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Dive site

Fakarava, French Polynesia

Tumakohua Pass

Typical depth

30m

Type
Shark
Typical depth
30 m
Level
Advanced
Visibility
25–45 m
Water temp
26–29 °C
Current
Strong
Access
Open access
Min cert
Advanced Open Water
  • Pass Drift
  • Wall Of Sharks
  • Spawning Aggregation
  • UNESCO Biosphere
  • Tide-Dependent
  • Strong Current

When to dive

BestAvoidOK

Tumakohua (south) Pass holds a resident wall of ~700 grey reef sharks — the densest known aggregation of the species. Numbers peak Jun–Jul during the marbled grouper spawning aggregation, when sharks gorge on the spawn at the full moons of June and July. South pass protected since 2008; Fakarava part of the UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. Austral winter (Jun–Sep) gives the calmest conditions.

16.5167° S, 145.4667° W

Notes

'Wall of sharks' — hundreds of grey reef sharks.

Marine life

Corals
hard coral pass walls, sea fans
Sharks
grey reef shark (~700 resident wall), blacktip reef shark, whitetip reef shark, occasional silvertip, occasional tiger shark
Turtles
hawksbill, green
Pelagics
giant trevally, dogtooth tuna, barracuda
Reef fish
marbled grouper spawning aggregation (full moons of Jun and Jul), snapper, napoleon wrasse

Dive clubs that visit this site

Sources

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