Diving In Sabah: The Amazing Underwater Realm

Map of Sabah

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Diving In Sabah

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As we plunge into a new millennium scuba diving is well on the way to becoming one of the fastest growing recreational sports enjoyed by both the young and old. Divers travel thousands of miles to experience the amazing wonders of the underwater realm and where better than to the bio‑diversity hotspot of Southeast Asia‑Sabah, Malaysian Borneo. With its sandy beaches, tropical islands, blue waters, coral reefs and atolls, Sabah has several dive sites rated to be amongst the top ten in the world and many more yet to be truly explored. Over the years many prominent marine biologists have visited and dived Sabah's waters, including oceans' greatest ambassador, Jacques Costeau. He commented 'I have seen other places like Sipadan, 45 years ago, but now no more. Now we have found again an untouched piece of art .... a jewel '.

In fact a diver may find many rare or endangered sea creatures such as green and hawksbill turtles, napoleon wrasse, giant clams, as well as countless species of sharks and schools of thousands of barracuda and jacks. Sabah is not only known for its reef's larger inhabitants but also as a 'Muck diving' paradise with such rarities as the mimic octopus, flamboyant cuttlefish, mandarinfish, harlequin ghost pipefish plus many types of weird and wonderful frogfish and nudibranchs. These underwater delights are not restricted to the certified diver; snorkelers and hopeful divers may enroll in one of the many PADI affiliated dive courses run at any of Sabah's dive resorts. Whatever your underwater wish, Sabah's seas and coral reefs can easily fulfill and surpass your wildest dream.

Pulau Tiga Island

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Pulau Tiga is an island situated in Pulau Tiga Park, located about 35 nautical miles southwest of Kota Kinabalu. Three islands make up Pulau Tiga Park, Pulau Tiga, Pulau Kalampunian Damit or better known as "Snake Island" and Pulau Kalampunian Basar. Pulau Tiga is believed to have been formed by the eruption of several mud volcanoes, which, with the combination of subterranean gas pressure and expelled muddy sediment could have built up the island to its present height of approx 100 m above sea level.

Several species of mammals, numerous birds (including the very rare megapode), a variety of reptiles and amphibians and hundreds of species of insects can be found on Pulau Tiga making it a truly wild tropical island. It was no surprise when Pulau Tiga was the chosen location for the recent filming of the US CBS TV series Survivor'.

With only one resort located on Pulau Tiga, you can guarantee a relaxed and tranquil dive holiday. Pulau Tiga Resort offers PADI dive courses and many dive sites for the novice and experienced divers including some unexplored dive locations. A rich variety of marine life can be seen including nudibranchs, bamboo sharks, cuttlefish, marbled stingray and of course, a visit to nearby "Snake Island" guarantees sightings of banded sea snakes. The surrounding reefs are shallow with healthy coral and water visibility ranging from 6m to 20m.

Tunku Abdul Rahman Park

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The marine park is a cluster of islands comprising Pulau Gaya, Pulau Sapi, Pulau Manukan, Pulau Mamutik and Pulau Sulug, It covers an area of 4,929 hectares of which two thirds is sea. The Park lying from 3-8 kilometer off Kota Kinabalu and all only 10 ‑ 20 minute speedboat ride from the city of Kota Kinabalu. The five islands of the Marine Park are characterized by shallow waters, sumptuous coral gardens and all boast splendid white sandy beaches.

The reefs lie in shallow waters with little current making it an ideal location for novice divers, however, the diverse and sometimes rare marine creatures also make it an interesting dive location for experienced divers and underwater photographers. To dive on the marine park you must contact one of the local dive centers based in Kota Kinabalu who also offer a full variety of PADI courses rangingfrom Discover Scuba to Instructor.

Amongst the sandy seabed a good variety of marine life can be found such as scorpionfish, blue‑spotted rays, cuttlefish, mantis shrimps and the occasional green or hawksbill turtle. At some locations, rare creatures such as harlequin ghost pipefish and mandarinfish can be found especially with the help from local dive guides.

