Chinese School Group at TRACC

TRACC were host to a large Chinese FSXH school group in summer 2016 who came to visit for the first time. There were a total of 16 high school students from China and 4 teachers. Most came to learn how to dive, learn about what TRACC does and be involved in marine conservation. These students had no knowledge of what marine conservation is all about and what TRACC does and so many of the TRACC staff including myself had the opportunity to teach them about the life under the sea.

While most of the dive masters were assisting the instructors with the students’ open water and advanced open water, I had the opportunity to help Tom (the science officer) out with the science education. We gave short classes on coral identification, fish identification and artificial reef. I found teaching and educating these students really exciting. Not only was I learning as I teach, the students were really enthusiastic and wanted to learn more about the marine life. They are constantly asking questions and giving out burst of amazement about the uniqueness of every single species of marine creatures. As soon as we finished our classroom section, we hit the water for some snorkelling and started identifying the types of family fishes. Even though many of the students barely know how to swim and some are terrified of the water, they are still really excited to explore and discover the fishes or corals that they just learned. 

Natalie and Evelyn.

 Thinking back on the memories with the students, I personally felt really inspired by them. One of my favourite memories was teaching a student how to swim. Right from the start, before we head into the water, I could tell Evelyn was scared of drowning but yet she was determined to learn how to swim. In no time, she was swimming like a professional athlete. The best part of this particular experience was not only does Evelyn feel accomplished, I felt equally accomplished as she was.  We constantly high five and hugged each other and there was no other way to describe that feeling of achieving the same goal with another person. It’s amazing how much I have seen her grow from a non-swimmer to an excellent swimmer and diver. This was definitely a one-time experience I would never replace it for the world. The challenges and accomplishment that were faced are those memories I will look back now and appreciate the opportunities that TRACC has given me.

(This blog is written by Natalie Chai)

If you want to help with any marine conservation activity, please check our website http://tracc.org or email info@tracc-borneo.org

For more updates on TRACC check out our Facebook, Twitter or Google+

If visits to Tracc are not possible then please help with financial support and follow our projects on facebook

Funday at Matabuan

A healthy coral reef at Matabuan.

On Sundays, we normally take a day off from conservation work and go FUNdiving :-) I remember when we went to Matabuan as our fun day trip. The ride to Matabuan was rather rough as a storm has just hit. Thus, when we went down for a dive, the visibility was not as great. However, undeniably, the coral reef is so much more diverse and healthier compared to Pom Pom Island. Good job done by Sabah Parks (Mantabuan is in Tun Sakaran Park, and has a marine police presence.)

A green turtle swimming into the blue.

Divers showing off their flying kicks and back flips.

Other than admiring the beauty of the coral reef, one of the most memorial part of the dive in Matabuan was 

when we found a patch of sand at depth about 8 meters. What is more fun than to take off our fins and do flips and flying kicks? We spent a good time defying gravity and although we consumed a lot of our air, it was still unforgettable.

Lunch at Matabuan Island.

Hunger took over after that dive and so we had lunch on the island. We found a good spot with lots of shade, placed a tarp on the sand and settled down. We had some good discussion about what we saw during the dive and played a game of charades. After much laughter, it was time to head back to Pom Pom. Fun day to Matabuan was definitely a day we would never trade for any other days. The dive site, the company of these volunteers, the food, the view and everything else on top of that.

If you want to help with any marine conservation activity, please check our website http://tracc.org or email info@tracc-borneo.org

For more updates on TRACC check out our Facebook, Twitter or Google+

More Marine conservation projects

Reef conservation would not be possible without generous financial support from

GEF /SGP for Malaysia who are helping our community activities and coralreefcare.com who generously provided materials to build the new reefs.

If visits to Tracc are not possible then please help with financial support and follow their projects on Facebook.

Community Coral Planting on Kalapuan

The Community Coral Team 

A bustle of activity and a flurry of hands helped to build 12 bottle reefs and 2 big turtle reefs during the Community Coral Planting day on Kalapuan Island.

