Sailing out to the Poor Knights Marine Reserve on a beautiful sunny day.
We all wonder about what lies in the depths of the ocean. What creatures live in the darkness below. Lower than below.
We were sailing out to the Poor Knights marine reserve. The water was calm and the breese was light. The stretch of water from Tutukaka to the reserve is full of life, it is not always obvious what is swimming around with you but trust me there is always something if you keep your eyes open. Everyone hopes for dolphins and if I am feeling brave I hope for a shark.
With the stretch of water almost all behind us we spy a strange fin. No wait, strange fins. There are two fins about 100 meters apart from each other. The fins move slowly unlike any ocean creature I have seen before.
“Get in the water. Go check it out.”
Already wearing my bikini, my fins and snorkel are pulled out and put on, then I am in. The ocean is nothing but a clear pool of blue leading down into black. I began swimming as fast as I can towards one of the fins and there it is, the SunFish. The largest bony fish in the world.The average length of the Sunfish is around 1.8m and the one that we see appears to be around 2m.
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For a fish with a reputation for being slow he is keeping me kicking full speed. Like a big pancake in the water the sunfish has to turn its whole body to see me swimming behind him.
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My attraction to the fish is not only its size but the depth at which it lives. The sunfish hunts at around 200m underwater but can go as deep as 600m. I stop swimming and watch the strange creature head back down to the mysterious depths of the ocean.
Amazing sea life live all around us you just need to get in the water and begin your journey.
- Camille