Raja Ampat - Pulau Misool night dive

Setting

Anderson's night dive at Pulau Misool on 18 October 2018 entered the water at 18:40 and lasted 65 minutes, to a maximum depth of 17.7 m; the dive computer recorded a single water temperature of 27.5°C. The five frames described here are close, strobe-lit night shots rather than wide reef views.

General benthic features

A laminar coral colony with evenly spaced green polyps, compatible with Turbinaria, overhangs a dark recess beside a lilac encrusting sponge (e.g., Image 2).

2

A wider frame crosses a pale slope of coral rubble and broken framework, with a mottled, well-camouflaged animal at left that the frame does not resolve (e.g., Image 3).

3

Another shows a rocky outcrop crowded with orange and black feather stars, a yellow sea squirt, small green bubble algae, finger-like branching coral, and soft corals (e.g., Image 4).

4

Coral cover

• Coral cover: no figure is published for this site; night close-ups like these cannot support one.

Stressors

Anderson took no notes on this night dive (18 October 2018); the log lists only fauna (mating walking sharks, shrimp, walking brittle stars, nudibranchs, and ghost pipefish), so no bleaching, disease, crown-of-thorns starfish, or other stressor is recorded.

Fish and other fauna

A banded coral shrimp (Stenopus hispidus) stands among red encrusting growth with its long white antennae spread (e.g., Image 1).

1

Two walking sharks of the epaulette type (Hemiscyllium) rest together on the rubble (e.g., Image 5).

5

Comparisons with other data

We found no other surveys at this site as of 2026. If you would like to share yours, please email us.