• Photo by Rantje Allen

  • Photo by William Tan

  • Photo by Rantje Allen

  • Photo by William Tan

  • Photo by Rantje Allen

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Yearly Archives: 2019

New clingfish species thrives in Gorontalo

New clingfish species thrives in Gorontalo’s biologically rich waters. Unlike the usual Crinoid clingfish, the new species lacks the central stripe down its head and dorsal fin.

Crinoid clingfish

Careful divers can search for clingfish in the central areas of certain crinoids. Crinoids are also called feather stars. Clingfish prefer Comanthus bennetti for hosts. The usual species found there is named Discotrema crinophilum. Crinophilum means “friend of crinoid.” Its common name is Crinoid clingfish. It has a thick white to yellow line around its entire body. More importantly, it has a central stripe from its head down its back. Originally, its name was D. crinophila, but that was corrected.

New clingfish species

new clingfish species
Oneline clingfish from Gorontalo

Dr. John E. Randall was photographing various crinoid clingfish in Papua New Guinea and Indonesia. He also collected some specimens. During this expedition

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, he noticed a color variation. His research partner, Dr. Matthew T. Craig, used DNA sequence data to investigate. With this data, the team proved that the clingfish with the different color pattern was a new species.

The new clingfish species Discotrema monogrammum lacks the stripe down the back. It only has the single lateral stripe around its body. Hence, it is named monogrammum. Its common name would be Oneline clingfish.

Additionally, Crinoid clingfish have a pectoral fin ray count of 25 to 28. However, the new clingfish species has only 23 to 25. Moreover, the Oneline clingfish has one or two less vertebrae than the Crinoid clingfish. All these confirm the new clingfish species.

Scientists confirm only three species of Discotrema clingfishes. Research on D. crinophilum was in 1976. The team of Craig & Randall completed research on D. monogrammum in 2008. Additionally, they discovered another new clingfish species in Fiji.

golden Oneline clingfish
Golden variation of D. monogrammum

Research and underwater photographs confirm the distribution of the Oneline clingfish. Primarily, it lives in Indonesia, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea and the Great Barrier Reef.  Also, it lives around Christmas Island in the Indian Ocean.

A tiny fish that clings

Clingfishes have a sucking disc on their belly. That disc consists of modified pelvic fins and folds of skin. Also, they have no scales. Instead, a heavy mucus covers their skin. That mucus is usually toxic. In total, clingfishes comprise 36 genera and 151 species. As noted, there are only three species in the Discotrema genus. That includes the new clingfish species D. monogrammum. The maximum size of these clingfishes is about three centimeters.

For your chance to see one of these tiny treasures, please book you dive trip with us.

Clownfish eggs delight scuba divers

Clownfish eggs delight divers who happen to spot them. The parents will lay a patch of eggs close to an anemone. That anemone serves as their protective residence.

Clownfish Eggs from Light to Dark

clownfish eggs guarded by parents
Clownfish tend their eggs

When mating time approaches

, the male clownfish will select a place for the female to lay her eggs. Moreover, the place will be close to the protective cover of their host anemone. He will clean the area, removing debris and any algae there. When the female is ready, she will join the male and inspect the location. She will deposit from 400 to 1,000 eggs in a patch. The male will fertilize them immediately. Each egg will measure about three to four millimetres in length.

After that

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, the male will tend the clownfish eggs. He will fan the eggs with his fins and clean them with his mouth. Also, he will eat any infertile eggs. New eggs are brightly colored from yellow to red. This depends on the species. However, as the clownfish eggs mature, their color darkens noticeably. This process takes about six to eight days to mature. Prior to hatching, the eggs become transparent. At that time, divers can the eyes and mouth of the new Nemos inside the eggs.

Clownfish eggs will hatch a few hours after dark. Research shows that these eggs will not mature in the presence of light pollution. The new larvae or fries swim in the free ocean and eat plankton. Those that survive will seek an anemone to call home. As they grow

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, they gradually acquire immunity to the stings of their host anemone. Researchers disagree on how immunity is acquired.

