The Heart of the Coral Triangle: Forgotten Islands | Into The Blue | FD Ocean

It is a real privilege to take a peek at one of the most beautiful places on Earth, the so-called Coral Triangle, a paradise overflowing with coral reefs and considered the area with the greatest marine biodiversity in the world. Like a heart for our planet, its mission is to pump oxygen continuously through the enormous fields of coral that grow in its depths. The currents transfer this oxygen to the oceans, generating life. This area provides a home and protection for more than 2000 species of fish and animals of all kinds. 75% of all our planet's coral lives here. In this series we have filmed over 300 hours of underwater images, two years of diving, having the chance to see up close the uniqueness of all its inhabitants and the beauty of its surroundings. Sadly, it is in serious danger of extinction. The Coral Triangle occupies an area of 6 million square kilometers. It covers 18,000 islands, in an area where the seas of Southeast Asia and Oceania meet. In the center of the Coral Triangle are the Forgotten Islands, the most unspoiled reefs in Indonesia. They are, moreover, one of the last marine paradises on Earth. The waters of the Forgotten Islands belong to the Banda Sea, overwhelmingly rich in marine Thanks to the currents arriving from Australia. These islands are particularly suitable for seeing and observing how all the elements in the undersea world food chain relate to each other. Evening is beginning to fall. Life on the reef becomes active. For everyone, it is time to find food. Some in groups, others more anarchic, and the occasional solitary broad club cuttlefish. It is not strange to suddenly come across a broad club cuttlefish that changes appearance at will so as not to be seen. Its chromatophores, cells which control the dark pigments of its ink, allow it to take on the appearance of whatever is nearby in a constantly surprising display of mimicry. This adorable pygmy squid is tiny, barely two centimeters long, and clings onto the coral to withstand the strong currents of the Banda Sea. The details of its morphology are interesting to see. Its fin, its eye socket, its tentacles, An elegant male broad club cuttlefish shows us its camouflage skills. Thanks to their complex anatomy, cuttlefish can swim in different ways and positions, rippling their lateral fins. And this also forms part of its mating display for the female, in this case a golden cuttlefish, recognizable from its blue line. The ceremony will have to wait. Another suitor has arrived on the scene. A violent struggle between cuttlefishes is about to begin. Everything ends with a romantic moment of sperm exchange. This will be the only time because males can only inseminate once. This place is the most beautiful expression of life. Wherever you look, the reef is teeming with living creatures. Every nook and cranny is a spectacle of growth and the female broad club cuttlefish is going to make her contribution to this cycle of life. A few weeks of gestation and thousands of eggs The legs are about to become tiny cuttlefish. She looks for the best place amongst the coral to lay her eggs. Out of the way cavities where they can hatch and nobody can find them. She seems to meditate before spawning, but fate is already mapped out. She expels them all in one go. Tens of thousands of eggs. A new generation of broad club cuttlefish is getting ready to be born. And for her, this will be her final gesture. Shortly afterwards, she will die. This is the cycle of life on the reef. While the broad club cuttlefish is dying, this extraordinary shoal of young convict blennies decides to dance in a group as if they were one. This is something tremendously difficult to see, but stunning. Amongst so many thousands of small fish, who decides on the fanciful and rapidly changing shapes they create in unison? These minute young fish confuse their predators by trying to look like a giant body. Only like this, together, can they survive. an aesthetic marvel gifted to us by nature marvels of nature like this flower soft coral a species of soft coral immersed in the process of capturing food quite rare to see also difficult to find is this zebra anemone with its tentacles in action anemones are an essential animal on the reef although they might look like plants in etymological terms they are flower animals polyps which capture living creatures and digest them like any other animal The Forgotten Islands are home to what is considered to be the world's largest expanse of this type of living creatures. There are so many of them that this area has been dubbed Anemone City or Anemone Valley. These creatures have a close relationship with a variety of species. Clownfish are the most obvious, constantly flitting around between tentacles. But porcelain crabs, and also shrimps, are part of this select team, which is immune immune to the paralyzing venom. In these mutualistic relationships, everyone benefits. They feed on the scraps and keep the anemones' tentacles clean. For these species, this is a safe home for them and their eggs. Anyone entering will have to deal with the anemones' venom. Although at first sight, it looks like a fantastic amusement park where you can enter and leave. Anyone else dare to try it? This natural paradise called the Forgotten Islands could not remain forgotten forever. Today it has become a destination for divers attracted by the wealth of underwater life. seabed, and that of the Coral Triangle in general, is formed of mangroves and seagrass. According to recent studies, these marvelous areas of seagrass have suffered 90% deterioration and damage in recent years. What's more, the rate of deterioration is increasing at great speed because of the presence of man and climate change. These underwater meadows are the habitat providing food and shelter for the animals of the area. Without them, the richness of the reef will be lost, and along with it, all the creatures that form part of it. Thousands and thousands of living creatures. But the enemy is not always an outsider. Some predators, like this extremely poisonous banded sea snake, also live on the reef, fast, agile, with twisting and turning movements. It prowls in search of food. It slides into gaps in the coral walls in search of eggs and small crustaceans. Some of them can be as long as three and a half meters. Contrary to popular belief, this snake can dislocate its jaw to swallow large items of prey the size of a moray eel or similar. In the depths of the Forgotten Islands, close to the reefs of Manuk Island, we also come across a formidable China sea snake. This species has to surface at least once every six hours to absorb oxygen through its skin. When hunting, it takes advantage of the work of other fish and lies in wait, paralyzing its prey with a venom ten times more lethal than that of a common cobra. In this area, these reptiles are in abundant supply. The way they move sends