Marine Park Research Cruise

The boat arrived in Manuae on Tuesday 30th July, and we did 3 dives that day.  

On Wednesday we did 2 more dives in the morning, and spent the afternoon exploring the island.  We found a FAD from a large Purse Seine vessel, the Amalia.  

This boat can hold over 1,300,000 kgs of tuna in its hold!!. Hopefully this FAD drifted in from outside our EEZ, and is not an indication that the boat was fishing in our waters.

The reef in Manuae was spectacular, lots of healthy growth, and the water was as clear as anyone has seen.  However, there we also signs of coral disease noticed at one site.

The boat left Manuae on Wednesday night for Mitiaro, arriving early Thursday morning after an extremely rough crossing.  The team did 2 dives on the leeward reef, and went ashore in the afternoon to make a presentation to the community about what we are doing.  This was well received by the 30 people who attended, and was followed by a kaikai provided by the community.