Transgender Rules

clownfish eggs ready to hatch
Clownfish eggs ready to hatch

The largest clownfish in a colony will be the female. All nemo fries are male. If the female dies or is removed, the dominant male will become female. That means that clownfish are hermaphrodites.

Because these fish live with anemones, some people call them anemonefish. Also, many people call them Nemo, a name that people easily recognize.

Clownfish of Gorontalo

Clownfish live in Asia Pacific waters where the species number twenty-eight. The clownfish from the Nemo films is the False or Western clownfish (Amphiprion ocellaris). Almost identical is the Orange or Eastern Clownfish (Amphiprion percula). Sulawesi marks the transition area between western and eastern species. Both of these have been photographed in Tomini Bay where Miguel’s Diving operates.

The Eastern clownfish looks different than the western species. Its black edging is noticeably thicker. Also, the eastern species has an orange iris. This makes its eye look smaller.

For your chance to see clownfish eggs, please book your dive trip with us.

Heinz Online Magazine Showcases Salvador Dali Sponges

Heinz Online Magazine showcases Salvador Dali sponges of Gorontalo in its sixteenth edition.

Surreal Sponges

One of Gorontalo’s claim to fame is the discovery of Salvador Dali sponges. This morphology of Petrosia lignosa is unique to the northern coastline of Tomini Bay, Indonesia. The article found in Heinz Online Magazine explains the discovery. Also, it explains the origin of these bizarre looking sponges. Rantje Allen christened this sponge after the famous Spanish painter. He is the diving pioneer in Gorontalo. The surreal style of Salvador Dali describes the appearance of these giant sponges.

Divers will usually find these sponges below 25 meters .There ,they are protected from seasonal high waves and storms. Additionally, they grow off the vertical coral walls in Gorontalo. There, ocean currents bring plankton to them. The article explains how they can break off in storms. When this happens, these ancient giants fall to the ocean bottom. They can no longer feed and soon die, turning to dust in a matter of weeks.

Heinz Online Magazine

The article on Salvador Dali sponges is available for free download. It comes in PDF format. Moreover, it comes in English, German or Chinese. It is in Heinz16 edition of the magazine with a release date of August 31, 2019. Heinz Press of Nuremberg, Germany, is the official publisher.

Mr. Heinz Ritter publishes Heinz Online Magazine. He is well known among underwater photographers. Actually

, he published the original UWF, a highly regarded magazine on photography. That original publication became Germany’s Unterwasser magazine. This occurred in the early 1990s. Mr. Ritter served as publisher for that new magazine for years. Eventually, Mr. Ritter sold his interest in Unterwasser. After that, he started Heinz Online Magazine. Since its format is online, printing issues do not constrain design. Mr. Ritter is known for his unique design perspective.  

Photos by Steve Jones, Underwater Photographer

The Heinz Online Magazine article on Salvador Dali sponges comes with incredible underwater photographs by Steve Jones. Mr. Jones is an award-winning underwater photographer and journalist. His travel and work spans the globe, including Antarctica. Ironically, he received his first break as an underwater photographer from Unterwasser magazine in 1996.

During his worldwide travels

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, Mr. Jones visited Gorontalo during wave season. Ocean conditions are challenging during that time of year. However, he left with a sizeable archive of spectacular photos of Gorontalo’s marine environment.

Photos featured in the sixteenth edition of Heinz Online Magazine include several Salvador Dali sponge shots. Among the macro photos Sarasvati shrimp, Robust ghost pipefish, and cuttlefish. In additional, one photo contains a Coleman’s coral shrimp. It is a new species discovered in Flores and Gorontalo. Dramatic wide-angle shots include red sea whips, Jinn Caves cavern and a deep-water Blue sea fan.  

After enjoying the article, please make your dive reservations with us!

