Great Barrier Reef - Ribbon No. 5 Reef

Located on the edge of the continental shelf, between Cooktown and Lizard Island, are a chain of ten individual reefs, referred to as Ribbon Reefs. They don't have fancy names; they are simply numbered from one to ten. The reefs are long and narrow, no wider than 1480ft (450m), separated by sandy gullies. The depths range from 16-98ft (5-30m), except on the side facing the Coral Sea trench, where they drop up to 3300ft (1000m), making for some exciting wall diving.

Several dive sites can be found along this 62-mile (100-km) stretch of ribbon reef, each offering its own unique experience. For instance, Reef No. 3 is known for Steve's Bommie, a submerged coral column towering over the reef platform. Reef stonefish are sometimes camouflaged between the corals. Fatal to humans, they are dangerous animals not to be trifled with.

Another fabulous bommie is at Reef No. 10, called the Lighthouse because it resembles one. Sea turtles use the bommie as a cleaning station, and schools of yellow-lined snappers and barracuda swim in abundance. Lionfish, olive sea snakes, and butterfly fish may make an appearance. Just keep a wide berth from the cool-looking but venomous lionfish, as they cause significant pain to humans.

Between Reef No. 4 & 5 are the Clam Gardens, home to giant clams. These massive two-part shell mollusks with a wavy colourful opening can live up to a hundred years and weigh as much as 440lb (200kg).

I chose to explore the north part of Reef No. 5 where visibility was clear and the coral colourful. Cruising by was a group of bumphead parrotfish. These odd-looking fish have a huge bump on their forehead and a beak-like mouth. They love eating algae which they source by biting chunks of coral. When the crushed coral digests, it gets excreted as sand. One parrotfish can produce up to 200lbs (90kg) of sand per year. Since they travel in large numbers chomping on coral all day long, imagine how much sand they make.

Can you spot the school of bumphead parrotfish or the black surgeonfish? Closer to the surface and harder to find are a handful of blackback and saddle butterflyfish.



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