‘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.
The clear water of Emily Bay lagoon on Norfolk Island
What has taken me down the path from a day job as a writer, editor and communicator to creating a website about Norfolk Island’s coral reef habitat? The story of how and why norfolkislandreef.com.au came into being.
Read MoreA platygyra that has dramatically asserted its own space
How do corals assert their space on the reef? Who are the best gardners and protective parents? And have you heard of white syndrome? Sadly we have it on Norfolk Island’s reef. Read more here.
Read MoreGreen sea turtle
This week in Out on a Swim I quickly sum up the problems around the use of unsafe sunscreens that contain chemicals such as oxybenzone. These can cause ecological ruination to coral reefs and to the fish that call these reefs home. Read more here.
Read MoreSpotted porcupinefish, Diodon hystrix
Over the years, the raft has provided shelter beneath its timbers for a thriving fish nursery. Beneath the raft was an amazing sight, teeming with fry. Last year we got a brand new raft made to a different design to the one we had before; now it sports flotation tanks beneath it. Since then, for whatever reason, the fish simply have not used the raft that much as a nursery.
Read MoreSlaughter Bay from Point Hunter, Lone Pine, low tide 27 June 2021
There’s been plenty going on under the waves here on Norfolk island, while above the waves we’ve just had the most fabulous mid-winter weather. With a full moon on 24 June, we experienced some wonderful low, low tides. Did you know that peak low tides always lag the full moon (and new moon) by a day or so?
Read MoreCemetery Bay, Norfolk Island
This week in the Norfolk Island lagoons saw some old friends return and some new (to me) visitors that appeared in Emily Bay for the first time. I also paid a visit to the more exposed Cemetery Bay for the first time since the storms went through.
Read MoreThe first time I saw these glitzy glamour bubbles I had no idea what I was looking at, so I took a photo and went home to do some digging. A little research uncovered a really cool organism. Commonly known as a dead sailor’s eyeballs, or bubble algae, they shine like small mirrors, catching the light. But the BEST bit about these bubbles is that they are one of the largest single-celled organisms in the world.
Read MoreNotch-head marblefish
Underwater, feather caulerpa, Caulerpa taxifolia, looks like a gorgeous, lush, green meadow.
Read MoreHealthy corals, Emily Bay, Norfolk Island
Today is Bounty Day here on Norfolk Island. It’s a day of celebration for Norfolk Islanders of Pitcairn descent – the day when, in 1856, their forbears first arrived on the island. Sadly, in the water, we have had some parts of the reef destroyed by huge surf. On the upside, the circle of life continues with some great observations, including large numbers of surge wrasse, Thalassoma purpureum, and much more.
Read MoreIs this coral endemic to Norfolk Island?
Today is the first day of winter with cool winds blowing straight up from Antarctica. Many readers will laugh, but for a sub-tropical island, we are really feeling the wind chill at the moment. However, as always, I have some exciting observations to recount.
Read MoreElegant wrasse - Anampses elegans (terminal phase, male)
Emily Bay, Norfolk Island
Like many places around the globe, Norfolk Island has its issues with getting rid of waste. Even so, Norfolk Island is one of the cleanest places I’ve seen; however, we know we can’t be complacent. So, back in February 2021, it was gut-wrenching to see a couple of sand mullet – Myxus elongatus – wearing plastic collars – those rings found on plastic juice and milk bottles. Sometimes these rings escape into the wild, and this is the sad consequence.
Read MoreBlue drummer - Girella cyanea
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!
Read MoreParrotfish swim using their pectoral fins
Parrotfish eat algae and coral polyps, and to get at these they chow down on the hard coral skeletons. More teeth in their throat (plates known as a pharyngeal mill) grind the coral into a paste so they can extract the nutritious coral polyps and algae. What comes out the other end is beautiful white sand. A lot of it!
Read MoreWhat a cool name for a fish, the piano fangblenny! It is more properly known as Plagiotremus tapeinosoma. Many snorkellers will know them first by their little nip as they hit and run! Once you’ve seen them and experienced them that first time, you know to shoo them away to avoid another nibble!
Read MoreOne of the many characterful fish in the Emily and Slaughter Bay environs on Norfolk Island are the bluespine unicornfish, more properly known as Naso unicornis. These guys love to pose for the camera, showing off their best side, and then shifting so you can get a shot of the other.
Read MoreLove these doubleheader wrasse, Coris bulbifrons. Beautiful deep smoky blue with a big bulge on their forehead, they will quite often just casually cruise on past. Like many wrasse, they change sex, colour and appearance quite radically as they age and grow.
Read MoreHow special to see this. Normally shy and a little timid, these little leatherjackets were quite happy concentrating on each other as I watched them courting.
Read MoreThis little eastern footballer or mado has suddenly started hanging with a family of stripeys that I've been watching. But it always keeps slightly apart, aloof, even. In fact, sometimes it almost seems like it is herding them - and giving lectures! This guy definitely has attitude!
Read MoreMarbled parrotfish - Leptoscarus vaigiensis
The marbled parrotfish (Leptoscarus vaigiensis) likes to camouflage itself, disappearing into the seagrass and algae on which it feeds.
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