Hairy frogfish video

Hairy frogfish video makes for compelling watching, especially one in which the fish actively lures potential prey. This video from Gorontalo shows a Hairy frogfish doing exactly that.

Striated or Hairy?

The scientific name of the fish in the Hairy frogfish video is Antennarius striatus. As such, it is commonly called Striated frogfish. This particular fish species has such a variable appearance that neither “striated” nor “hairy” accurately describe each individual found in nature. That includes the one in the video from Gorontalo. The fish’s environment determines its exterior appearance to a large extent. In fact, if a particular frogfish moves to a different environment, it will change appearance within three weeks to match. That means that the elongated blotches or the long filaments on the skin may not be apparent on any particular individual fish. It can sport almost any color.

photo from Hairy frogfish video
Notice the lure

Moreover, the best feature for positively identifying Antennarius striatus is its lure.

A Unique Lure

The first dorsal spine in many frogfish species is free moving. Called an illicium, this spine acts like a fishing pole. At the end of the illicium of Antennarius striatus is a fleshy lure. The unique lure or esca of this species of frogfish is long, extending perpendicularly from each side of the lure. Many descriptions of this frogfish say that the lure looks like a worm, However, that is not particularly true of the one seen in the Hairy frogfish video from Gorontalo. Take a look and notice its pale color and spots. This one looks more like a shrimp dancing above the rubble. When not in action, the lure will rest on the forehead of the frogfish.

Hairy Frogfish Video

As you watch this video from Gorontalo, notice the way the frogfish pulls itself along the sandy bottom. It is using its pectoral fins. This is a distinctive movement of various frogfish.

Judging by how active it is, both in flicking its lure and pulling itself to a new position, this frogfish is clearly hungry. It is on the hunt! Many frogfish species, including the Hairy frogfish, have a large mouth. As a result, a frogfish can extended its mouth forward and swallow prey as large as itself. That also means that its stomach has plenty of room.

Typically, frogfish lie motionless using its well-adapted coloration to remain unseen. The videographer never saw this Hairy frogfish catch anything. Perhaps too much movement was to blame. 

Hairy frogfish usually eat other fish. Unlike other species of frogfish, the lure or esca of Antennarius striatus has an additional feature. It is able to secrete a scent that attracts unsuspecting prey to its wiggling lure. This species also can live in waters deeper than other frogfish species. It is found in seas worldwide, except in the Mediterranean and the Arctic. Although the individual seen in the video is very small, it can grow up to 22 centimeters in length.   

Hairy frogfish are only found at a few of Gorontalo’s muck diving sites. This sites are best suited for experienced divers with excellent buoyancy control. For your chance to watch a Hairy frogfish in Gorontalo, please book your dive trip with us.

Plastic Reduction Policy

Plastic reduction policy at Miguel’s Diving Gorontalo revolves around the four R’s: Refuse, Reuse, Recycle and Reclaim.

Plastics Policy & Pro-active Waste Reduction

Some may be surprised that a local dive center like Miguel’s has a plastic reduction policy. Actually, we have had one in place for many years. Guests will notice right away our efforts and we encourage participation.

Refuse

The first action of our plastic reduction policy is to refuse. Our staff bring green bags to stores and local markets. This way we do not need plastic bags. We also refuse to buy individually wrapped snacks and those with plastic trays. Instead, we provide wafers, which can easily be shared among guests. Traders at Gorontalo’s Central Market know that we are looking for the day’s sweetest pineapple when a staff appears with our big plastic box complete with lid. But that brings us to the second R.

