The shallow sliver of water caught between Sulawesi and the small island of Lembeh is the Lembeh Strait, muck diving centre of the world, and a mecca for underwater macro photographers.
There are maps in every resort showing the recognised dive sites, but to be honest it is one great big dive location.
Pick a spot, go down to anything from 5 to 25m and you’ll be greeted by an astonishing world of remarkable creatures.
An experienced dive guide is essential, so we teamed up with Jon of Two Fish Divers, a PADI 5 star dive resort on Lembeh Island. Jon is a local man who’s been diving the area his whole life. With his mechanic Rishard and skipper Yuli we had the perfect team to explore this unique haven.
The season was transitional, so on some days during the month we spent there it rained, while other days were sunny. Of course once under water this didn’t matter; it was simply time to discover some of Lembeh’s exceptional treasures.
Octopus
Like many people, we have a fascination with octopuses, and the Lembeh Strait has some of the best. High on our wishlist of critters to find there was the long-arm octopus (Abdopus, species not yet described).
As the name suggests, the long-arm octopus has elegant, long arms in relation to its short body. And, like most octopuses, it will lie camouflaged by its surroundings.
But if you think this octopus is amazing, there’s nothing quite as extraordinary as Lembeh’s jewel in the crown, the “mimicking miracle octopus”, or more simply “the mimic octopus” (Thaumoctopus mimicus), discovered here in 1998.
This exquisite animal hides at night, choosing instead to forage on the open seabed during the day, which has meant inventing some ingenious ways to disguise itself. Like most octopuses, it can change its colouring, but the mimic can twist its body to appear and behave like some unappetising creatures like lionfish, jellyfish, sea snakes or crabs.
The mimic is not to be confused with the wonderpus, also discovered here in northern Indonesia. The wonderpus has its eyes high up on stalks, and no obvious white horizontal line along each arm. It also prefers to hunt at night.
Cuttlefish
Ever since the movie, “My Octopus Teacher” octopuses have been getting all the glory, but did you know that cuttlefish are even more intelligent?
According to National Geographic, “their brain-to-body size ratio is among the biggest of ALL invertebrates. They can count and can remember what, where, and when they last ate, a memory trait once believed to be unique to humans.”
The beautiful golden cuttlefish (Sepia esculenta) changes not only the colour and pattern of its skin, but the texture too. Watch the transformation on our video
Flamboyant cuttlefish
Perhaps the most extraordinay of Lembeh’s cephalopods is the flamboyant cuttlefish.
Like the mimic octopus, it’s not a nocturnal hunter, preferring to find its food in the daytime.
And like several critters here, its walking is more proficient that its swimming. In fact it can only float or swim for short periods, so has little choice in the matter.
There are various reasons for the extreme colour changes, like putting on a mating display or trying to attract prey. But it’s more likely that the cuttlefish is indicating its poisonous state to a potential predator, in this case Jamie and his camera!
Although deadly poisonous to predators, they are harmless to divers. That’s unless you eat one, of course…
Shrimp
Commensal shrimp live in partnership with other creatures, often residing on coral or between the swaying tentacles of anemones. Some make their home on the bodies of animals like moray eels or sea cucumbers.
Shrimp are feisty, fearless characters, making them superb subjects for Jamie to photograph.
There are thousands of species of shrimp around the world, some less than a cm and almost completely transparent, while others are large and powerful. Many have not yet been named or are still to be discovered.
Peacock mantis shrimp
If you want colour underwater, then the peacock mantis shrimp (Odontodactylus scyllarus) will fulfil your dreams.
The eyes move independently of each other, seeing in all directions (not unusual in many animals), but this critter can detect hues way outside our puny human colour range.
But don’t get too close.
The Peacock mantis shrimp uses its front arms like a boxer, and if threatened will punch you at 75 feet per second. That’s 50 times faster than the blink of an eye, or about the same as a .22 calibre bullet. Don’t believe us? Check the Guinness World Record for “the strongest self-powered strike by an animal”!
This shrimp mainly uses its punch to catch food by breaking open shells and dismembering crabs and other crustaceans.
Here’s a tip: Don’t put one in your aquarium, they have been known to punch through glass.
Seahorses
We were thrilled to spot quite a few of the shy common seahorse (Hippocampus kuda), along with its cousin the thorny seahorse (Hippocampus hystrix).
Measuring in at less than 2cms and perfectly camouflaged against the gorgonian coral they inhabit, we would never have found this pygmy seahorse (Hippocampus bargibanti) without Jon, our incredible guide.