During the cooler months from November to February, plankton blooms attract krill which in turn attract whale sharks, the worlds largest fish. At times the density of the krill can be so thick, in these murky conditions underwater encounters with these colossal animals can be exciting as they suddenly appear out of the gloom.

History

In 1882 there was a trading settlement on Pulau Gaya set up by the British North Borneo Chartered Company which was later moved to the mainland, now known as Kota Kinabalu. In 1974, the major part of Pulau Gaya and the whole of Pulau Sapi was gazetted as the Tunku Abdul Rahman Park, covering an area of 8,990 acres (3,638 hectares). In 1979 it was increased to 12,185 acres (4,929 hectares) with the inclusion of the 3 nearby islands Pulau Manukan, Pulau Mamutik and Pulau Sulug.

Climate

The islands can be visited all year round. Temperatures are between 23.8 - 29.4 degrees Celsius and humidity remains relatively high throughout the year.

Geology

The islands, underlaid by folded sandstone and sedimentary rock, are part of the Crocker Range Rock Formation of the western coast od Sabah. Towards the end of the Ice Age about a million years ago, changes in sea level occurred, resulting in portions of the mainland being cut off by the sea, thus forming the islands as we know today. Exposed sandstone outcrops still feature the coasts of most of these islands forming cliffs, caves, honeycombs and deep crevasses along the shore.

Mantanani Island

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Mantanani is a group of three isolated islands northwest of Kota Belud, a one hour drive from Kota Kinabalu. Until recently, the islands were only known to a few locals. The largest island houses the only dive resort, Mantanani Resort which is situated at the western end on the edge of a white sandy bay. Nestled amongst the tall coconut palms are beach cabins scattered around the main plantation styled house.

Three wrecks have been discovered which still hold plenty of secrets and are now home to a menagerie of marine creature s such as Lionfish, Scorpionfish, octopus, glassfish and the coral reefs surrounding the islands have plenty to offer, both the novice and experienced diver. Many species of rays can be found, Marbled stingray, Blue spotted ray and large schools of eagle rays.

For macro photographers the "muck diving` is amazing, seahorses, imperial shrimps, pink‑eye gobies, jawfish, blue‑ringed octopus, ribbon eels and many nudibranchs you want be able to find in the books! There are now 16 dive sites identified by Mantanani Resort with many more still to be explored.

Wreck Diving Around North West Sabah

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Off the north west coast of Sabah lies a group of islands including Pulau Balambangan, Pulau Banggi, Pulau Jambongan, Pulau Molleangan, Pulau Balak and Pulau Malawali. A number of wrecks and rarely dived reefs have recently been discovered in this area and now a Kota Kinabalu based company Sipadan‑Mabul Regal Tours now have a live‑aboard boat regularly visiting the area. The 'Scuba Explorer' is a 70ft live‑aboard motor yacht with comfortable accommodation for 12 people and 6 crew. Designed for comfort and effortless diving the Scuba Explorer covers the Kudat wrecks and reef diving around the islands of north west Sabah.

Three wrecks have been discovered to date, all thought to be merchant ships. Two are lying at 20m‑25m and the other lying a little deeper at 50m. All three wrecks resemble coral gardens being completely covered in colorful sponge and soft corals. Marine life around the wrecks includes schools of glassfish, lionfish, scorpionfish and huge resident grouper. The surrounding islands have shallow fringing reefs with all the regular reef fish such as the coral trout, butterflyfish, angelfish and the occasional cuttlefish. These reefs have rarely been dived and therefore new sites are being discovered on many of the trips.