Reuse

Using containers for daily fruits is one way we refuse single-use plastic bags. We reuse sturdy plastic boxes for the fresh, local fruits that we provide guests after a dive. These are also easy to clean, helping maintain necessary sanitary conditions.

plastic water refill
A guest refills his bottle

Miguel’s Diving does provide the standard plastic water bottles containing drinking water. We purchase these from a Gorontalo water company that employs local people. Rather than letting those bottles become single-use plastic

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, we provide a pen with permanent ink. Miguel’s Diving also encourages our guests to write their names on their bottle. After a dive, a quick glance determines which bottle belongs to which guest. Some guests bring their own re-useable drinking containers, which is even better. We provide a large five-liter refill station of local, purified water. Our daily briefing includes explanations about water refill as part of our plastic reduction policy.

plastic reduction policy
A reuseable lunch box

For lunches, we have long used re-useable lunch boxes with lids. Even the plastic spoons are rewashed and eventually end up in the coffee station. Rather than single use plastic or Styrofoam meal containers, ours are literally used hundreds of times. 

Recycle

plastic water bottles
Giving away a sack of used plastic bottles

We have no trouble giving those plastic water bottles away at the end of a dive day. Neighbors of the dive center, who have limited income, drop by to collect them. Gorontalo has a plastic bottle recycling center, which pays for plastic bottles.

Reclaim

Miguel’s Diving staff take part in annual local beach cleanups. The local government is the sponsor. Local officials use these events to educate coastal residents on cleanliness and hygiene. For a number of years now, Gorontalo City government offers free garbage pickup. Residents are encouraged to leave garbage in a container or small pile in front of their houses for daily pick up. This has greatly reduced the amount of plastic thrown in the rivers flowing through Gorontalo City.

underwater beach cleanup
Local divers clean up underwater

The biggest impact Miguel’s Diving makes on reclaiming discarded plastic and other human-generated rubbish is our daily reef sweeps. During each dive, Miguel’s Diving staff check the reef for plastic or anything else that does not belong. Our staff estimate that 90% of rubbish on the reef is single-use. We thank guests who help us keep the reef clean. Moreover, the captain will steer the boat toward any floating rice sacks and pick these up. They cause the most immediate damage to the reef. A rice sack easily tangles onto hard corals, blocking necessary sunlight and killing the coral within a few days. Travelers to Gorontalo remark how clean and neat Gorontalo City is. Divers notice how relatively clean Gorontalo’s marine areas are.

For your chance to support a local dive center with a clear plastic reduction policy, please book your dive trip with us.     

MIDE 2019 features Gorontalo Marine Environments

MIDE 2019, the Malaysia International Dive Expo, featured a presentation on Gorontalo’s marine environments. Staff from Miguel’s Diving delivered this full-color session from the stage of the Indonesia Pavilion.

MIDE 2019: the Malaysia International Dive Expo

The 14th Malaysia International Dive Expo took place 3 – 5 May 2019. It is also called MIDE 2019. Malaysia’s famous Putra World Trade Centre or PWTC provided the venue. The Exhibition opened daily to the public at 10 a.m. It closed nightly at 7 p.m.

Gorontalo’s Marine Environments

On Saturday, 4 May, Miguel’s Diving accepted the invitation from Indonesia’s Ministry of Tourism to deliver a presentation about Gorontalo. We selected the topic of Gorontalo’s marine environments. Much variety in environments means much variety in diving. After introducing the team of Miguel’s Diving

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, our staff explained the nature of Gorontalo’s geography. Ancient coral uplifts form the rocky northern coastline of Tomini Bay. Moreover, the soft limestone erodes over time and forms dramatic underwater scenery. This also creates multiple environments within a short distance.

Gorontalo Marine Environments explained at MIDE 2019
Gorontalo Marine Environments explained at MIDE 2019

Gorontalo’s pristine coral walls actually form part of the continental wall of Sulawesi. On these deep walls

, our famous Salvador Dali sponges grow in surreal shapes and super sizes. Each is unique in profile. Moreover, they come in a variety of colors. A top the coral walls lies a shallow ledge, sometimes measuring only a meter wide. Different marine life live here, giving divers another type of environment to experience in the same dive.

