Ibo Island Reef

The reef systems surrounding Ibo Island are among the most pristine in the entire Indian Ocean, receiving fewer than a few hundred divers per year and harbouring coral communities of extraordinary density and health. Whale sharks visit reliably between October and February, drawn by the rich zooplankton blooms generated by the Mozambique Channel's complex current systems. The near-total absence of fishing pressure and boat traffic has allowed large grouper, Napoleon wrasse, and schools of bumphead parrotfish to persist at population densities rarely seen elsewhere in East Africa.