It’s been another month filled with great diving, as
well as some unexpected sightings. We’ve also made some huge leaps forward in
terms of helping keep Pulau Mabul clean!
Sipadan has continued to prove itself as one of the
greatest islands in the world to dive. We have had several sightings of
Hammerhead sharks, as well as all the usual suspects: Schooling Barracuda,
Trevally, Butterfly fish, several species of Unicorn fish and let’s not forget
the huge amounts of White Tip and Grey Reef sharks we have been seeing!
However, it was not Sipadan that gave us the most
unusual sighting this month; that honour was reserved for Pulau Mabul. Whilst
heading out to a dive site around Mabul, one of our boats was called to aid a
distressed Mola Mola! Whilst it is not the first time that this unusual and
beautiful fish has been seen around this area, it is certainly the first time
in a long while. This bizarre looking fish is generally found in temperate and
tropical waters. They tend to come up into shallow water to bask in the warmth
of the sun, but are often seen at dive sites that have cold, upwelling
currents.
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| The Mola Mola was sustaining injuries on the sharp coral |
It was not a simple rescue. The Mola had become hugely
distressed. Stranded in water less than its height, it was cutting its fins and
body on the sharp rubble and coral in the shallow water. It took nearly 45
minutes for our staff to help guide the Mola Mola into deeper waters,
sustaining their own injuries along the way! Of course, Scuba Junkie enforces a
no touching policy. Touching underwater creatures can introduce harmful
bacteria as well as creating unneccesary stress for the animal. However, in
this unique case it was deemed necessary by our trustworthy and responsible
staff – one of which was one of our onsite Environmental Officers, Cat – that touching
the Mola Mola would only aid it in this potentially dangerous situation.
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| Only touching the Mola Mola to aid it to safety |
All guests who were on the boat got to take part in the
incredible experience, and there were some big smiles in the bar that night. Of
course, the situation in which they saw the Mola was far from ideal; it's never
nice to see an animal in distress. However, it was a rewarding experience for
those involved, especially after seeing the Mola steady itself in the deeper
water and swim off.
As you may previously have known, we here are Scuba
Junkie are proud of our beach cleans. At least once a week staff, and any
customers who wish to take part, head down to the beach armed with bags and
gloves and try to keep Mabul clean! Usually this happens during the first
surface interval and it can be pretty sweaty work. Last week, however, it was
Esscom (one of the security forces on the island) who organised a beach clean.
They opted for a 6.30am start, when it's a little cooler - and what better way
to start the day than knowing you've made a difference. 
As staff got to the beach, still yawning and waking up,
we saw that many people from our neighbouring village were getting involved! It
was an incredible turn out, and we are hugely thankful to everyone who took
park. And especially to Sargent Major Tuan Mude
(Head of Police Esscom on Pulau Mabul) who organised this event. The effort put in was amazing,
with people going out into the deeper water, up to their chest, to help clear
debris out of the water. We collected over 300kg of rubbish. Although we may
not be a huge fan of the early starts, we can certainly get used to it and all
hope that this will become a regular event!  |
| HUGE Thanks to everyone involved! |
Here are some facts about Mola Molas!
- They are the ocean's largest and heaviest bony fish!
- They are unable to fully close their small beak-like mouths
- They can breach the surface, going up to 10 feet out of the water
- The like to eat jellyfish
- It is thought that they spend more time at the surface at night time
- One Mola was found with an estimated 300 million eggs in her ovaries! When they hatch they are only 2mm in size!