Another characteristic of Gorontalo’s geography is submerged points. These are frequent features found along the coastline. The bay’s longshore currents hits theses points, creating a swirl of activity. Schooling pelagic fish and strange creatures of the deep ocean can be seen in these locations.

In other places in the world, having a single coral pinnacle is considered special. However, in Gorontalo, multiple pinnacles compose several dive sites. Gorontalo’s famous whale shark sightings most often occur along a row of coral pinnacles.

Caverns also occur in Gorontalo. However, none of these are underwater caves. Cave diving requires technical skills, certification and preparation. Caverns offer a safe alternative, since the way out is always clearly visible.

Muck basins alternate with other marine environments. Like all of Gorontalo’s marine environments, these are actually quite small. As a result, this means that marine life is more crowded than in locations where muck diving is found in a large area.

Gorontalo even has a couple of artificial reefs. Specifically, these are historical wrecks.

Gorontalo for Malaysian Divers

MIDE presentation
Fans of Miguel’s Diving at MIDE presentation

Gorontalo is an excellent destination for Malaysian divers. Pristine dive destinations are often difficult to reach. Not so Gorontalo! Air Asia offers daily flights from Kuala Lumper’s KLIA2 airport to Makassar (UPG) four times weekly. The connecting flight to Gorontalo (GTO) lasts about one hour ten minutes. This is the route we recommend for Kuala Lumpur based divers.  

Additionally, Gorontalo’s diving season is the opposite of most peninsular Malaysian destinations. Our season runs mid October to mid May. Officially it is November to April. Now there is no reason to cry during monsoon-lah. Come dive in Gorontalo! For many Malaysians food can be an issue. Food in Gorontalo is halal.

Even if you missed our presentation at MIDE 2019, you can still book your dive trip with us.

Arothron immaculatus Emerges from Hiding

Arothron immaculatus or the Immaculate puffer is rarely seen in coral dense environments typical of Gorontalo. But one day it make a surprise appearance.

Hiding on a Sandy Bottom

Arothron immaculatus
An Immaculate puffer tries camouflage

One day a dive master from Miguel’s Diving spotted the bright yellow eye of a fish trying to hiding itself in the white sand bottom. By the way, one of the common names for Arothron immaculatus is Yellow-eyed puffer. Knowing it had been seen, the fish tried to flick more sand over its oval-shaped body. However, its brilliant eyes and strange tufts on top its nose remained clearly visible. It shifted around closer to a mass of corals, revealing a mottled pattern as the grains of white sand began to fall off its body. After posing for a few photos, the fish decided to flee across the white sand bottom. It even and pale color could help it hide undetected there.

Arothron immaculatus around the Pacific  

This Immaculate puffer can be found through Indo-Pacific waters. It clearly prefers sandy or silty bottoms near coral reefs or shallow estuaries. The Arothron immaculatus seen in Gorontalo was living at one of our alternate muck diving sites. The site is called Mystic Point. It is close to the estuary of Bone River. That dive site is known for its relatively poor coral but has a white sand bottom that is rare for our area of Gorontalo. That site has marine life only found there, like the Twin-eyed goby and the Immaculate puffer. This puffer can also be found near mangroves and seagrass beds. Western Gorontalo has those environments, so perhaps this puffer can also be found there.

This puffer is usually solitary and rarely in large numbers in its environments. It is found between three and thirty meters. It is mostly carnivorous.

Arothron immaculatus in Gorontalo
Arothron immaculatus in Gorontalo

Arothron immaculatus has some distinctive markings that help confirm its identity. Apart from its beautiful eyes and nose tufts

, its body is basically plain, unless it is sporting the botches of its camouflaged mode. Moreover, it has a large dark patch around its pectoral fin base. Also, it has dark upper and lower margins on its tail fin. A similar species is Arothron manilensis. However, the Manila puffer has distinct thin lines on its body.

