Bunaken lies in the epicenter of the world’s marine biodiversity, and thus supports an amazing variety of marine animals. The reefs are unspoiled with pristine soft and hard corals, rich fish life and interesting little critters.

At the ocean surface dolphins and pilot whales are frequently seen, and you might occasionally be surprised with sights of migrating humpbacked, killer or sperm whales. Dugongs, or sea cows, are regularly spotted at certain sites.

The Main Land Dive Sites:

House Reef:


10 to 15 meters off-shore, often strong current. Reef top very heterogeneous. Invertebrates: Giant clamp garden, hard and soft coral, gorgonians, ascidians. Fishes: Juvenile Sweet lips, batfish, pipefish, nudibranchs, crustaceans.

Tanjung Pisok:
The profile begins with a gentle slope and then becomes a wall and drops to 20 meters, with soft and whip corals, big fields of acropora and colorful nudibranches. The best place for blue ribbon eels, morays, snappers, groupers, butterfly fishes, triggerfish's, parrotfish's, surgeonfish's, napoleon wrasse, eagle rays.

Molas Shipwreck:
A Dutch cargo ship sank on the 22nd February 1942. The wreck lies on a sandy slope at 35-40 meters and the twin screws of the 60-meter ship are still intact. Surrounded with yellow trumpet fishes, large puffers, angelfishes, butterfly fishes, Moorish idols, sweet lips, snappers, batfishes, scorpion fishes, crocodile fishes, and the white-tip sharks are resting in the wreck. The wreck is very interesting and nice, but because the wreck lies very near by the city of Manado, the visibility sometimes is lousy.

The Mantehage Island:

Barracuda Point:
The reef offers, sponges, whip corals and soft corals. Surgeonfish's, groupers, triggerfish's, parrotfish's, banner fishes, snappers, big swarms of fusiliers, jacks, tunas, bump head parrotfish's, sharks and of course schools of black fin barracudas.

Gorango:
Vertical canyons and many cracks is this wall showing snappers, surgeonfish's, groupers, parrotfish's, napoleon wrasse and sharks.

Bango:
Slopes and then walls. Corals growth very good here, especially soft corals. There are also same caves. Nice and colorful to see, nudibranches, sponges, whip and soft corals and big gorgonians. Scorpion fishes easy to find here. Napoleon wrasse, gray sharks, eagle rays and hammerhead sharks are in common.

The Manado Tua Island:

Negeri:
Many canyons and cracks, also small caves. Very good soft corals. Angelfishes, butterfly fishes, parrotfish's, sea snakes and turtles around.

Muka Gereja:
In front of the church a steep wall with vertical canyons. Corals growth is good and there is a nice cave at 20 meters. Normally, angelfishes, butterfly fishes, parrotfish's, sharks, barracudas and napoleon wrasse can be seeing.

Tanjung Kopi:
"Coffee Cape" is also a wall and offers sweet lips, emperor, parrotfish's, surgeonfish's, rabbit fishes, white-tip sharks, black fin barracudas and napoleon wrasse. Sometimes gray sharks. Characteristics: Coral flat in mild slope to 15-20 m depth, deep vertical wall with caves. Often strong current. Possible downward currents. Invertebrates: black coral, gorgonians, whip corals. Fish: Parrotfish (Scaridae), surgeonfishes (Acanthuridae), rabbitfishes (Siganidae), emperorfishes (Lethrinidae), sweetlips (Plectorhinchus spp.). Possible Encounters: whitetip reef sharks (Triaenodon obesus), large emperors (Lethrinidae), jacks (Caranx ignobilis), dogtooth tunas (Gymnosarda unicolor), large Napoleon wrasses (Cheilinus indulatus), blackfin barracudas (Sphyraena qenie). Occasionally grey sharks (Carcharinus amblyrhynchos), hammerhead sharks (Sphyrna spp.)

Pangulingan:
Good coral formation with sandy slopes and big rocks. Sometimes-strong current also downward. Tunas, surgeonfish's, parrotfish's, jacks, rabbit fishes are normally. Seldom gray sharks and hammerhead sharks.

The Siladen Island:

Beautiful reef top with a huge variety of hard and soft corals feather stars, gorgonians, giant clams are normal here. Many different species of anemone fishes, moray eels, blue ribbon eels, butterfly fishes, angelfishes, groupers, stingrays and turtles. Characteristics: Vertical wall in large steps. Spectacular reef top, with a huge variety of hard and soft corals. Invertebrates: Soft corals, gorgonians, featherstars, giant clams (Tridacna spp.). Fish: Butterflyfishes (Chaetodontidae), groupers (Serranidae), parrotfishes (Scaridae), moray eels (Muraenidae). 6 different species of anemonefish (Amphiprion spp.). Possible Encounters: Turtles (Chelonia midas), stingrays (Taeniura limma).

Siladen Utara:
Characteristics: Reef flat with sand and gravel. A sort of river bed modelled by the currents and the waves, with huge massive corals (Porites). Often strong current. Invertebrates: Gorgonians, whip corals. Mantis shrimps (fam. Squillidae). Fishes: Large groupers (Plectropomus areolatus) and snappers (Lutjanus spp.), wrasses (Labridae), Garden eels (Heteroconger hassi). Possible Encounters: Barracuda (Sphyraena barracuda), large emperors (Lethrinidae).

