Great Barrier Reef Diving, Snorkeling & Sailing Tours with Small, Fun Groups

There are over 200 different types of Moray Eels around the world, living in a number of different environments. The smallest moray is about 12cm (5 inches) and the longest is about 4m (13 feet) long. The largest variety of the species being found in warm tropical waters and reefs with diversity lessening as the water becomes cooler.

The Moray Eel relies on camouflage and smell to catch its food as it has relatively poor eyesight. It lies in crevaces and waits for its next meal to swim past. To assist with hiding even the inside of the mouth is coloured to fit in with its surroundings. This also allows the moray to lie in waiting with its mouth open to get little warning to the unsuspecting prey. The moray eel also has a second set of jaws that move forward when attacking and give the eel some extra grip on the prey. This second set of jaws also help pass the food down to the stomach of the ray.

There are only a few predators of the moray eel, they include the barracuda, Groupers, Sea Snakes and other Moray Eels. The Moray itself is carnivorous and eats just about anything.

The Morays have sometimes been described as vicious or ill-tempered, this is not a deserved reputaiton as Morays hide from humans and would rather flee than fight. Morays are shy and secretive, and attack humans only in self-defense or mistaken identity (for example, a finger placed in a crevice where a moray resides may resemble a prey-item). Most attacks involve accidental bites during human-initiated interaction.

A colourful and common sight on the Great Barrier reef is the surgeon fish, like the yellow fin surgeon fish pictured above. The distinctive characteristic of the family is the spines, one or more on either side of the tail. Both the dorsal and tail fins are large, extending for most of the length of the body. The small mouths have a single row of teeth used for grazing on algae.

Surgeonfishes sometimes feed by themselves, but they are also often seen traveling and feeding in large colourful schools. It has been suggested that feeding in schools is a mechanism for overwhelming the highly aggressive defense responses of small territorial damselfishes that vigorously guard small patches of algae on coral reefs.

Most species are relatively small and have a maximum length of 15–40 cm (6–16 in), but some members of the genus Acanthurus, some members of the genus Prionurus, and most members of the genus Naso can grow larger, with the whitemargin unicornfish (N. annulatus), the largest species in the family, reaching a length of up to a meter (3,3 ft). These fishes can grow quickly in aquariums so it is advisable to check the average growth size and suitability before adding to a marine aquarium.

The sea urchin is a common site in aquariums and reefs around the world, and the Great Barrier Reef is no different. They abound on the shallows of the reef as well as the deeper areas and walls. Sea urchins are related to sea cucumbers and starfish. Like their cousins they have tubular feet they use to crawl across the reef. They use both water and blood as circulation systems in their bodies and eat mostly algae as part of their diet. When food conditions abound they can reproduce very quickly and therefore reach large numbers in a very short period of time. Likewise when the food sources dwindle they die of in masses just as quickly.

The spines are method of protection against predators but also offers a home to juveniles of smaller fish, offering them protection also. These spines are not dangerous to humans but as always it is best not not play with the wildlife.

We do many things onboard our boats to make sure we minimize our possible environmental impact. That means you can enjoy your diving and snorkeling on the Great Barrier Reef with the knowledge you are not impacting the reef in any detrimental way. One of the things we often talk to our guests about is the use of batteries instead of generators to provide power while we are at the reef.

By capturing energy that would otherwise be wasted during the normal operations of running the engines we charge our extensive battery banks. This allows our snorkelers and scuba divers to enjoy the reef, sunsets and sleep without the noise of a generator in the background. We then recycle the batteries after several years, and eliminating the generator decreases the use of oil and fossil fuels, as well as carbon emissions. A win for both the environment and your travel experience.

So when you are planning your next scuba diving trip to the Great Barrier Reef think about the best way to experience the reef, with only the noise of the waves and birds. If you decide to book with us it’d be our privilege to show you the beauty of this natural wonder…