Lankayan Island

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Lankayan Island is located in the Sulu Sea north west of Sandakan on the north east coast of Sabah. This small paradise island, with stretches of white sandy beaches, swaying casuarina pines and beautiful sunsets is another island with only one dive resort, Lankayan Island Dive Resort. The resort was built in 1997 and since then tourists have slowly been discovering the serenity and tranquility of this remote peace of paradise. Lankayan offers a fantastic variety of macro marine life, a muck‑diving arena that rivals both Mabul and Kapalai Island. However, with new protection from local fishermen, the larger marine creatures such as leopard sharks, marbled stingray and giant grouper have returned to the surrounding reefs. Schools of bumphead parrotfish, yellowtail barracuda and

Among the 40 dive sites is 'Lankayan Wreck', an ocean going fish poaching vessel that demised in the area of its illegal activities. This wreck now hosts many different species of fish from small glassfish, harlequin ghost pipefish, painted frogfish to giant grouper and marbled stingrays.

Many rare subjects can be found on many other dive sites including seahorses, flying gurnards, flamboyant cuttlefish, jawfish, dragonets and sand divers. Having Pulau Selingan, home to Sabah's Turtle Sanctuary nearby, it is not a surprise to also see the occasional hawksbill or green turtle on one of your dives.

Mabul Island

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Mabul Island first became popular due to its close proximity to Sipadan Island, however, in the last few years it has gained its own recognition as one of the best "muck‑diving" sites in the world. Mabul Island is a small oval shaped island surrounded by sandy beaches and perched on the northwest corner of a larger 200‑hectare reef. The reef is on the edge of the continental shelf and the seabed surrounding the reef slopes out to 25m‑30m deep. There are two resorts on Mabul Island; Sipadan Water Village and Sipadan‑Mabul Resort and one resort on a nearby refurbished oil rig called Sea Ventures Dive Resort. Mabul is arguably one of the richest single destinations for exotic small marine life anywhere in the world. Flamboyant cuttlefish, blue‑ringed octopus, mimic octopus and bobtail squids are just a few of the numerous types of cephalapods to be found on Mabul's reef. The sight of harlequin shrimp feeding on sea stars and boxer crabs waving their tiny anemone pom‑poms are just a small example of the endless species of crustaceans. Many types of gobies can be found including the spike‑fin goby, black sail‑fin goby and metallic shrimp goby. Frogfish are everywhere giant, painted and clown frogfish are all regularly seen. Moray eels and snake eels of many types can be seen along with almost the whole scorpionfish family. It would be quicker to list the species not found at Mabulcrazy critters are in abundance at this magical macro site!

Sipadan Island

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The internationally famous island of Sipadan lies five degrees north of the equator in the Sulawesi Sea (Celebes Sea). Lying 35krn south of Semporna on Sabah's mainland, like many tropical islands it is thickly forested and surrounded by sandy beaches. Sipadan is an oceanic island and was formed by living corals growing on top of an extinct undersea volcano, which rises 600m from the seabed.

The geographic position of Sipadan puts it in the centre of the richest marine habitat in the world, the heart of the Indo‑Pacific basin. More than 3000 species of fish and hundreds of coral species have been classified in this richest of ecosystems. Sipadan is well known for its unusually large numbers of green and hawksbill turtles which gather there to mate and nest and it is not unusual for a diver to see more then 20 turtles on each dive. Another unique feature to divers visiting Sipadan is the turtle tomb, an underwater limestone cave with a labyrinth of tunnels and chambers that contain many skeletal remains of turtles that became disoriented and then drowned.

The residential schooling barracuda and big‑eye trevally are one of th highlights on every divers wish‑list which often gather in thousands formin spectacular tornado ‑ like formations. With the possibility of seeing pelagic such as mantas, eagle rays, scalloped hammerhead sharks and whal sharks, each dive at Sipadan is a highly anticipated event.

Its not only the big fish that amaze divers coming to Sipadan, the macro life is equally mesmerizing. Garden eels, leaf scorpionfish, mantis shrimps, fire gobies and various pipefish are guaranteed at various dive sites. The diversity and abundance of marine life found at Sipadan gives it its reputation of being one of the ten best dive locations in the world. There are now six resorts (Abdillah Sipadan Paradise, Borneo Diver & Sea Sports, Borneo Sea Adventure, Pulau Bajau's, Pulau Sipadan Resort and Sipadan Dive Centre) on Sipadan and the number of guests staying at each resort has been restricted to protect the reef and marine life.

