COTS-busters save Mabul coral reefs
SEMPORNA: It was an incredible week on Pulau Mabul when government agencies, dive operators and NGOs joined together within a few days to tackle an imminent threat to the coral reefs on the island.
A total of seven dive centres from Mabul and two marine conservation NGOs lifted over 5,000 coral-eating crown-of-thorns seastars (COTS) from the south side of the island in five days.
Overseeing the project was the Semporna District Officer Bianus Kontong and Majlis Daerah Semporna (MDS) arranged for the disposal and burial of COTS.
COTS are a normal part of a healthy, balanced reef ecosystem and actually promote coral diversity - they feed on fastgrowing corals, giving the slow growing corals a chance to thrive.
However, when the ecosystem is taken out of balance, outbreaks can occur. Huge numbers of COTS - such as the thousands seen on Pulau Mabul – have the potential to destroy huge swathes of reef, as the sheer numbers of individuals eat all the available coral.
The reefs are left dead and white – with recovery taking many years.
This could have been a disaster for a diver’s paradise such as Mabul.
Along came the self-styled “Mabul COTS-busters” Mabul Paradise, Scuba Junkie, Seahorse Sipadan Scuba, SMART, Seaventures, Borneo Divers and Uncle Chang’s, – as well as Reef Check Malaysia and Scuba Junkie SEAS – to tackle the problem.
“It was incredible to see everyone mobilise to save their reefs so quickly,” said Norahsmah Jaafar, Director of Kolej Komuniti, Semporna.
“Once the problem was highlighted, the district officer took quick measures to facilitate the project – and all the dive operators got stuck in immediately to remove the COTS. There were three boats and 20 divers in the water each day, dedicated to lifting the COTS off the reef. It was such an amazing team effort. The dive operators on Mabul should be proud of their dedication to protecting their marine environment,” she added.
Lifting the COTS off the coral posed a problem in itself – as they are covered in sharp spines, which are venomous and can cause painful reactions. All the participants wore thick gloves and handled the COTS using tongs.
The COTS were then transferred back to Semporna to be buried on the mainland, as the sheer numbers involved would have precluded this being possible on Mabul.
“We offer our thanks to the staff of MDS for their hard work each evening in disposing of the COTS – which was no easy task, especially on the first day when we collected over 1,300 individuals.” said Pete Hamerton, Dive Team Supervisor of Seaventures Dive Rig.
“They waited each day to receive the COTS and bury them – often working after dark.”
Conservation Manager for Scuba Junkie SEAS, David McCann added, “This is the first time we have had such an outbreak on Mabul, and seeing corals already killed by the COTS was devastating. However, it was incredible to see how everyone worked together to overcome the problem and stop it in its tracks.” David Shaw, Director Mabul Paradise agreed, “It is fortunate that there was such a speedy response to the threat, as given the numbers present the damage could have been much worse. Even so, parts of the reef are covered in white feeding scars from the COTS, but we hope they will recover soon.”
He continued, “It made perfect sense for us all to work together. Apart from a shared love of the marine environment, all our businesses depend on a healthy reef – we have a responsibility for marine conservation. We will continue to work together to achieve this aim.”
“Doreen Dominic Munting from Sabah Tourism Board stated, “It is good to know that responses such as these are possible, that different stakeholders can join together so quickly to mitigate against threats to the marine environment. I am thankful – and look forward to more joint efforts like this in the future.”