Tioman Island, Malaysia

Last month, I went on a scuba diving trip to Tioman Island, situated on the East Coast of Malaysia.

The brilliant purple shade of a Carpet anemone

A feather star. I'm starting to fall in love with these guys! 

The island is a beautiful spot with many dive sites, and is extremely popular with divers from Singapore as it makes for an easy weekend getaway.

It does get rather crowded in some of the dive spots though. But, I enjoyed each of my dives!

Close up of a soft coral

 There was plenty to see!!

Sea fan, a type of soft coral

Moray eel

Cuttlefish-another favourite of mine! This one stayed around for about 20mins. 

A swift change of colour - it's the same cuttlefish!

Feather star

Fan worm 

Octopus

Lionfish

Sea star

Blue-spotted stingray

Banded cleaner shrimp

Some others that I don't see very often:

Upside-down jellyfish (can you see the little shrimp on it?)

Lesions on a hard coral, perhaps caused by Drupella (a type of sea snail)?

I think these marks on the coral were made by parrot fish

Sadly though, I spotted some things that caused me to be concerned about the state of the reefs in Tioman.

Crown-of-thorns starfish: coral predators

One thing that I noticed right away on one of the reefs was the number of Crown-of-thorns starfish (COT).

These guys eat coral, and although are part of the natural ecosystem, can do quite a bit of damage to the reef in large numbers. In one area, I saw 4 COTs within short distance of each other. I'm not sure at what density they are considered to be an infestation, but seeing that number in small area did set me thinking.

For more info on why COT numbers increase, visit http://www.gbrmpa.gov.au/about-the-reef/animals/crown-of-thorns-starfish

I also spotted quite a bit of what looked like bleached coral. Bleaching occurs when coral is under stress.

Coral are made up of two types of organisms: an animal (the coral polyp) and a plant (single cell algae called zooxanthellae) that live symbiotically. 

The algae provides the coral polyp with nutrients from photosynthesis, and the coral provides a safe environment for the algae to live in, as well as carbon dioxide for photosynthesis. The algae is what gives coral it's pretty colours.

When coral are stressed, the algae are lost, leaving the translucent tissue of the coral, through which the white calcium skeleton can be seen.

If the factor causing stress to the coral does not last for too long, coral can recover from a bleaching event and regain it's algae, and colour. However, under prolonged stress, the coral will die.



There are several factors that cause coral bleaching. Essentially, these factors are what causes the coral to be stressed. One major factor is elevated sea temperatures, which can cause mass bleaching. For more information on coral bleaching events around the world, visit http://www.reefbase.org/global_database/default.aspx?section=t4

Thankfully, I did not see any areas of mass bleaching, but a few spots here and there. Hopefully, they will recover soon.

Although of course, the coral could also have died from other reasons, such as predation by COTs.



In some areas, there was quite bit of broken coral, quite likely kicked by divers or perhaps, by damaged by boat anchors.

I feel that this is a real shame, because as divers, we are responsible for taking care of the reef that provides us with so much enjoyment.



I've seen so many examples of irresponsible divers - touching sea life, breaking coral, throwing litter into the sea. This should not be the case!

So, fellow divers, take some initiative and take care of the reef!

Here are some suggestions:
1. Work on your buoyancy control to ensure that you do not harm the reef when you dive.
2. Do not touch marine life when you are diving. Besides, there are many dangerous, stinging marine creatures out there!
3. Do not litter. Rubbish eventually gets washed out into the ocean via drains. Even better, when you see litter, pick it up! A little effort goes at long way. Better yet, join a beach/ocean clean up event near you.
4. Join a conservation effort, such as Reef Check that survey reefs to check on their health.
5. Spread the word!

You will be able to enjoy beautiful reefs for longer, and the ocean will thank you! :)

PS: will be trying to find out the names of these critters and posting them up, so stay tuned!