Layang-Layang Island "Swallows Reef"

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Layang-Layang, known as 'Swallows Reef' is an atoll situated in the South China Sea 300km north west of Kota Kinabalu. The island is man‑made and was constructed for the Malaysian Navy and later developed for the only dive resort, Layang Layang Island Resort. The island location offers absolute isolation, luckily there is an airstrip with regular flights from Kota Kinabalu, which is the only mode of transport for guests visiting Layang Layang.

The extreme location of Layang Layang, the pristine reefs, excellent visibility, steep walls down to 2000m and regular sightings of pelagics has given Layang‑Layang a much deserved reputation of being one of the top ten dive locations in the world. With resident schools of barracuda and big‑eye trevally and frequently seen green and hawksbill turtles the reef has something to offer everyone.

The corals are plentiful and healthy with sea fans more than three meters across that filter plankton from the passing .currents. The 20m deep lagoon has some great macro creatures to be found including seahorses, cuttlefish and pipefish but it is the pelagics visiting the outer walls that truly excite divers. Schools of scalloped hammerhead sharks, grey reef sharks,'leopard sharks and the occasional threshers; and silvertip sharks can all be seen. Stingrays are also regular visitors including manta rays, pygmy devil rays, marbled rays and eagle rays. Rare sightings such as whale sharks, orcas and melon headed whales have all been seen over the last few years. Spinner and bottlenose dolphins frequently follow the dive boats to each location and divers are sometimes rewarded with snorkeling and diving with these amazing creatures. With its pristine reef, diverse fish life and visiting pelagics. Layang Layang has rightly gained world wide recognition.

Labuan Island

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Labuan island is located 115 km south of Kota Kinabalu and 8 km off the mainland of Sabah at the northern mouth of Brunei. Its deep harbour and duty free port attract shipping from all over the world and in 1990, Labuan was declared the International Offshore Finance Centre of Malaysia. its history which has always been intimately entwined with maritime traffic, begun over three centuries ago with the first commercial transactions between Chinese junk owners and the Sultan of Brunei.

Since then, Britain and other countries have used Labuan as a trading and fuel station and then during World War 11, Labuan was the scene of bitter conflicts between the Japanese and Allied air and Naval forces. Although three islands, Pulau Kumaran, Pulau Rusukan Kecil and Pulau Rusukan Besar are designated as Marine Parks, the special underwater attractions of Labuan are its shipwrecks.

Four well researched and regularly dived wrecks to the southwest make this area 'the wreck diving centre of Malaysia. Two of the wrecks are from World War 11, the US Navy minehunter, USS Salute known as the "American Wreck" and the Dutch vessel SS De Klerk known as the "Australian wreck", which was thought to have been sunk by the Royal Australian Air Force. The other two wrecks were sunk in the 1 1980's, the Philippine stern trawler MV Mabini Padre, locally called the "Blue Water Wreck" and the Tung Hwang, a Japanese freighter locally known as the "Cement Wreck". All four ships lie in 30m‑35m of water, with the top portions between 8m‑12m. The water visibility varies greatly season to season from 6m‑20m.

The type of diving on these wrecks ranges from novice to experienced wreck diving with penetrations possible into the hulls. Diving the wrecks can be arranged through Borneo Divers who have a PADI 5 star Dive centre located at Labuan. Here they run PADI courses from Discover Scuba to Divermaster, also catering for TDI Nitrox and Advanced Wreck Diving courses.

