Uepi Island Resort - Uepi News archives June 2008.

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DIVE UEPI - The BIG & small of it!
June 2008

The time of year when we get Spring Low Tides in the middle of the day has finally arrived. We have waited for this with some anticipation, to see if the low waters bare off the reefs as in previous times. Whilst some reef has been uncovered it has been nowhere as much as in past years, especially those long gone. This confirms our observations & deductions that the process of sea level rise, as demonstrated by quite a few indicators, has in fact taken place. But at the same time our tidal range has increased with the result, as reported earlier in the year, that the Spring High Tides have been inundating areas previously dry. Add in a few other variables, possibly some the result of the tsunami in the area to the south-west of Marovo about 18 months ago, and it is obvious there have been a few changes in the tidal regime. In middle to late June the tides were completely out of synchronisation with the published predictions. In the past there have always been several short periods during the year when the predictions have been a bit out of time with the actual tides, but never as dramatically as this. The other odd observation is that for a few weeks the tide level was rising when the current was flowing out and conversely, falling when the current was flowing in. We certainly have experienced this to a degree before but not as absolutely as this. By early July the tides & predictions were back in agreement. I guess the question must be asked about the effect of the major plate tectonic movements experienced at the time of the tsunami may have had, but it seems doubtful that it would greatly affect Marovo. Time will tell.

The effect on diving was minimal once we worked out what was happening. I can recall briefing a night dive group that Uepi Point would have an out-going current, only to find that it was a very comfortable incoming. That is the best of both worlds, a very clear, brilliantly colourful night reef with a nice incoming for a bit of a drift in the latter part of the dive. Doesn't get any better! And I forgot to mention the stars. Popping your head up at night to see the Southern Cross & a galaxy of other stars lighting up the sky was worth the dive on its own. It stimulated all sorts of conversations about where South was, can we see Polaris (No) & if not why not; so how come we see the "Big Dipper"& lots of other astro type questions. Nothing like a bunch of just out of the water night-divers munching on crayfish with Solbrews in hand to get the imagination & conversation flowing. It did not seem to matter that collectively we had a minimum of real knowledge but plenty of imagination & theories.

June has been a month for Mantas, big & small. It has been a while since we have spent extended time with a group (flock? School? Pod? Squadron?) of Giant Mantas. With swarms of small krill (possibly not the identification but it seems to fit) swarming on a nearby inner lagoon reef the Mantas stayed to feed. We recognised some of them from previous visits by their markings & physical attributes so it was nice to think they were back with us. The previous time we had a major group there were thirteen, but this time we had two groups of four, including a much larger, very black individual who was new to us. The krill was very thick in clouds & seemed to be restricted to the warmer pools of water. These mantas were hell-bent on eating as much as they could, as quickly as they could. A diver or snorkellor was of no concern to them at all, only paying us attention when they were scouting for a new concentration of food. Over a couple of weeks plenty of guests dived (mainly snorkelled) with them as they looped-the- loop feeding. As the water was clouded with krill, who maybe had their own food source in the water column, it was useful that the mantas looped right to the surface to feed giving the closest of contact to the snorkellors.

From time to time when such groups of Mantas are not around, we see a few individuals cruising the reefs, usually passing immediately overhead. There have been several such sightings recently.
The only other Manta species, known as the Pygmy Manta or Devil Ray, is a fairly common sight around Uepi. Several days ago guests had four Pygmy Manta hovering in the current at Charapoanna Point, just over the divers’ heads. These Manta, usually constantly cruising unless being cleaned at a 'cleaner station', stayed almost stationary in the current & eventually the divers moved on after 20 minutes of close viewing. One diver had never seen a Manta in 25 years of diving so it just proves that if you keep diving you keep having new experiences.

We have just found pygmy sea-horses on a new fan in the Elbow Caves area. At 28 meters this is a bit deeper than we usually find them but we never get tired of looking at pygmies or searching new fans for them. Often what turns out to be a pygmy search uncovers a variety of other interesting observations that would normally have gone unnoticed.

On a recent trip over near Penguin Reef we spotted a few large fins. As we drew closer we discovered a very large pod of Pilot Whales. There were all sizes, large males down to small babies. By slipping into the water on snorkel as they approached we spotted quite large numbers. Of course they spotted us well in advance with the females approached us with their young in groups of about 8, halting about 6 meters away floating vertically in a close cluster, watching us intently. And accompanying them were a large pack of Silky Sharks, ever inquisitive with downcast pectoral fins showing some anxiety & causing a little anxiety amongst ourselves. Silky's can be very inquisitive & the fact that we had over 1000m of water under us always makes it seem different. The large male Pilots ignored us completely which, considering the number of small offspring, was a bit of a surprise.

With the TradeWinds finally blowing, later than ever this year, we have been investigating Kite-Boarding. Having operated sea-kayaks with Kayak Solomons for about ten years now we feel that there are good opportunities to offer kite-boarding both as a principal activity or on a casual basis. At this moment a team including internationally rated & sponsored kiteboarders are on a 'fact finding' mission. The feed-back to date is that we have excellent & convenient conditions for flat-water kiting. In partnership with "the wilderness lodge' we plan to offer a kiteboarding experience covering a large area of the Marovo Lagoon. We plan to announce more details in the near future so let your kite-boarding friends know. We also have two new Hobie Cats for when the breeze is fresh.

Lots of action at Uepi in and on the water.

We hope to see you soon.

Leana Jill, Grant and the Uepi Team

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