The Quixotic and Toxic Puffer

Puffer fish have quite distinctive bodies. This includes tough skin and a dental plate in their beak-like mouth. What they lack is more notable. They lack fin spines and ribs. As a result, they can inflate their stomachs with water when afraid. Moreover, their skin, gonads and liver contain two toxins. These are tetrodotoxin and saxitoxin. Some species are more toxic than others. Because different puffer species have similar body shapes, identification is most accurate when using color patterns.

For your chance to see one of Gorontalo’s puffer fish, please book your dive trip with us.

ADEX 2019 Welcomes Back Miguel’s Diving

ADEX 2019 welcomes back Miguel’s Diving after an eleven year absence. Believe it or not, Miguel’s Diving last participated in this regional dive exhibition in 2008.

ADEX 2019 – Bigger by Far

This year’s Asia Dive Expo actually marked the event’s twenty-fifth outing. Back in the earlier years, the expo was much smaller. When Miguel’s Diving last participated, the square footage was under 2,500 with visitors totaling under 20,000. ADEX 2019 filled over 10,000 square feet at Suntec City Convention Center in Singapore. Last year’s expo gathered over 40

,000 consumer visitors. About half that number of trade visitors came. In 2006, Miguel’s Diving sponsored a Lucky Draw.

As in previous years, Miguel’s Diving filled a regular three by three meter booth. This year’s location was K16. The booth included photos of Singapore-based divers who have dived with us in Gorontalo. Also, one panel of the booth displayed beautiful underwater photos. One of our Singaporean divers took these photos during his third trip to Gorontalo last December. 

Friends Old and New

One of the highlights of this and any exhibition is too meet many enthusiastic divers from around the world. Not only did Singapore divers visit the Miguel’s Diving booth. So did divers from Dubai to Taiwan.

Fadel Muhammad ADEX 2019
Member of Parliament Fadel Muhammad visits

Another great benefit of dive expos such as ADEX is the chance for reunion. Many who had previously dived Gorontalo with us, stopped by to say hello and catch up on the latest news. This included dive buddies from Malaysia and Indonesia.

We felt especially honored that Minister of Parliament from Gorontalo Prof. Dr. Ir. Fadel Muhammad attended two days of the expo.

Campaign against Single-Use Plastics

Each year ADEX highlights an important aspect of marine environment. ADEX 2019 launched a campaign against single-use plastics. Too many of these often end up in the world’s oceans.  In fact, people dump eight millions tons of plastics into the ocean annually. According to the World Bank, China, Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam discard the most plastic into the ocean.

Singapore, the host of ADEX 2019, consumes 1.76 billion kilograms of plastics each year. This statistic comes from the Singapore Environment Council. Unfortunately, less than twenty per cent of that is recycled.

Anne the plastic queen
Plastic as Fashion

Indonesian ocean artist Anne K. Adijuwono staged a fashion show featuring 25 endangered species. She also created a mural using plastic waste. Mermaid Dewa designed outrageous costumes for a traveling troupe leading the cry against single-use-plastics. 

Miguel’s Diving has long had a plastics policy in place. It involves four actions. They are refuse

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, reduce, recycle and reclaim. For your chance to participate in our efforts to reduce single-used plastics bound for the ocean, please book your dive trip with us.

Whether or not you had a chance to see us at ADEX, we would love to have you show you the hidden paradise of Gorontalo. Please book your dive trip with us.

Deep Extreme Indonesia 2019 Features Miguel’s Diving Staff

Deep Extreme Indonesia 2019
Underwater Talks

Deep Extreme Indonesia 2019 features one of Miguel’s Diving staff as guest speaker. Our senior dive master and marketing assistant Yunis Amu participated in UW Talks. These talks featured various Indonesians well known in the dive industry. We are very proud that he received this invitation.

Manual UW Settings for Beginners

In his UW talk, Yunis targeted divers who use only automatic settings when photographing underwater. He challenged them to advance their skills and use manual settings. This would give much better results in underwater photography.

