Bonnet Reef

Bonnet Reef sits a short banca ride off the Dauin coast and marks a transition from the area's trademark muck habitats into a proper coral reef ecosystem, with a rubble slope giving way to hard coral terraces and then a clean sandy plain at depth that still concentrates muck life alongside reef species. The upper reef is dense with anthias clouds, schooling fusiliers, and resident groups of bumphead parrotfish that make grinding passes over coral heads at dawn, while the deeper sand at 25 to 35 metres is a reliable location for hairy frogfish and Ambon scorpionfish — a master of dead-leaf disguise. Ghost pipefish hover at the reef-sand interface, making this one of the few sites around Dauin where a single dive yields both reef and muck photography.