Photo by Rantje Allen
Photo by William Tan
Photo by Rantje Allen
Photo by William Tan
Photo by Rantje Allen
Manado-based marine biologist Sebastian from Germany got his first look at the biodiversity found underwater in Gorontalo yesterday. Miguel’s Diving staff was able to show him some of our endemic fishes and new shrimp discoveries. What made the biggest impression on him was the dense and diverse hard coral colonies that are a hallmark of… Continue Reading
Time has taken its toll on some of the largest attractions in Gorontalo. The dozens of Foxtail colonial tunicates, featured in our new book Gorontalo: Hidden Paradise, have been swept away during the half year of rough weather that hits our area during off-season. Most of these streamers were almost 1.5 meters long. New colonies are growing… Continue Reading
Fisher friends off a point where Miguel’s Diving offers some dive sites were catching large Yellowfin tuna for export early this morning. They were in the process of hauling in an 81-kilo tuna when a large shark decided it wanted breakfast. A tug of war ensued between the two fishermen and the shark. Eventually, men were able… Continue Reading
Sea pens are a special group of octocorals that live in sandy bottoms. A sea pen has a foot that keeps it anchored into the sand and an above ground rod that contains the feeding coral polyps. Many sea pens are beautifully branched, creating a shape reminiscent of a quill pen. Although most are nocturnal, some… Continue Reading
Yesterday Miguel’s Diving staff went exploring a new location. Among the wonderful marine creatures seen during the dive was a very secretive and puzzling filefish. It turned out to be the cryptic and rarely seen Black-lined filefish (Pervagor nigrolineatus). She was hiding inside a black crinoid but soon disappeared into Gorontalo’s dense coral growth. Found only in… Continue Reading
Today’s dive at one of Gorontalo’s multiple pinnacle dive sites turned up a number of surprises. But the most impressive was a shy White-mouth moray (Gymnothorax meleagris). Although this species can grow over a meter in length, the one today was clearly a juvenile. Found in tropical waters, this beautiful moray is uncommon in most… Continue Reading
As diving season in Gorontalo draws to a close, whales are showing up just off areas where Miguel’s Diving takes guests diving. Several days ago Miguel’s Diving staff thought a bomb exploded only to see a 12 to 14 meter long Bryde’s Whale (Balaenoptera edeni) blowing, sending spray up almost four meters. It played on the surface for half… Continue Reading
The list of undescribed and/or endemic species found in Gorontalo continues to grow. Miguel’s Diving can now show guests a recently discovered undescribed specie found only in northern Sulawesi and Tomini Bay. The Yellow crown demoiselle (Chrysiptera sp.) is commonly found in Gorontalo’s coral rich reefs. It is also quite easy to photograph. Distinguishing features include the… Continue Reading
Guests from Taiwan, Japan, and Jakarta have seen multiple pods of both Bottlenose and Risso’s dolphins each day. Rarely seen elsewhere, Risso’s dolphins are resident in Gorontalo. They have distinctive white bodies with scaring, black dorsal fin, no nose, and are noticeably larger than Bottlenose. Today on the way to a dive site, a pod of… Continue Reading
Several days ago another sunfish showed up in the river mouth where Miguel’s Diving ties the dive boat. About this time last year a similar one appeared. Both fish were caught by hook at night during the dark moon. We sent a cutting of the first one to an international Mola mola researcher. DNA testing… Continue Reading
