Volunteer evening entertainment.

We are on a beautiful beach and a bit remote from town, we have no TV so what does everyone do after watching the sunset and eating supper.

Night or sunset dives are possible when the sea is calm.


Karaoke is popular for party nights











ordinary nights we play, scrabble, monopoly, card games.  Some of us are ace at bridge, uno or poker!


we read and study.

Occasionally we watch a documentary or a movie.

Interestingly you make good friends when you actually play/ interact with them and don't simply watch mindless TV.

Submerged marine conservation with TRACC

Linkia starfish

The marine life at the tip of borneo was fantastic - so many different species and so colurful.  We did some great biodiversity surveys, counting and identifying fish and other marine life.  My photo collection leaves me spoilt for choice.  These are a few of my favourites

original triptease post here
More info about volunteering with TRACC in Malaysia - Turtle Snorkellers - Divers

Lion fish

Dendronepthya soft coral

Sabellid worm

Diving volunteer during Cuttlefish breeding season

Cuttlefish breeding season is early each year and I was lucky enough to visit TRACC in the middle of the breeding season.  They were not seen on every dive but we did see groups of upto 6 at the lighthouse. They are simply amazing.  Flashes of colour with elecric blue and then the whole body can change from spiky to smooth and from red to white.

Original triptease post here
More info about volunteering with TRACC in Malaysia - Turtle Snorkellers - Divers

Dive with Nemo

A marine conservation centre which is actually building coral reef to repair damage done by blast fishers. The reefs of SE Asia have been destroyed by many human interactions. I visited TRACC-borneo to help make a positive difference. we made bottle reefs using recycled materials, we planted reefs and looking at the reefs made by previous volunteers, it actually works. I could see the difference. If you have time to volunteer to help save part of the planet - Nemo needs you.


Original Triptease here  
More info about volunteering with TRACC in Malaysia - Turtle Snorkellers - Divers 

Scops Owl at the TRACC Tip of Borneo camp

This unfledged baby Scops Owl fell out of a coconut tree a couple of weeks ago. He spends his days snoozing safely in a cat box and his nights hopping about the place, nibbling people's ears and learning to fly. ‪#‎TRACC‬ ‪#‎conservation‬ ‪#‎volunteer‬

 We need more people to document the bird biodiversity as part of the basleine management plan for the Tun Mustapha Marine Park.  Come and Join us.

Marine Science A Level Fisheries Fieldwork

Parrot fish from coral reef fisheries

The Marine Science A level class had a lot of fun and learnt a lot by being in the environment during fieldtrips.  The students and staff from TRACC had lots of fun doing many practicals in mangroves, rocky shores and underwater on coral reefs. These are some of the images from the Fisheries fieldwork done by the 2015 Marine Science A level class.

UPDATE

One of our students was the Best #Marine #Science #student in the world. What an honour. Congratulations #TomGibson http://goo.gl/mTx4ge 

Huge diversity of fish species

Liz studying a guitarshark

Sorting a purse seine catch
from left - Liz, Gon, Tom, Matti, Kit and Sonny

Sunset swim

Best time of day

Coral planting on step reefs to repair sloping rubble reefs

The step reefs with coral biscuits to repair sloping coral reefs
were built by the Kalapuan community
as part of the TRACC SGP/GEF project

The Tracc SGP/GEF coral planting project has been busy building step reefs to hold the biscuits and repair sloping rubble reefs.  Pom Pom Island and many of the reefs in the Semporna district have a very steep slope of rubble.  The reef crest was blasted by bomb fishers in the past and now all that is left is a slope of coral fragments.  These are unstable and move gradually down the slope.  Most larval corals which settle are abraded off or smothered by the sand as the rubble rolls down the slope.


The community of Kalapuan island has been building our complex step reefs during 2014.  Made of cement mortar with two rows of bottles, the back row of bottles is taller than the front.  The undersurface during manufacture or the top surface after positioning has indentations which correpond exactly with the shape and size of our coral biscuits in the nursery.

The step reefs with coral biscuits have a variety of coral species
to increase diversity of the repaired coral reefs.

To date (May 2015), the community has built slightly over 250 of the steps which will be sufficint to make many cluster or auditorium reefs and will provide long term protection for nearly 2000 coral biscuits from our coral nursery.

Millipora coral spreading from the
coral biscuit across the step reef.

Pocillopora coral growing from a fragment
in a biscuit into a healthy coral
supported by a step reef

Porites coral has completely overgrown
the original biscuit

Porites coral has completely
covered the original biscuit

igloo reef assembly - underwater

under construction

more fun and games were had with the igloo reefs as they were assembled underwater.

You may also want to read about our coral planting for world ocean day or Growth of the branching corals in the coral nursery.  or Step reefs or Bottle reefs or Shark cave reefs or igloo reefs

More blogs about TRACC marine conservation centre   

Videos about TRACC  - Mabul shark week 2015 - White tip reef sharks -

More info about learning to dive or volunteering to help save the ocean with TRACC in Malaysia - Turtle Snorkellers - Divers  

Creating igloo reefs - on land

under construction

Igloo reefs to attract shoals of fish

The team of Malaysians and international volunteers have been having fun over the past few weeks making igloo reefs for our SGP/GEF project near the Tip of Borneo (Simpang Mengayu). These are bottle reefs attached together by plastic pipe bent into an arch shape and then assembled into an igloo shape. The plastic pipe has a large number of holes drilled in it to make a suitable attachment point for coral fragments which will be fixed by cable ties. These igloo reefs are intended to act as very open shelters to schools of fish.

The igloos were assembled and labeled on land and then the various parts were taken apart to make for easy transport in the boat and underwater.

GEF/SGP with TRACC - Tropical Research And Conservation Center
— at Pom Pom Island

More info about learning to dive or volunteering to help save the ocean with TRACC in Malaysia - Turtle Snorkellers - Divers 

finished igloo with the retaining rings positioned
and drilled ready for cbl tie attchment underwater