being threatened by an increasing number of human activities. Despite being declared a National Park in 2003 fishing including the use of dynamite is still openly carried out on these reefs. Large numbers of visitors are also polluting the island, walking on the reef and removing corals as souvenirs. Still beautiful, this enchanting yet fragile paradise is threatened once again. As is often the case in Sri Lanka, action is lacking from those in charge and only time will decide how long paradise lasts..........but hopefully the future will hold more than a few old photographs.

Goatfish Pyramid

Yellow striped goatfish are common, nocturnally active reef fishes found on many Indo-Pacific reefs. During the day they tend to form small schools, sheltering among reefs and wrecks before dispersing across reef flats at night in search of invertebrates. At times they may form large mixed species schools that include similarly patterned blue striped snappers. This small group formed a loose pyramid, creating a sharp contrast against the deep blue waters and providing a great photo opportunity.

Batman returns

A common inhabitant of reefs and wrecks, batfish often hang out in small groups, although large schools numbering in the hundreds can also be found. Most batfish can be seen swimming above open bottom and this species, the longfin batfish (Platax teira) is often found on wrecks and clear water reefs in Sri Lanka. They usually feed on small invertebrates such as juvenile shrimps and zooplankton.

Macro magic: colorful, curious critters

Overlooked, ignored and unappreciated its the small critters that actually make a coral reef tick. More abundant than many other species, cryptic fish such as gobies, blennies and sandperches scurry around the seafloor in their daily routines completely ignored by most divers. Small invertebrates such as nudibranchs are also among the most colorful reef species despite their small size. To really appreciate a coral reef you need to get up close and personal with its smaller residents. So the next time your diving, stop, look and meet all the neighbors!

Tales from a rainbow sea: Part II "Fish Tales"

Large schools of fish and pelagics are the highlights of Maldivian diving and schools of yellow snappers, red tooth triggerfish and fusiliers numbering in their thousands, reef sharks, napolean wrasses and manta rays were regular features at many dive sites. The Maldives are surely some of the worlds most fish filled waters!

West Coast season begins

The sea is calm and the monsoon winds have abated. We visit the Cargo Wreck off Dehiwela and meet many familiar friends including the pixy hawkfish that scurry about the top of the wreck. Visibility is only around 10m but the sea is full of life. Hopefully it is the start of a productive new dive season on the west coast.