Marine Life

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Beginning life some 450‑500 million years ago, the Earth's coral reefs are now the largest ecosystem upon the planet. They sustain and support over I million species worldwide and one coral reef alone may harbour some 3000 species. The major Indo‑Pacific ocean currents cross the seas that surround Sabah's sandy shores making them amongst the most biodiverse marine environments in the world. Within a single dive around Pulau Layang Layang divers may observe many of the 150 species of butterflyfish. Used by marine biologists as indicators of coral reef health, the greater the number and species diversity of butterflyfish reflects the abundance and diversity of corals. Pulau Layang Layang's pristine coral reef not only plays landlord to countless butterflyfish but also other reef dwellers such as, angelfish, snappers, wrasse, sweet lips, parrotfish as well as the larger pelagics; ‑barracuda, manta, schools of hammerhead sharks, dolphins and whales. Pulau Sipadan is famous for its vast numbers of Green and Hawksbill turtles which feed and breed within its waters before the females climb ashore to In their eggs above the white sandy beaches.

Diving on Sipadan's coral reefs the incredible phenomenon of the thousands of schooling chevron barracuda and big‑eye trevally or 'Jacks' can be witnessed. Floating inside such a tornado of fish is a truly breath‑taking experience that's very hard to beat. Sabah is also becoming a world famous location for muck diving'‑ the term used by divers to describe the search for the rare and exotic small marine animals. Many rare and newly identified gobies can be found living in the corals, sand, mud and mangroves of Sabah along with the little understood and rarely seen mimic octopus, neon patterned blue‑ringed octopus, delicate flamboyant cuttlefish, psychedelic mandarinfish and ghost pipefish. Sabah's dive guides are specifically trained to find such rarities and can show divers several of these oddities on a single dive.

Many new islands and reefs are being explored around the coast of Sabah and with this exploration comes the discovery of new dive sites and rarely seen marine creatures. Around north Sabah and the more recently discovered Mantanani Resort rare sightings of dugongs have been recorded. With the yearly occurance of whale sharks along the west coast during the months of December to February, Sabah really has some spectacular marine creatures to be discovered by the visiting divers.

Conservation

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Sabah and its surrounding waters have been recognised as a marine turtle sanctuary since the opening of the Turtle Island Parks on its east coast. Managed by Sabah Parks the beaches within the park welcome nesting green and hawksbill turtles every night all year round. Similarly, the Wildlife Department monitors and protects nesting green and hawksbill turtles that visit Pulau Sipadan's shores. On nearby Pulau Malbul, the Fisheries Department, in conjunction with Sipadan Mabul Resort, have sunk hundreds of concrete pipes to form small artificial patch reefs surrounding a small wooden shipwreck. A fish poaching vessel was also sunk off the island of Pulau Lankayan and already hosts a myriad of creatures from the smallest ghost pipefish to the giant stingrays and schooling barracuda.

Sipadan Water Village on Pulau Mabul, is also actively engaged in coral reef research. Dive masters and instructors are encouraged to study both the fish and coral life in detail in collaboration with a Japanese Natural History Museum. Each year, in June, the dive centre's management and outside guest speakers run a specialized Marine Day and provide hands on lectures to guests sharing their studies' and encourage them to take part in their coral relocation and growth studies so that divers may learn more about the coral reef environment.

Gayana Island Eco Resort located on Pulau Gaya have a Giant Clam Rehabilitation Centre and also run a 'Reef Project'. Here they have a coral growth nursery and conduct clam induced ~pawning. Giant clams are one of the many marine species to have dernised around Sabah in recent years. Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS) run an extensive marine research program especially into alternative mariculture programs designed to reduce fishing intensity from Sabah's coral reefs. Giant clams, groupers and Napoleon wrasse are some of the subjects grown and bred in specialised farms. They also run a whale shark research program, each year when the whale sharks pass through the waters close to Kota Kinabalu they attempt to tag the sharks to document their migration routes. Each year PADI Project Aware beach and reef cleaning events are run to heighten public awareness in the importance of a clean marine environment. This has become a popular event with all the Dive Resorts and local people participating.