MOBULA RAYS in KOMODO!

Liveaboard trip 04/09 2008 – 13/09 2008

Bali - Komodo
INDONESIA

Mermaid I

To dive with the, normally, extremely shy Mobula Rays, is really special, but this happened one night at Gili Lawalaut, in Komodo National Park. The rays came right up to the boat to feed on the krill that our floodlights attracted. Of course, we couldn’t resist going in with them, and what a show THAT was! Barrel-rolling, jumping out of the water and flying in formation, 10−12 of the little devils. Awesome!

The nightdives continued to be great on this trip, with an exciting encounter with a hunting Brown-banded Bamboo Shark, a huge, black, unfortunately not particularly hunting, Frogfish, as well as a massive Marble Ray.

But the daydives weren’t too bad either; how about Dolphins, Grey Reef Sharks and plenty of Manta Rays? All in crystal clear water!

On this trip, we somewhat concentrated on ”big stuff”, and, thus, spent four days in north and east Komodo, getting a chance to dive places like Batu Bolong, Tatawa Kecil, Takat Makassar, Crystal Rock, Old Passage and, everybody’s favourite, Takat Toko. Bumphead Parrotfish, Turtles and Napoleonfish were daily sightings, together with huge congregations of Unicorn- and Surgeonfish. Sharks always present, and on three of the divesites we were lucky enough to see Manta Rays. Some of them feeding at the surface, some getting fixed at one of the many cleaning stations here, and some just hanging out in the current.

At Komodo Island itself, we did a two-hour walk in the park, a World Heritage Site. Apart from Timor Deer, Sulfur-crested Cockatoos, wild Boar and the strange Megapod bird (who builds a nest the size of a smaller car!) we also saw three big Dragons.

Time flies when you’re having fun, and soon we were heading back to Bali, after eight wonderful days of diving.

PJ Widestrand

Video-Pro
Mermaid I

Live-aboard trips to Thailand, Myanmar, Bali - Komodo and the Andaman Islands.