Passe Houareau

Passe Houareau on Aldabra's southeastern rim is the atoll's shallowest and most sheltered passage, making it the most approachable for divers less experienced with strong tidal flow. The channel floor is a mosaic of hard coral gardens interspersed with sand patches, with butterflyfish, angelfish, and triggerfish in dense reef communities on either side. The site is one of the best inside Aldabra for macro life: nudibranchs, flatworms, and mantis shrimp are found throughout the coral rubble, and the seagrass beds at the lagoon mouth support green turtles feeding throughout the day. On incoming tides, juvenile sharks use the passage as a nursery, and the concentration of small fish brings hunting trevally and the occasional reef octopus.