Monday, May 15, 2017
Nai'a, seventh, and final, day May 5, 2017
Our final day had us diving some pinnacles north of Vanua Levu. Three final dives so that the boat could get back to moor off Lautoka's harbor so that we could load onto our bus back to the Nadi area at 8 am after a final continental breakfast. Three very good dives in the Bligh Waters at UndeNai'able Pinnacle (name not my fault!), Cat's Meow, and the final dive at Mount Mutiny which is the peak of a volcanic mountain, no place to anchor in the thousands of feet depths around the mount so Nai'a would be doing motorized station keeeping while we were dropped and picked up by the dive skiffs. Helen, a marine biologist, gave us a quick talk on selecting healthy coral fragments that were loosely scattered on Cat's Meow to be placed on Mount Mutiny whose shallower top had been completely swept of live coral. Helen will monitor and measure results of this coral seeding experiment. Below are some pictures, for many more, please go to: https://goo.gl/photos/9xH71oAasoMP7k3F7
Our final dive area of a wonderful week on the Nai'a
Giant clam, now start singing "Rock Lobster" to yourself...."he was in a jam, he was in a giant clam!"
Pygmy seahorse, thanks to Big Mo. Hard to spot, hard to photo, about 1/4 inch tall.
Colorful dlam, embedded in coral.
Juvenile Slender Wrasse, about 3 inches long
Banded Blenny, UndeNai'able Pinnacle
Sea Whip Gobie
Blue Angelfish
Barber's Anemonefish, Cat's Meow
Green Sea Turtle, Cat's Meow
Collecting health coral fragments broken off at Cat's Meow
Helen with collected coral fragments
Stuart, Helen's partner, collecting coral fragments
Coral fragments collected for placement at Mount Mutiny
Coral fragment placement at Mount Mutiny
Placing coral fragments at Mount Mutiny
When Mount Mutiny is described as being a mountain peak with vertical dropoffs to thousands of feet, so don't drop your camera, they mean it!
Clown Triggerfish
Golden Damsels with beautiful soft coral
Orangefin Anemonefish, Mount Mutiny
Return to Lautoka Harbor, early am, May 6, for 10.5 hour flight home that night...
Sunday, May 14, 2017
Nai'a Day Six, 2nd day of diving at Namena Marine Reserve May 4, 2017
Our sixth day on the Nai'a was our second day of diving the Namena Marine Reserve. We had four day dives and a night dive on this, our last full day of diving. Great dives with many, many picutres, below are a few. For more from these five dives please go to: https://goo.gl/photos/EyqJsnZkcckgLsbe7
Squarespot Anthias, endemic to Fiji
3 Flagtail blanquillo Tilefish, a very shy fish, hovering over a Randall's Shrimp Goby
Guy takes a nudibranch photo at Grand Tetons I dive site.
My shot of the TBD nudibranch
Blue Ribbon Eel
I wandered off by myself at Grand Central Station as was rewarded by visits from the resident Gray Reef Sharks, beautiful!
Princess Damsel
White Faced Pipefish
I wandered off by myself at Grand Central Station as was rewarded by visits from the resident Gray Reef Sharks, beautiful!
Spotted Shrimp Goby and bulldozer shrimp.
Popcorn Shrimp with orange eggs underneath
Fire Dart
Orange Spotted Pipefish
Bicolor Blenny
Redspotted Blenny
Longsnouted Flathead, Namena night dive
Friday, May 12, 2017
Nai'a Day 5, Four Dives in Namena Marine Reserve May 3, 2017
Nai'a sailed overnight from Wakaya Island to Namena island and its marine reserve. We were to spend two full days diving Namena and it was excellent diving. The first day followed the usual pattern, continental breakfast, first dive for the port skiff that Guy and I were on at inner Two Thumbs out, 2nd (hot!) breakfast, 2nd dive, School House, with some Gray Sharks and a beautiful Napoleon Wrasse, lunch, third dive at The Arch, well named, snack, fourth dive on outer Two Thumbs Up, dinner, and then the crew threw a Kava party, they are good musicians and singers (I will attempt to attach a video or link to one).
Clown Triggerfish
Coral Grouper
Thumbs Up Seascape
On the School House dive led by Vanessa I separated from the group and had more success with closer visitations from the local Gray Reef sharks, good fun.
Our third dive of the day was at "The Arch"
Big Mo found cleaner shrimp and here is demonstrating how to get a five fathom tooth cleaning, you can see the antenna of one in his mouth, others on just in front of him on the reef.
Beautiful spiny lobster
Guy gets a spiny lobster shot.
Helen, a marine biologist, and her associate Stuart, conducted a survey of coral on the top of the bommie at Two Thumbs Up. Coral was damaged on the top of this bommie by Category Five Cyclone Winston two years ago, they are tracking coral re-growth.
Pair of Bannerfish with red sea fan
Safety stop view of Thumbs Up Bommie
As a bonus, I got this fairly close visit from a large Napoleon (aka Humphead) Wrasse. Beautiful.
Guy with the arch!
Irresistible Orangefin Anemonefish
Clown Blenny, not bad given his two inch length and shooting with my wide angle lens.
Dwarf Hawkfish, about three inches long.
Garden eels, a whole garden of them, very shy, this took awhile to take, at depth. Outer Two Thumbs Up.
Long Nosed Hawkfish
Mara starts his turn at a tooth cleaning. Think Guy got a shot of me getting my teeth cleaned too.
One of our skiffs, watching bubbles, hovers over Guy. Pickups were always prompt.
To see more from these dives, please go to: https://goo.gl/photos/JFUoZzXBSpWPaCHQ7
Bula!
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