Lava Flow
The 1988 eruption of Gunung Api sent lava into the sea on the volcano's northern side and wiped out the reef there. Within a few decades a remarkably dense hard coral garden grew back on the cooled basalt: fields of staghorn and table coral in the shallows, cabbage coral deeper down, from about 3 m to 40 m. Reef fish are abundant, with clown and black triggerfish, Napoleon wrasse, batfish and cuttlefish; upwellings sometimes bring plankton, mobula rays, dogtooth tuna and bluefin trevally.
Facts
- Region: Banda Sea & Ambon
- Area: Banda Islands
- Depth: 3–40 m
- Level: beginner
- Current: moderate
- Type: reef
- Coordinates: -4.5085, 129.8847 (approximate)
- Highlights: hard coral garden, table coral, staghorn coral, Napoleon wrasse, clown triggerfish, batfish, cuttlefish, dogtooth tuna, mobula rays
- Tips: Mostly a relaxed coral dive close to town; the shallows are ideal for a long safety stop and for wide-angle photos of the coral fields.