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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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    • Kingston, Norfolk Island
    • Underwater
    • Reef Fish
    • Sharks
    • Eels
    • Corals
    • Sea Anemones
    • Nudibranchs, Sea Slugs and Flatworms
    • Octopuses
    • Sea Urchins and Sea Cucumbers
    • Sea Stars
    • Turtles
    • Everything Else
    • Videos
    • Out On A Swim Index
  • 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 blog is rated in the Top 20 Coral Reef Blogs in the world.

Blue drummer - Girella cyanea

Here's looking at you!

April 27, 2021

I thought I’d have a bit of fun and post some of my favourite images of fish as they look at me head on. It’s such a beautiful perspective, and one that often makes you wonder what they are thinking. Enjoy!

View fullsize Multispine damselfish - Neoglyphidodon polyacanthus
Multispine damselfish - Neoglyphidodon polyacanthus
View fullsize Bluespine unicornfish - Naso unicornis
Bluespine unicornfish - Naso unicornis
View fullsize Pacific rockcod - Trachypoma macracanthus
Pacific rockcod - Trachypoma macracanthus
View fullsize Blacktip morwong - Cheilodactylus francisi
Blacktip morwong - Cheilodactylus francisi
View fullsize Three-striped butterflyfish - Chaetodon tricinctus
Three-striped butterflyfish - Chaetodon tricinctus
View fullsize Masked bannerfish - Heniochus monoceros
Masked bannerfish - Heniochus monoceros
View fullsize Multispine damselfish - Neoglyphidodon polyacanthus
Multispine damselfish - Neoglyphidodon polyacanthus
View fullsize Spotted porcupinefish - Diodon hystrix
Spotted porcupinefish - Diodon hystrix
View fullsize Three-striped butterflyfish - Chaetodon tricinctus
Three-striped butterflyfish - Chaetodon tricinctus
View fullsize Bluespine unicornfish - Naso unicornis
Bluespine unicornfish - Naso unicornis
View fullsize Halfmoon grouper - Epinephelus rivulatus
Halfmoon grouper - Epinephelus rivulatus
View fullsize Banded scalyfin - Parma polylepis
Banded scalyfin - Parma polylepis
View fullsize Dick's damsel - Plectroglyphidodon dickii
Dick's damsel - Plectroglyphidodon dickii
View fullsize Snubnose dart - Trachinotus blochii
Snubnose dart - Trachinotus blochii
View fullsize Vagabond butterflyfish - Chaetodon vagabundus
Vagabond butterflyfish - Chaetodon vagabundus
View fullsize Banded scalyfin - Parma polylepis
Banded scalyfin - Parma polylepis
View fullsize Sixbar wrasse - Thalassoma hardwicke
Sixbar wrasse - Thalassoma hardwicke
View fullsize Multispine damselfish - Neoglyphidodon polyacanthus
Multispine damselfish - Neoglyphidodon polyacanthus
View fullsize Three-striped butterflyfish - Chaetodon tricinctus
Three-striped butterflyfish - Chaetodon tricinctus
View fullsize Brassy drummer - Kyphosus vaigiensis
Brassy drummer - Kyphosus vaigiensis
View fullsize Banded scalyfin - Parma polylepis
Banded scalyfin - Parma polylepis
View fullsize Blue drummer - Girella cyanea
Blue drummer - Girella cyanea
View fullsize Pacific rockcod - Trachypoma macracanthus
Pacific rockcod - Trachypoma macracanthus
View fullsize Multispine damselfish - Neoglyphidodon polyacanthus
Multispine damselfish - Neoglyphidodon polyacanthus
View fullsize Three-striped butterflyfish - Chaetodon tricinctus
Three-striped butterflyfish - Chaetodon tricinctus
View fullsize Black butterflyfish - Chaetodon flavirostris
Black butterflyfish - Chaetodon flavirostris
View fullsize Painted morwong - Cheilodactylus ephippium
Painted morwong - Cheilodactylus ephippium
View fullsize Norfolk cardinalfish - Ostorhinchus norfolcensis
Norfolk cardinalfish - Ostorhinchus norfolcensis
View fullsize Redcap triplefin - Enneapterygius rufopileus
Redcap triplefin - Enneapterygius rufopileus
View fullsize Pinstriped butterflyfish - Chaetodon lunulatus
Pinstriped butterflyfish - Chaetodon lunulatus
View fullsize Clouded saury - Saurida nebulosa
Clouded saury - Saurida nebulosa
View fullsize Notch-head marblefish - Aplodactylus etheridgii
Notch-head marblefish - Aplodactylus etheridgii
View fullsize Surge wrasse - Thalassoma purpureum
Surge wrasse - Thalassoma purpureum
View fullsize Multispine damselfish - Neoglyphidodon polyacanthus
Multispine damselfish - Neoglyphidodon polyacanthus
View fullsize Multispine damselfish - Neoglyphidodon polyacanthus
Multispine damselfish - Neoglyphidodon polyacanthus
View fullsize Bluespot butterflyfish - Chaetodon plebeius
Bluespot butterflyfish - Chaetodon plebeius
View fullsize Bluebarred parrotfish - Scarus ghobban
Bluebarred parrotfish - Scarus ghobban
View fullsize Blackback butterflyfish - Chaetodon melannotus
Blackback butterflyfish - Chaetodon melannotus
View fullsize Trevally - Pseudocaranx sp "dentex"
Trevally - Pseudocaranx sp "dentex"
View fullsize Convict surgeonfish - Acanthurus triostegus
Convict surgeonfish - Acanthurus triostegus
View fullsize Bluespot butterflyfish - Chaetodon plebeius
Bluespot butterflyfish - Chaetodon plebeius
View fullsize Bluebarred parrotfish - Scarus ghobban
Bluebarred parrotfish - Scarus ghobban
View fullsize Inscribed wrasse - Notolabrus inscriptus
Inscribed wrasse - Notolabrus inscriptus
View fullsize Green moon wrasse - Thalassoma lutescens
Green moon wrasse - Thalassoma lutescens
View fullsize Threadfin butterflyfish - Chaetodon auriga
Threadfin butterflyfish - Chaetodon auriga
View fullsize Blackback butterflyfish - Chaetodon melannotus
Blackback butterflyfish - Chaetodon melannotus
View fullsize Brassy drummer - Kyphosus vaigiensis
Brassy drummer - Kyphosus vaigiensis
View fullsize Snubnose dart - Trachinotus blochii
Snubnose dart - Trachinotus blochii
View fullsize Bluespine unicornfish - Naso unicornis
Bluespine unicornfish - Naso unicornis
View fullsize Three-striped butterflyfish - Chaetodon tricinctus
Three-striped butterflyfish - Chaetodon tricinctus
View fullsize Dick's damsel - Plectroglyphidodon dickii
Dick's damsel - Plectroglyphidodon dickii
View fullsize Wartylip mullet - Crenimugil crenilabis
Wartylip mullet - Crenimugil crenilabis
View fullsize Spotted sawtail - Prionurus maculatus
Spotted sawtail - Prionurus maculatus
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Featured
The Governance–Government Vacuum: Norfolk Island’s Forgotten Ecology
Apr 29, 2025
The Governance–Government Vacuum: Norfolk Island’s Forgotten Ecology
Apr 29, 2025

