A new day, new spirit, new experiences! Yes, I am so excited for today!
Today is another great day for us interns. Today we divided into two groups. Niomi, Ayu, Evi, and I join Andy on Dive Komodo’s boat, while Tami and Dhanmo are in the classroom with Dita.
Today we conducted manta surveys at two different dive sites: Mawan and Siaba Kecil. We’ve never been to these sites before, so were excited to explore the new places.
Before the dive we had the usual briefing from the divemaster about the site and condition. Then it was MantaWatch’s turn to give a manta briefing to the guests. Evi and Ayu gave the presentation today, and explained all about the manta rays of West Manggarai, things to look for and how to dive with them responsibly.
At Mawan we hoped to see mantas, as the conditions were good and this is a known location for mantas to clean. But unfortunately no mantas today. We’re sad about that, but that is nature and we can’t always guarantee the mantas will be there.
Next we continued on to Siaba Kecil. It is a very nice dive site, with lots of beautiful hard and soft corals. But again we didn’t find any mantas, and I wonder where they’ve gone. We miss them already!
MantaWatch team and the guests
We were feeling sad, but then when we got back on the boat the crew asked us if we want to visit Rinca Island. No doubt, it’s a YES! This was a first time to see the Komodo dragon in their habitat. We arrived at the jetty and trekked in to the ranger station to meet our guide. Finally we met the Komodo dragon, such an awesome experience!
Meeting the Komodo dragon for the first time
On the top of the hill
Then on the boat back to Labuan Bajo, Andy gave us a review about mantas, and explained how the seasons, lunar cycles, tides and other features affect their abunadnce. That was so fun! Thanks Andy, surely we’ve gained more knowledge. Let’s learn, learn, learn!
Even though there were no mantas today, we’re very happy to see the Komodo dragon. Hopefully soon the mantas will be back, and our homework is to review the four-year data set that Andy gave us and try to predict when.
