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Norfolk Island's Reef

Discover a fragile paradise – Norfolk Island's beaches, lagoons and coral reef
  • Home
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    • Algae
    • Corals
    • Everything Else
    • Eels
    • Kingston, Norfolk Island
    • Nudibranchs, Sea Slugs and Flatworms
    • Octopuses
    • Out On A Swim Index
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    • Sea Anemones
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  • Out on a swim - blog
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Out on A Swim

‘Out on a swim’ is a coral reef blog that tells the stories of the characters who live under the waves and what has caught my eye when ‘out on a swim’ in the lagoons of Norfolk Island. It is also a record of the difficulties Norfolk Island’s reef faces, like many others around the world, as a result of the poor water quality that has been allowed to flow onto it.

This page shows the most recent blog posts. For the complete catalogue, visit the ‘Out on a swim index’ page.

This blog is rated in the Top 20 Coral Reef Blogs in the world.

Acropora corals, Norfolk Island’s reef

Brown? Yes. Boring? Definitely not!

October 11, 2023

Norfolk Island’s reef is one of Australia’s most southerly. It isn’t showy like the Great Barrier Reef, and I often hear the comment that it is a little dowdy – boring and brown.

I’m here to tell you that it is anything but.

For this little photo essay I randomly selected just a handful of my many ‘boring, brown’ coral images to demonstrate my point. I barely scratched the surface of my photo library, yet I think you will agree, the diversity is just amazing!

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In Corals Tags corals, Norfolk Island, coral reef, Great Barrier Reef, Coral, biodiversity
← Do sea anemones hold the key to immortality?Atlas of Living Australia recognises iNaturalist observations for Norfolk Island →
Featured
Celebrating Biodiversity Month on Norfolk Island
Sep 7, 2025
Celebrating Biodiversity Month on Norfolk Island
Sep 7, 2025

September is Biodiversity Month – the perfect time to celebrate the astonishing variety of life on Norfolk Island’s reef. From new fish sightings to coral mosaics, every observation is a reminder of how much there is still to learn and protect.

Read more about why biodiversity matters, globally and right here in our lagoon.

Sep 7, 2025
The fate of a coral colony when it succumbs to white syndrome – four years on
Aug 24, 2025
The fate of a coral colony when it succumbs to white syndrome – four years on
Aug 24, 2025

I’ve tracked one plating Acropora coral from 2021 to 2025. In just a few weeks, white syndrome wiped it out. Nearly four years years on, it’s still smothered in algae and sea squirts, with only the tiniest hint of new growth. It’s a stark reminder: without tackling the root cause, we’re just watching the same sad story repeat itself.

Aug 24, 2025
The Candy-Striped Cleaner Keeping the Reef Healthy
Aug 17, 2025
The Candy-Striped Cleaner Keeping the Reef Healthy
Aug 17, 2025

Candy-cane stripes, long white feelers, and a reef spa on offer – the banded coral shrimp waves its antennae to advertise cleaning services to passing fish.

Aug 17, 2025
Biomimicry: How a Boxfish Caught Mercedes Benz’s Eye
Aug 10, 2025
Biomimicry: How a Boxfish Caught Mercedes Benz’s Eye
Aug 10, 2025

Meet Mr Lemonhead – our lagoon’s teeny yellow boxfish with a big design legacy. He inspired a Mercedes Benz concept car, proving how nature is full of surprises. And he shares the lagoon with other critters whose tricks have also shaped real-world inventions.

Aug 10, 2025
Patchwork Corals: How Colonies Fuse to Form Living Mosaics
Aug 3, 2025
Patchwork Corals: How Colonies Fuse to Form Living Mosaics
Aug 3, 2025

Some corals wear more than one colour for a reason. When Paragoniastrea australensis colonies fuse early in life, they form living mosaics. A beautiful reminder of coral cooperation on Norfolk Island’s reef.

Aug 3, 2025
Reef relief
Jul 28, 2025
Reef relief
Jul 28, 2025

Today, 28 July, is World Nature Conservation Day. After the dry 2024, Norfolk Island’s reef is looking healthier – a brief reprieve as less water - laden with nutrients - flowed into the lagoon. These photos show what’s possible. It’s a reminder that recovery is within reach – though renewed runoff could quickly undo the gains.

Jul 28, 2025
Emily Bay's big 'brain' coral
Jul 20, 2025
Emily Bay's big 'brain' coral
Jul 20, 2025

In Emily Bay, Norfolk Island, a single coral bommie – Paragoniastrea australensis – has stood for decades as a micro-reef, harbouring diverse marine life and local memories. Once photographed in 1988 and still thriving today, it remains a keystone of reef biodiversity and a living link between past and present.

Jul 20, 2025
Biodiversity matters
Jul 14, 2025
Biodiversity matters
Jul 14, 2025

Over five and a half years of snorkelling Norfolk’s lagoon, we’ve documented 23 fish species not previously recorded in this area. Some are local ghosts, others climate migrants. These observations help us understand and protect what makes our reef so special.

Jul 14, 2025
Poop power
Jun 17, 2025
Poop power
Jun 17, 2025

Not all poop on a reef is bad poop. In fact some kinds of poop can be a reef’s most important invisible engine. Fish poop, bird poop – even poop that gets eaten again by other fish – all of it keeps the ecosystem ticking over in a way that’s nothing short of extraordinary.

Jun 17, 2025
Glimpses of recovery: what the reef could be if we let it
Jun 13, 2025
Glimpses of recovery: what the reef could be if we let it
Jun 13, 2025

Day 6 of this photo series from Norfolk Island coincides with the final day of the UN Ocean Conference in Nice. After a week of documenting decline, today’s post offers a different view – what reef recovery can look like when conditions improve. Drought in 2024 gave the reef a break, and the results were unmistakable: healthier corals, lower disease, and more fish. This is what’s possible if we act.

Jun 13, 2025

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