Atoll pass/PelagicMarine Protected Area

Fakarava (Shark Wall)

Depth: 10–35 mLevel: Advanced Open WaterAll year round

The second largest atoll in French Polynesia, with an enormous lagoon and only two passes connecting it to the ocean: Garuae to the north, the widest navigable channel in Polynesia at some 1,600 m, and Tumakohua to the south, barely a hundred metres across. It is in that southern pass that the "shark wall" forms: hundreds of grey reef sharks resting in formation through the day as the current floods in.

Depth

10–35 m

Recommended level

Advanced Open Water

Average visibility

30 m

A UNESCO Biosphere Reserve with the shark wall of the southern pass, one of the largest grey reef shark aggregations in the world.

Protection status

Biosphere Reserve; sharks have been protected throughout French Polynesia since 2006

UNESCO designation

UNESCO Biosphere Reserve (a group of seven atolls in the Tuamotus, declared in 1977 and extended in 2006)

Did you know?

The abundance of fish in the lagoon, boosted by periodic spawning aggregations, is thought to be the reason for this unusual concentration of grey reef sharks. The pack's night-time hunting behaviour was documented in the work of the biologist and photographer Laurent Ballesta, which gave rise to the documentary "700 Sharks" (2018).

Sources consulted: Tahiti Tourisme · Bluewater Dive Travel · ZuBlu Diving · National Geographic · TOPDIVE

Location

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