A personal reflection on Norfolk Island’s coral reef environment, political denial, and what John Wyndham’s The Kraken Wakes can still teach us about slow-moving disasters — and why this election matters more than ever.

Apr 29, 2025
Cute as buttons – Astrea curta
Feb 20, 2025
Cute as buttons – Astrea curta
Feb 20, 2025

Astrea curta corals are ‘small, moderately plocoid [flattened], distinct, and almost circular’ . Normally grey-green in colour, you can see from the images here, ours are often beautiful rich gold, although they do vary. They have a neat growth habit and button-like corallites, which can grow in columns, spherically or flattened. Large colonies of these can form gorgeous undulating bumps.

Feb 20, 2025
From 'Watch' to 'Warning'
Jan 26, 2025
From 'Watch' to 'Warning'
Jan 26, 2025

Last week, the chance of coral bleaching in Norfolk Island’s inshore lagoons was raised from ‘Watch’ to ‘Warning’ and will more than likely rise to Alert levels one and two in coming weeks. So why do I worry about water quality all the time when bleaching seems inevitable these days and so the reef is probably doomed anyway? Read on to find out.

Jan 26, 2025
From little things – watching them grow
Jan 4, 2025
From little things – watching them grow
Jan 4, 2025

Small numbers of different fish species is not an unusual phenomenon on Norfolk Island’s reef, but it does demonstrate what a tiny, precious, coral reef ecosystem we have, when we can count individuals on one hand and watch each of them grow, like these little blackeye thicklips, a member of the wrasse family.

Jan 4, 2025
A year in review – 2024 on Norfolk Island’s Reef
Dec 27, 2024
A year in review – 2024 on Norfolk Island’s Reef
Dec 27, 2024

It is five years since I began wielding a camera underwater in Norfolk Island’s lagoons and my third ‘year in review’ for this ‘Out on a swim’ blog. And what a journey it has been. At least this year I have some great news to report, but – a bit like a curate’s egg (partly bad and partly good) – there are also some downers. Find out what 2024 has meant for Norfolk Island’s reef.

Dec 27, 2024
A smooth and slippery echidna
Dec 10, 2024
A smooth and slippery echidna
Dec 10, 2024

How did the snowflake moray get its proper (scientific) name Echidna nebulosa, and what does it have to do with Australia’s famous and iconic marsupial, the echidna? Read on to find out more …

Dec 10, 2024
Feisty zingers! Focus on the 'brain' coral, Paragoniastrea spp.
Dec 1, 2024
Feisty zingers! Focus on the 'brain' coral, Paragoniastrea spp.
Dec 1, 2024

If corals had characters, then the Paragoniastrea spp. would be described as feisty, or even downright aggressive when it comes to asserting itself over its neighbours. They are also rather colourful.

Dec 1, 2024
Then and now – shifting baseline syndrome laid bare
Nov 20, 2024
Then and now – shifting baseline syndrome laid bare
Nov 20, 2024

If disease were spreading through our native forests, if our trees were developing strange growths that hollowed them out, making them brittle in the face of each passing storm, would five years have slid by with the problem worsening by the day? That is exactly what is happening on Norfolk Island’s reef. Slowly, insidiously, it is dying and turning to slime.

Nov 20, 2024
Gorgeous, boring and brown!
Oct 20, 2024
Gorgeous, boring and brown!
Oct 20, 2024

Gorgeous, boring brown, Montipora corals! These beautiful coral colonies (and remember, these consist of loads of tiny little animals, which work together to create these amazing shapes) are one of our key reef-building corals. There are around 85 known species belonging to the Montipora genus.

Oct 20, 2024
Taking stock. Which way from here?
Oct 14, 2024
Taking stock. Which way from here?
Oct 14, 2024

CSIRO are on Norfolk Island this week to present the findings of their report into water quality. As our Administrator, George Plant, says: ‘What the data shows us is that the quality of ground and surface water entering Emily and Slaughter Bays often contains high levels of contamination ... The health of the Emily and Slaughter Bay reef will continue to decline if we do not improve water quality.’

Oct 14, 2024

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