Upon arrival to Kalapuan, TRACC staff and volunteers were greeted from the shores by the usual picturesque scene of blue water, green trees, and smiling faces and happy hands. As an added bonus Chief Ibno organized a pre Community Coral Day beach clean, greeting TRACC with clean beaches and a successfully collected and pile of

plastic bottles, wrappers and polystyrene.

Nat and Christine Talking Shark Fin Soup

Between reef making and lunch eating, Liam, Khairul, Nat and Christine gave a talk about the importance of coral reefs and the role of sharks in coral reef ecology. Highlighting the importance of conserving the reef and saying no to shark fin soup.

Waving a temporary goodbye to Kalapuan as the boat departed at the end of a productive day the event felt like a great success. But the works not over yet, TRACC will organize another Community Coral Planting Day in the near future to drop the completed and dried reefs.

Bottle Reef Making with Wellman and Liam

A big thanks to Mr. Yusof owner of the Kalapuan Island Resort for the use of the resort and providing a location to drop the reefs, the volunteers from TRACC and Kalapuan, the TRACC staff for the months of planning and to the GEF Small Grants Program (SGP) for providing the financial support to make the Community Coral Planting day such a success!

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If you want to help with any marine conservation activity please check out our website tracc.org or e-mail iinfo@tracc-borneo.org

For updates check out our facebook, twitter or Google +

Reef conservation would not be possible without the generous financial support from GEF/SPG for Malaysia who are helping our community activities, and coralreefcare.com who generously provide materials to build more reefs.   

If visits to Tracc are not possible then please help with financial support and follow our projects on facebook

Big Fish Surveys

I have been a volunteer and science intern at TRACC for just over two months and the journey has been amazing. The work and effort that TRACC has put into conserving and rehabilitating the marine creatures has shown a significant difference since they first started. There are many conservation projects that TRACC does but one of my favourites is the large fish survey. 

Plectropomus are indicative of healthy reef.

The very first large fish survey was done in 2011 when TRACC first arrived on Pom Pom Island and the fish are still being surveyed and added as data. The reason for this is because we want to know if the coral restoration and artificial reefs are attracting fishes. According to the data, there has been a drastic increase in the number of large fishes since 2011.

Before my first large fish survey, Tom, the senior science officer, made sure that we knew how to identify the large fish families such as sharks, rays, triggerfish, groupers, sweetlips etc. As soon as we'd gone through the fish identification, we jumped into the water right away. On that very first fish survey dive, I had trouble identifying all the different types of large fishes but Tom guided and made sure I improved at identifying the large fishes. Thanks to him, by the time I'd done 3 fish surveys, I felt like a pro! Now, after weeks of surveying, I am taking over and leading the fish survey with new volunteers that are in TRACC.

I personally think that a fish survey is like a treasure hunt. Every large fish that we find is like finding gold! And stingrays are like finding platinum! One of my favourite fish surveys was when we saw three eagle rays in one survey and one of them swam right over our heads. That was one of the best dives I've ever had; not just to see an eagle ray but also to see it swimming so close.

Bolbometopon also need healthy coral

Another great fish survey experience was when I saw my first bumphead parrotfish. Those parrotfishes were about a meter long and had teeth that were so big they looked like they were wearing hockey gum guards. They seemed intimidating but they are one of the gentlest creatures I've ever met. During my survey, 13 of them parrotfishes were eating in a land full of corals. Somehow they really reminded me of a herd of cows.

These are only some of the many things I've experienced during my science internship and I'm only just beginning. Through diving and fish surveying, the ocean never fails to surprise me. I am learning new things about the ocean everyday and there is never a dull moment. I am definitely looking forward to getting on with the next fish survey and I will be sure to go in to the water with an expectant heart, knowing that in every fish survey that I do, I will be in awe.

Natalie surveying for big-fish at TRACC

If you want to help with any marine conservation activity, please 
check our website http://tracc.org or e-mail info@tracc-borneo.org 

For more updates on TRACC check out our Facebook, Twitter or Google +

More Marine conservation projects

Reef conservation would not be possible without generous financial support from

GEF /SGP for Malaysia who are helping our community activities and coralreefcare.com who generously provided materials to build the new reefs.

