Yellowfin Tuna

Photo: Shani Miller · © all rights reserved

Yellowfin tuna appear in the blue water off Banda Besar Wall during aggregation periods, their torpedo-shaped bodies and distinctive yellow finlets making them unmistakable as they streak through at speeds exceeding 70 km/h pursuing schools of surface fish. As highly migratory apex predators, they connect open ocean and reef ecosystems, and their presence in the Banda Sea reflects the region's exceptional productivity driven by upwelling of cold deep water. Encounters are fleeting but electrifying — a single pass by a group of 50-kilogram tuna is one of the most visceral experiences in pelagic diving.