Bunaken National Marine Park

The Bunaken National Marine Park enclose an area of 75,265 hectares comprising five islands: Bunaken, Manado Tua, Siladen, Mantehage and Nain.

Bunaken National Park has unbelievable variety of marine life and density of the fish and coral population, also the dazzling colors and the sheer coral and drop-off walls, caverns and gullies.

Celah Celah:
In the crook of the reef along the south site, the soft and hard corals growth good, many fishes like butterfly fishes, surgeonfish's, parrotfish's and also Napoleon wrasses.

Likuan I & II:
Many canyons and cracks in the vertical walls. Here your chances are very good to see banner fishes, damselfishes, pyramid butterfly fishes, sea snakes, large emperor fishes, groupers, lionfish's and scorpion fishes, Napoleon wrasse, turtles and sometimes white-tip reef sharks. The reef is filled with feather stars, gorgonians, black corals, giant sponges and ascidians.

Likuan III:
Vertical walls with sandy slopes, many different hard corals. White-tip and black-tip reef sharks, barracudas, turtles and sometimes mantas.

Kampung:
Slope is growth very nice. A lot of soft corals and sea fang, but often very strong current. Characteristics: Vertical wall, with many vertical cracks and canyons. Reef top very heterogeneous. Invertebrates: Giant barrel sponges, black coral, gorgonians, whip corals, ascidians. Fishes: Many huge schools of plankton-feeders: fusiliers (Caesionidae), pyramid butterflyfishes (Hemitaurichthys polylepis), bannerfishes (Heniochus diphreustes), damselfishes (Pomacentridae). Possible Encounters: Turtles (Chelonia midas), seasnakes (Laticauda colubrina), whitetip reef sharks (Triaenodon obesus), large emperors ( Lethrinidae) and jacks (Caranx spp.).

Pangalisan & Bunaken Timur:
Very good reefs. Many hard and soft corals. Fishes like: emperor fishes, parrotfish's, jacks, dogtooth tunas, butterfly fishes, angelfishes, sea snakes, blue-tip stingrays, white-tip reef sharks and sometimes gray sharks and hammerhead sharks.

Sachiko's Point:
Big fishes prowl this steep wall included large tunas, turtles, banner fishes, damselfishes, large angelfishes, sweet lips and large emperors. White and black-tipped sharks resting in caves in the deeper parts.

Mike's Point:
Many large and massive corals, black corals, sponges, big gorgonians and ascidians. Angelfishes, tilefish's, large jacks, eagle rays, white-tip reef sharks and with luck big silvertip sharks.

Raymond's Point:
This wall with good hard, soft and whip corals growth very nice and is a home for many lobsters, angelfishes, butterfly fishes, big emperors, groupers, tunas, red snappers, sea snakes and stingrays. Sometimes the current horizontal and vertical.

Tengah:
With sometimes a strong current, the reef offers yellow tail fusiliers, parrotfish's, batfishes, jacks, and wrasse also white-and black-tip sharks.

Mandolin Point:
In the deeper parts small caves, very beautiful reef top with many different hard and soft corals. Fishes like banner fishes, large angelfishes, fusiliers, damselfishes, butterfly fishes, big sweet lips, groupers, napoleon wrasse, turtles, sea snakes and barracudas.

Alung Banua:
A nice reef top with many completely covered foliose and hard corals, also a very good topography with canyons and many small caves. Fishes like in Fukui Point. Ideal for night dives. Characteristics: Vertical wall, with many cracks and crevices. Some interesting small caves. Reef top very sheltered, many different shapes of hard corals. Good night dive. Invertebrates: Nudibranches, soft corals, sponges, ascidians. Fishes: Mainly reef fishes: anthiases (Pseudanthias spp.), parrotfishes (Scaridae), wrasses (Labridaae), butterflyfishes (Chaetodontidae). Many shrimp gobies (Gobidae). Large school of black snappers (Macolor niger) Possible Encounters: 1 large Napoleon wrasse (Cheilinus undulatus), schools of bumphead parrotfish (Bolbometopon muricatum.

Fukui Point:
Also called "Stingray Point", has a stepped profile, the reef top is at 3 meters and then slopes down with several shorts, but steep, drops. Well know for its rays, turtles, big barracudas, jacks, sweet lips, triggerfish's, black snappers, spadefish's, and napoleon wrasse, also bump head parrotfish's. Characteristics: Slope completely covered with foliose and branching hard corals. Invertebrates: Giant barrel sponges, giant clams (Tridacna gigas) Fishes: Many schooling fishes: spadefishes (Platax spp.), black snappers (Macolor niger), blackfin barracuda (Sphyraena qenie), jacks (Caranx spp.), sweetlips (Plectorhinchus orientalis and P. lineatus). Large triggerfishes (Balistoides viridescens and Pseudobalistes flavimarginatus) and garden eels (Heteroconger hassi). Possible Encounters: Great barracudas (Sphyraena barracuda), eagle rays (Aetobatus narinari), giant sweetlips (Plectorhinchus obscurus), Napoleon wrasses (Cheilinus undulatus), bumphead parrotfishes (Bolbometopon muricatum).