Amberfish sea cucumber
There are around 1,250 species of sea cucumber across the planet, and the amberfish sea cucumber (Thelenota anax) is one of the biggest. They’ve been known to grow to 89cms and weigh up to 5kilos. Research has shown they can live for several decades
They don’t get much love or attention, but sea cucumbers are the earthworms of the sea. Hoovering up the sea bed, digesting, sifting and excreting, means they are critical for a healthy ocean environment.
Their biggest predator? With a nicknames like “the curryfish”, you’ve guessed it: humans. Sixteen vulnerable or endangered sea cucumbers already on the IUCN list (including the amberfish’s cousin, the pineapple sea cucumber). How long will this beauty survive?
Lots more critters
Sadly, there are way too many weird and wonderful creatures to add here, so here’s a taste of some of what we saw (you can see them all in our video, linked below)…
It was after watching Bubble Vision’s, “Mucky Secrets (full) – The Marine Creatures of the Lembeh Strait” that we set our sights on the fabulous Lembeh Strait. Take a closer look at what we found there in our mini documentary:
Full list of critters shown in the video, with time stamps
01:20 Long-arm octopus (Abdopus, species not yet described)
02:07 Golden cuttlefish (sepia esculenta); Broadclub cuttlefish (Sepia latimanus)
03:06 Bentstick pipefish (Trachyrhamphus bicoarctatus); Banded pipefish (Corythoichthys haematopterus); Ornate ghost pipefish (Solenostomus paradoxus)
03:56 Magnificent anemone shrimp (Ancylomenes magnificusis); Bubble coral shrimp (Vir philippinensis); Clown anemone shrimp (Periclimenes brevicarpalis); Emperor shrimp (Periclimenes imperator); Arrow cleaner shrimp (Unrocaridella degravei);
04:47 Peacock mantis shrimp (Odontodactylus scyllarus)
05:46 Hairless orangutan crab (Oncinopus sp.1); Elegant squat lobster (Allogalathea elegans); Harlequin crab (Lissocarcinus orbicularis); Porcelain anemone crab (Neoperolisthes maculatus); Zebra crab (Zebrida adamsii);
06:34 Juvenile flying oriental gurnard (Dactyloptena orientalis)
06:45 Purple-tipped janolus (Janolus savinkini); Gloomy nudibranch (Tambja morosa); Tryon’s risbecia (Hypselodoris tryoni); Desirable flabellina (Coryphellina exoptata); Bullocks hypsolodoris (hypselodoris bullocki); Egret nudibranch (ardeadoris Egretta); Coleman’s chromodoris (Chromodoris colemani); Nudibranch (Chromodoris magnifica); Nudibranch (Chromodoris annae); Batangas sea slug (Halgerda batangas); Nudibranch (Chromodoris dianae);
08:00 Juvenile filefish (Monacanthidae)
08:15 Spiny waspfish (or leaf-fish) (Ablabys macracanthus); Red Lionfish (Pterois volitans);
08:41 Yellow trumpetfish (Aulostomus chinensis); Dusky batfish (Platax pinnatus);
08:51 White-spotted hermit crab (Dardanus megistos);
09:12 Razorfish (Aeoliscus strigatus)
09:25 Painted frogfish (Antennarius pictus); Hairy frogfish (Antennarius striatus); Juvenile Randall’s frogfish (Antennarius randalli)
10:15 Ambon Scorpionfish (Pteroidichthys amboinensis)
10:25 Thorny seahorse (Hippocampus hystrix); Common seahorse (Hippocampus kuda);
10:39 Pygmy seahorse (Hippocampus bargibanti) on gorgonian coral
11:13 Juvenile harlequin sweetlips (Plectorhinchus chaetodonoides)
11:22 Amberfish sea cucumber (Thelenota anax)
12:10 Saddleback clownfish (Amphiprion polymnus) living in green carpet anemone (Stichodactyla haddoni);
12:31 Mimic octopus (Thaumoctopus mimicus)
13:29 Flamboyant cuttlefish (Metasepia pfefferi)
14:49 Crinoid Clingfish (Discotrema crinophila); Feather Star (Comatulida); Starry moray eel (Echidna nebulosa); Saddleback clownfish (Amphiprion polymnus) living in green carpet anemone (Stichodactyla haddoni); Peacock mantis shrimp (Odontodactylus scyllarus); Napoleon snake eel (Ophichthus bonaparti); Devil scorpionfish (Scorpaenopsis diabolus); Coconut octopus (Amphioctopus marginatus);Blue-spotted sea urchin (Astropyga radiata); Anker’s whip coral shrimp (Pontonides ankeri)
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