shivers down your spine. Sometimes, they hunt in packs, coming face to face with several of these snakes. causes panic amongst the reef's inhabitants snakes are not the only creatures that inspire fear here the outline of a black tip reef shark can be seen in the distance less common is this sighting of a pair of silver tip sharks fortunately these are protected species and suddenly we can see one of the most surprising phenomena on the reef barrel sponges spawning just like chimneys or volcanoes about to erupt These male sponges eject their gaseous sperm. Later, the females will eject their eggs. These primitive creatures, the protagonists of a moon-like spectacle, are the creators of the procreation system that the rest of us animals use. When we see this, the world seems to be suspended in a ceremony of potions, magic, and mystery. Sponges are also responsible for recycling organic matter and converting the remains of algae into nutrients. This important job makes the conservation of the reefs a more autonomous task. Meanwhile, amidst the invertebrates and shoals of fish, a large creature emerges from the murky depths. It looks like a monster from the deep, with a dolphin's tail. Possible evolution of the species? Murky water is no help in identifying the animal, or its intentions. This is one of the friendliest species we can find on the reef. It is a dugong. Generally, the dugong is a peaceful However, in the mating season, any presence is an adventure for the dugong to explore. This makes it a very affectionate animal, sometimes too affectionate. The dugong likes to get up close and personal, all 200 kilos of it. Maybe this is love at first sight? But fortunately, it doesn't last forever. Finally, the dugong swims off, happy to have met someone different. Historically, the Forgotten Islands have had little contact with the rest of Indonesia, Hence their name. Thanks to this, their coral walls and turquoise waters have remained intact. Reefs act as a barrier to protect the mangroves and seagrass from the swell. In turn, the vegetation protects the reef against sediment, creating the ideal environment for species to reproduce. And this is fundamental for an ecosystem that has functioned perfectly for centuries. Even the dangerous yellowtail barracudas are capable of amazing choreographed routines to thank us for sending the message to care for our seas and oceans. Dozens. And then hundreds of barracudas heed the call. Although it doesn't appear so, barracudas are tremendously solitary. Who would believe it, seeing this explosion of togetherness? They allow us to travel with them in a stunning trip through the coral blue. And this is their gift to us. Is there anything more beautiful and comforting than being part of this spectacle? This group of yellowtail snappers has witnessed this spectacle in amazement. But they immediately return to their normality. Life never stops in the Coral Triangle. Every day is an adventure, something new, a discovery. Look in these coral depths is a constant surprise. Because of the variety, the colors, the unique shapes. A seemingly endless paradise, even in the narrowest of settings. And so we venture into an underwater gallery. Only here can we find these creatures of the dark. Rhinopias, or scorpionfish. This one here is a marvelous specimen, a purple scorpionfish. It can change its skin color to rid itself of parasites, and also for camouflage. They look like creatures from another time, unevolved species. They are as strange as they are dangerous. Measure up to 23 centimeters, and all of them have the same morphology, covered in spines, which make them highly dangerous for predators. There are several subspecies in the Coral Triangle, and the odd species found exclusively in Papua New Guinea and Australia. The seabed is their natural habitat, as we can see. This fish is going to show us how we can hide, and this one shows us his ability to change colour. Although it's so many spines, perhaps camouflage is not necessary. The Coral Triangle is home to over 2,000 of the listed 6,000 species of coral reef fish. As we have seen, some of them hide, but some others cannot because of their striking colors. Striped snappers prefer to move in community, standing out from the blue of the sea. They gather in numbers for safety. Although their natural environment is the coral reef, they are classified as an invasive species, and therefore have an odd history, far from here. In the middle of the 20th century, on the advice of biologists, The Hawaiian authorities brought in a colony of these carnivorous blue-striped snappers to diversify the, until then, herbivorous marine fauna. The goal was to increase the capacity of the local fishing industry. However, what actually happened was that the snapper thrived, engulfing other smaller native species. This animal, which might be mistaken for part of the vegetation, belongs to the family of nudibranchs. Nudibranchs are mollusks, but they lost their shells many years ago, hence their name, which means naked gills. One of the best known species is the Spanish dancer. Recognized by its color, but also because it is the only one that can measure up to 45 centimeters, whereas the majority of nudibranchs measure little more than 2 centimeters. It lives by night and feeds on sponges. This other nudibranch is also spectacular, and even more so at night. It is called the solar-powered nudibranch because it absorbs sunlight for its photosynthesis. What we are seeing makes us wonder whether it is able to generate its own light. It certainly looks like it. This seascape is home to more than 3,000 different species of nudibranchs. We will meet some of them in later episodes, but what follows is one of the most curious images we will come across. As though they were hanging from invisible threads, a group of razorfish appears to be carried along by the current. These fish usually move around in groups. Each of them is 15 centimeters long, and one of their characteristics is swimming vertically upside down. They feed on small crustaceans in shallow waters. Although they have also been seen at depths of more than 300 meters, undoubtedly one of the most curious images we can see on this surprising reef in the Forgotten Islands. Beauty of these islands is the final chord in this marvelous symphony. A symphony that has left us with notes as unforgettable as the choreography of the young convict Blenny's. The symbiosis of some species with the anemones. in the so-called anemone valley. Two aggressive cuttlefish fighting over a female, some very special nudibranchs, as well as the barracuda ballet company. We have seen huge and dangerous snakes. Magical moment when sponges erupt in procreation. The creatures that appear to come from another time. A day begins for everyone in the forgotten islands. A place that has revealed some of its enormous biodiversity so that we can see how we need to look after them. One more marvel of the Coral Triangle.