SPOTLIGHT CORAL TRANSPLANTATION – CHALOK BAAN KAO ARTIFICIAL REEF

In the month of April, Assava worked with Spotlight and New Heaven dive center to teach the process of coral transplantation on New Heaven’s artificial reef located in the heart of Chalok Bay. As a part of Spotlights ‘Eco Week’, the event was held to allow divers to learn about the importance of coral in our marine ecosystems as well as participate in the transplantation process. The divers were briefed on the different types of coral, artificial reef structures and transplantation techniques that exist in Koh Tao and beyond.

The students were then taught the coral translation process, starting with establishing good buoyancy. Having solid neutral buoyancy is crucial to coral transplantation, as it ensures the diver can properly complete the transplantation process without harming the surrounding marine life. Therefore, the divers are asked to hover neutrally buoyant at the start of the dive as an exercise before the transplantation process. After this, the students learn how to identify ‘baby’ corals or recruits that are suitable to be transplanted onto the artificial reef. Recruits can be characterized as fragments of still-living coral that are broken off and found in the sand.

Once the recruits have been collected, the divers use zip ties to attach the coral fragments to wire frames. The coral recruits are carefully positioned to give them the best chance of survival and growth.

Thank you to all of the divers who participated in the event, and to Spotlight and New Heaven for helping organize and make the event possible. We are looking forward to more opportunities to educate divers on eco programs throughout Koh Tao to help keep our reefs healthy!