If visits to Tracc are not possible then please help with financial support and follow their projects on Facebook.

Coral Growth on the Bottle Reef

February 2016
Photo by Basil Bohn

Corals are the oldest animals on the ocean scene; some species have been studied to live 4,000 plus years.[1] Coral life begins as a free-swimming planula larva, who is carried by the ocean currents and drifts until it finds a suitable hard surface on which to attach. After successful attachment, if they are left undisturbed and ocean conditions are right, the coral will began to build a coral colony – secreting calcium carbonate into a wild mansion of natural architectural genius which can hold thousands of coral polyps in its rooms. In an ensuing symbiotic relationship, photosynthetic zooxanthellae algae will coat the surface of the coral colonies

Of the over 25,000 species of coral, 800 are hard coral. Slow growing and complex in their lifecycle, hard corals grow anywhere in between 5mm and 20cm a year. Out of these 800 plus species, about 250 are from the branching coral family of Acropora – a lovely family which displays their unique differences both boldly through

May 2016
Photo by Basil Bohn

bright colored tips and polyps, and subtly through slight slants of polyp bunching and pattern differences.

The TRACC ribbon reef is planted with a variety of these subtly distinctive Acropora corals.  Such as the Acropora parilis, the blue tipped and branching hard coral photographed here in February and again in early May. The growth and successful attachment is pleasantly and gratifyingly visible in the less than 3 month span of the two photos.

However, ocean lovers, divers and boat drivers beware – when trying to photograph again this week, we found our lovely coral animal in two. Saddened by the sight and the possibilities of lost life, I’ll be sure to be extra careful of the tread of my footsteps and the flap of my fins.

Growth of Acropora Coral Shown Through Overlay of Photos
Photo by Basil Bohn

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[1] May 30, 2016, http://www.nature.com/news/2009/090323/full/news.2009.185.html

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If you want to help with any marine conservation activity, please 
check our website http://tracc.org or e-mail info@tracc-borneo.org 

For more updates on TRACC check out our Facebook, Twitter or Google +

More Marine conservation projects

Reef conservation would not be possible without generous financial support from

GEF /SGP for Malaysia who are helping our community activities and coralreefcare.com who generously provided materials to build the new reefs.

If visits to Tracc are not possible then please help with financial support and follow their projects on Facebook.

Feature Creature - Harlequin Shrimp Making a Home on the House Reef

The Harlequin Shrimp
Photo by Lizz Fitt

A cozy couple of harlequin shrimp perch on the edges of a leafy yellow coral. Comfortably they peer out of the coral’s autumnal folds into the surrounding reef. With an exoskeleton marbled in patterns of purple, pink, white and blue, little claws and protruding antennae eyes formed into flat plates, these 4 centimeter creatures have the appearance of knights dressed in a clowns armor.

                            

Harlequin shrimp form monogamous pairs and tend to settle in one coral as a permanent home. This domestic behavior paired with their bright and beautiful pattern and big round aname eyes, give the shrimp an aura of domesticity. Yet, this homely pair are also grotesque and fearsome predators. They feed almost exclusively on starfish, and prefer the delicacy of the starfishes many tube feet. The harlequins will feed on the same starfish for many days, and have been know to keep one alive through feeding it so they can prolong their feast on its tender little feet. The starfish in return have been known to detach a limb in an escape effort worthy of Houdini.

These harlequin shrimp seem to have settled on the inside of the bottle ribbon reef TRACC has built. And once again TRACC has been rewarded for its effort by the presence of a magical pair of creatures.

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If you want to help with any marine conservation activity, please 
check our website http://tracc.org or e-mail info@tracc-borneo.org 

For more updates on TRACC check out our Facebook, Twitter or Google +

More Marine conservation projects

Reef conservation would not be possible without generous financial support from

GEF /SGP for Malaysia who are helping our community activities and coralreefcare.com who generously provided materials to build the new reefs.

If visits to TRACC are not possible then please help with financial support and follow their projects on Facebook.