by Kathy Fortune
Where soft coral sites come to life...
In still waters, colonies of coral reef that would normaly be brilliant, turn inward and become nothing more than knobby rockscapes. But when the tides are right and the fast moving currents force water to flood over these tiny creatures, amazing things can happen right before your eyes.
In Fiji Somosomo Straits and Vatu-i-Ra Passage this perfect combination occurs naturally and regularly. To witness this miraculous event you may have to hold on to your hat (or mask) and be ready to kick, sometimes hard, to stay in one place. But the reward...to get to watch the spectacular event unfold as the nutrient rich water flows over and the soft coral beauties come to life.
Finding soft corals in the 300 plus islands of Fiji is not a difficult task in itself, but if you want to see the phenomenon of these creatures bloom with there starbursts of color, you'll need to look a little harder.
Forests of soft coral unfold where the water is forced to accelerate through narrow passages when there are changes in the tides. You'll want to have a map handy, find those narrow passages and be there at the right time. Oh what a sight you'll see.
A little investigation and following of the tidal schedule will reap big rewards to the diver willing to invest the time. Have your underwater camera and strobe ready because you'll want to capture this beauty forever. Who knows, maybe with these amazing images you'll be able to invoke the scuba spirit into that person you've been trying to convince to take the dive with you. You may just end up with a new scuba diving buddy for your next adventure.
www.scubashoppro.com
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