There are some corals, that can only be appreciated by certain people. They are not colorful, nor grafted, nor multicolor, nor with long tentacles, nor unique… They are just plain brown, and still, they’re amazing. It often takes the power of mother nature, and the sheer beauty of a fully grown, especially old massive colony of that coral to really grasp the insanity of this coral.
Recently in North Bali, in a recently protected location, exposed to intense currents, we came upon a huge colony of Pavona clavus blooming with life. I wish I could have shared that moment with Jake, as I only know a few people I could have shared my amazement with.
As big as a house!
Sometimes the real beauty of a coral is not in the detail but in the humongous size of its colonies. That particular pinnacle took us a full 60-minute dive to enjoy. The Pavona clavus coral colony that was sitting on top, and that created that particular reef, is probably around 10 m (30′) wide by 30 m long (90′). It’s fascinating to realize diving on this reef, that it is mainly constituted by one single huge organism.
How many hundreds, or thousands of years this thing could be? Pavona clavus is a slow-growing, very dense skeleton and very aggressive coral. So I believe the thousands of years could be the unity in this case. Maybe it was there before any human being walked on Bali Island…
The top of the colony is 8 m (24′) deep, a little bit deep for optimal growth, but perfect for going stealth. That explains why this colony was only known from fishermen, and nor many people knew what coral was laying down there.
A true wonder of nature, that should be highly protected, with a guided tour organized to enjoy this coral masterpiece.
The beauty is also in the detail:
Pavona clavus is a very pretty coral, also if you look into the polyp detail. Pavona polyps have this starry, appearance that is unique and characteristic.
Colonies are very dense and columnar, club-shaped, or very rarely laminar. Columns divide but do not fuse. Corallites have thick walls and are well-defined. Septo-costae are of two very distinct orders. Columellae are short or absent.
A unique shelter for many other marine life!
While this unique coral head has been fished out during the last decades. A village protection started a few years ago, and despite the big predators missing, a lot of fish life has already come back to the spot. Large schools of fusiliers (Caesio teres, C. caerulaureus, Pterocaesio digramma, P. tesselatus, P. tile…) were booming in the deeper part of the reef.
Bali, Bukti, 8 m.
The top Pavona clavus coral head was frenzying with Nemanthias dispar, Odonus niger, Mirolabrichthys tuka and many others.
The colony shape of Pavona clavus offers perfect shelter for many fishes, from the smallest one, to slightly bigger one.
Of course, this coral is not for the common reef aquarist, although in very large tanks it could be interesting. But for the few nerds among us, this is a true beauty!
