fringing reefs.
As you can imagine, in this
complicated environment,
there are reefs of all depths, but
to help with the confusion, the
good folk of the Maldives have
decided that reefs that are just
below the surface are called
‘giris’. Some of these are quite
small and are ideal for snorkel-
ling around. You can swim
around the giri and enjoy the
brightly lit shallows and look
out into the blue where shoals
of snappers and jacks are joined
by the occasional Eagle Ray. The
upper areas of giris are often
dead coral, especially in areas
that suff ered from the bleach-
ing event last year, though
some robust and massive corals
Some massive corals, like this Porites are real survivors.
A large Tridacnid clam A typical shallow giri. This one has lots of algal growth and happy Powder Blue
Tangs
A gorgeous shoal of Red tail Butterfl yfi sh shelters amidst the old coral
38 http://www.ultramarinemagazine.co.uk