After introducing himself, he divided his UW Talk into several sections. First was Aperture or F-Stop, then Speed and then ISO. He included a section on Strobes and ended with cautions about Buoyancy. To support his UW Talk, he shot a variety of marine life common in Gorontalo. That included Salvador Dali sponge, red sea whips, Thorny seahorse, lionfish, Harlequin ghostpipefish and sea fan. These he shot at various settings to illustrate the impact a change of settings would have on a particular photo.

Yunis Amu in action

He completed this UW Talk for Deep Extreme Indonesia 2019 with several dramatic and excellent photos. These included a rare bell jellyfish

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, nemo and nemo eggs, whale shark in sunburst and seahorse shot with black background and bokeh style. All underwater photographs presented were original and without any computer editing.

DEEP Extreme Indonesia 2019

Miguel’s Diving has participated in this annual dive expo since its inception. Deep Extreme Indonesia certainly maintained its reputation as a well-run, regional dive expo this year. The variety of exhibitors is one of its hallmarks.

Two of Miguel’s Diving staff attended the expo and promoted diving in Gorontalo.

Meanwhile back in Gorontalo, our staff hosted international divers, providing great service and great diving. This included five whale sharks and 35 meter visibility!

For your chance to study underwater photography in Gorontalo with our staff, please book your dive trip with us!

Dogtooth Tuna Video

Dogtooth tuna video recently shot in Gorontalo is now available for viewing.

Tuna on the Reef Edge

Although Gorontalo is famous for its Yellowfin tuna, the tuna that divers will most likely see here is Dogtooth. This tuna is one of the apex predators like Giant trevally and large groupers.  They eat smaller schooling fish that thrive off Gorontalo’s coral walls. These include fusiliers, fairy wrasses, scads and rainbow runners. As evidenced in the Dogtooth tuna video, these fish are curious about divers. As a result, they will often make several passes, giving time for visitors to get cameras ready.

Lucky Dogtooth Tuna Video

A prime dive site for viewing larger schooling fish is Buffalo Head Point.  It numbers among Gorontalo’s many submerged points. These points jut away from the cliff above water and away from the underwater coral wall. Moreover, this position interrupts the smooth flow of the area’s longshore current. When a strong current is running

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, schooling fishes will congregate off these submerged points.

On the day this Dogtooth tuna video was shot, the current was moderately strong. Also, the plankton count was high. Notice all the backscatter in the video. That is living plankton. As a result, schooling fish that feed on plankton gathered in abundance. Notice the Blue-and-yellow fusiliers in the video. This is the kind of fish that fast swimming Dogtooth tuna love to eat.

Although dive staff often see large fish in these conditions, everyone was surprised with the close encounter with schooling Dogfish tuna.

Tuna without Scales

The scientific name for Dogtooth tuna is Gymnosarda unicolor. Unlike other sarda, this one lacks scales. Hence its official name, since gymno means “naked” in Greek. This silvery fish is considered unicolor, in contrast to other tunas like Yellowfin or Bluefin. It sports a single, undulating lateral line.

dogtooth tuna video
A Dogtooth tuna cruises in Gorontalo

Divers can easily recognize this streamlined fish. It has white tips on its upper and lower back fins. The caudal peduncle also shows a white area. These white markings are clearly visible in the Dogtooth tuna video. Also

, notice that the fish’s upper jaw extends even with its eye. This fish swims with its mouth open, showing its many conical teeth.  

The average size of Dogtooth tuna that divers see swimming along Gorontalo’s coral walls is between 40 to 120 centimeters. Mature fish can measure up to two meters in length and weigh up to 120 kilograms. These swim in depths as deep as 300 meters. Miguel’s Diving staff estimate the larger ones seen in the Dogfish tuna video weighed about 50 kilos!

This tuna species lives in tropical waters of the Indo-Pacific region.

For your chance to see Dogtooth tuna in Gorontalo, please book your dive trip with us!

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