Looking for new dive sites can be very rewarding sometimes.

During the week Coco Divers have been making some dives inside Muelle Bay to find some new and exiting dive sites.

You never know what to find on an exploration dive like this, so you better be prepared for everything and have your eyes wide open. And what did they find?

A diamond leatherjacket (Rudarius excelsus) this filefish is only known from northern Australia, Papua New Guinea, Indonesia and the Philippines and if you search for it on the Internet… you can hardly find any pictures of this fish. It only growth to a length of 2.5 cm, so that maybe therefore nobody sees it. But thanks to Darwin’s sharp eyes they saw it.

A diamond leatherjacket.

They also found some pacific clown anemone shrimps (Periclimenes Brevicarpalis) in a small anemone. Its transparent body has several white spots irregularly spread over its carapace and tail, which helps it to blend in with the tentacles of the anemone. Another distinctive marking of its species are the five black-edged orange spots on its back fin. The maximum length of this shrimp is up to 2.5 cm.

A pacific clown anemone shrimp.

Another special thing they found during their dive was a Gymnodoris Aurita. This nudibranch growth up to 9 cm and has for many years only been known from the Philippines but recently discovered in southern Indonesia as well. The strange thing seeing it on their dive is, that it normally only seen at night time while hunting other nudibranchs.

A gymnodoris aurita is easily identified by its bright orange to red body and huge gills.

These were only some few of the special creatures they saw on one dive, so they are sure to find many more exiting things as they are trying to find some new unforgettable dive sites for you.