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Temp: Surf 33°C Bottom 26°C
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Dive type : Recreational, Reef
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Visibility: Good
Water: Salt
Recent Divers in Nord Nilandhe Atoll, Filitheyo
Recent Pictures in Nord Nilandhe Atoll, Filitheyo
Dive Profile
- 1. Air
- 12L Steel
210 → 50 bar
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- Average depth: 15.6m
Data provided by EOL.org
Species Identified
Manta birostris (Walbaum, 1792) (Giant manta)
Manta rays are generally solitary, although loose aggregations of individuals may occur where there are abundant food sources or during the breeding season. When ready to mate, a male will bite his mate's pectoral fin to p...
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Manta rays are generally solitary, although loose aggregations of individuals may occur where there are abundant food sources or during the breeding season. When ready to mate, a male will bite his mate's pectoral fin to position himself belly-belly for copulation . The developing eggs remain inside the female's body for possibly as long as 12 months and hatch internally so that she gives birth to live young . The average litter size is two pups, and there is often a two year gap between births . These rays feed on planktonic organisms by filtering volumes of water through their mouths. Individuals have been observed swimming in slow vertical loops whilst feeding, possibly in an effort to concentrate prey items . The fleshy projections on either side of the mouth are also used to funnel prey; when not feeding, these lobes are either furled or closed in front of the mouth . Mantas are often host to remoras (Remorina spp.), which attach to the underside of the larger fish and consume particles of food that fall from the mouth . Exceptionally graceful swimmers, manta rays appear to fly through the water on their large wings. Individuals have also been observed to jump (or 'breach') clear out of the water, possibly in a form of communication or play .
Carcharhinus melanopterus (Quoy and Gaimard, 1824) (blacktip reef shark)
This powerful swimmer is well known for its tendency to enter incredibly shallow water, and is often found in water only 30 centimetres deep or less, with its distinctive dorsal fin protruding from the surface of the water...
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This powerful swimmer is well known for its tendency to enter incredibly shallow water, and is often found in water only 30 centimetres deep or less, with its distinctive dorsal fin protruding from the surface of the water. It is also found near the bottom or in mid-water in deeper water, singly or in small groups . It feeds on a wide variety of small fish and invertebrates, including mullet, groupers, wrasses, cuttlefish, squid, shrimp . Blacktip reef sharks are viviparous, and therefore the embryos develop inside the mother, for about 16 months. Females generally give birth between late winter and early summer, to between two and four pups . However, reproductive cycles appear to vary throughout the blacktip reef shark's range, with reports of annual, biannual and biennial reproductive cycles . The blacktip reef shark is not an extremely dangerous species, although it is responsible for several provoked and unprovoked attacks on humans. Many are on people that are swimming or wading on reefs, presumably because they were mistaken for small prey. These sharks are more cautious when encountering divers and can usually be driven off .
Conchodytes tridacnae Peters, 1852 (giant-clam shrimp)
Heniochus diphreutes Jordan, 1903 (False moorish idol)
Occur primarily along outer reef slopes, in current channels. Juveniles in aggregations around isolated patch reefs, adults in large schools well above the bottom . In Indonesia, adults most common in depth 40-50 m, repo...
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Occur primarily along outer reef slopes, in current channels. Juveniles in aggregations around isolated patch reefs, adults in large schools well above the bottom . In Indonesia, adults most common in depth 40-50 m, reported to 200 m . Benthopelagic . Feed on plankton. Juveniles may act as cleaners ; also observed in adults . Oviparous . Form pairs during breeding .
Caesio teres Seale, 1906 (Yellow and blueback fusilier)
Found primarily around coral reefs, with a preference for coralline lagoons. Feeds on zooplankton in large midwater groups. Forms schools with other caesionids. Migrates to select areas around the reef to spawn near the...
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Found primarily around coral reefs, with a preference for coralline lagoons. Feeds on zooplankton in large midwater groups. Forms schools with other caesionids. Migrates to select areas around the reef to spawn near the surface in the entrances of deep channels during outgoing tides on a lunar cycle. Oviparous, with numerous, small pelagic eggs . Also caught with drive-in nets.
Exocoetus volitans Linnaeus, 1758 (Blue flying fish)
Chaetodon auriga Forsskål, 1775 (Cross-stripe butterfly)
Chelonia mydas Linnaeus 1758 (Green Turtle)
Green turtles are long-lived and may take up to 59 years to reach sexual maturity Undertaking tremendous feats of navigation, adults return to the same beach to breed each season, part of the population in Brazil astonish...
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Green turtles are long-lived and may take up to 59 years to reach sexual maturity Undertaking tremendous feats of navigation, adults return to the same beach to breed each season, part of the population in Brazil astonishingly migrates around 2,250 kilometres across the open ocean to breed on the Ascension Islands . Mating tends to occur just offshore of the nesting beaches; using a curved claw on each front flipper and a flat nail at the end of the tail, males are able to grip their mates . Females haul out onto the beach at night and dig large nests with their back flippers beyond the high tide mark, they typically lay between 100 and 150 eggs in one nest and then proceed to cover the eggs with sand; the whole process takes around two hours . A single female returns to breed only once every two to five years but will lay up to nine nests in that one season . Incubation takes between 45 and 70 days, and temperature has been shown to determine of the sex of hatchlings; with females being produced at warmer temperatures . Breaking open their eggs with a special hooked 'egg tooth' that will subsequently be lost; hatchlings use their powerful front flippers to reach the surface, and then proceed to the sea . The soft-bodied juveniles are particularly vulnerable at this time from a variety of predators, such as ghost crabs and gulls on the beach to sharks and dolphins in the water . Unlike other marine turtles, adult green turtles are almost exclusively herbivorous, grazing on seagrasses and algae ; it is assumed that juveniles are more omnivorous although the exact composition of their diet is unknown
Odonus niger (Rüppell, 1836) (Redtoothed triggerfish)
Inhabits reef channels or along slopes that are subject to strong currents . Occur in current-swept seaward coral reefs. Usually form aggregations and feed on zooplankton as well as sponges . Juveniles associated with i...
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Inhabits reef channels or along slopes that are subject to strong currents . Occur in current-swept seaward coral reefs. Usually form aggregations and feed on zooplankton as well as sponges . Juveniles associated with isolated patches of rubble or crevices with proper-sized shelter holes . Oviparous . Form large schools to feed on zooplankton . Also taken by drive-in nets . Marketed fresh or dried-salted. Minimum depth reported taken from Ref. 30874. Popular aquarium fish .
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Maldives
Date: 2013-09-28 - 10:15
Max Depth: 23.4m Duration: 60mins
Dive with Werner Lau Filitheyo
