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Megafauna. Indeed, the great pelagic animals are the main diving attractions in French Polynesia. The diving experience through the Passes of a coral atoll driven only by the current that flows through an immense blue channel full of manta rays, dolphins and sharks is just unforgettable.
An atoll is a coral formation that grows during hundreds or thousands of years around a volcanic crater and stands out above the surface of the sea. When the volcano ends it active phase, erosion takes its toll through the years and as a result of the constant movements of the earth, the volcano ends up sinking slowly. During the sinking phase, corals and other organisms of the ecosystem gather around the volcano in order to build a reef. At the end, the volcano disappears completely under the water and leaves in the surface a large coral ring with a pond inside that contains large amounts of water that travel through wide channels, better known as Passes, which allow that the waters of the sea enter the lagoon and circulate with the changes of tides.
There are dozens of atolls in Polynesia, especially in the Archipelago of the Tuamotus islands. Diving in an atoll is an experience that cannot be compared with any other diving experience. The atolls of Rangiroa, the second largest in the world, measure up to 70 kms. long by 25 kms. wide.
Diving under these kinds of conditions forces the diver to perform immersions only when the current enters the lagoon, otherwise the diver could be easily dragged to the ocean. For instance, in the great atoll of Fakarava, immersions are mainly performed at the Pass of Garuae, which is a large opening that measures more than 1,600 meters long and which generates currents so strong that they make the diver feel helpless, where his only option is to let the current drag him through the Pass. What is simply spectacular regarding these kinds of immersions is just in the center of the Pass, where the diver can meet manta rays, dolphins, barracudas and dozens (sometimes hundreds) of sharks that gather in search for food. These large animals swim against the current, approximately 25 or 30 meters deep, waiting for their prey.
There is no question that these kinds of immersions represent very particular challenges for the underwater photographer. Only by entering with the photographic equipment to a crack at the bottom of a Pass in order to guard against the current and photograph these enormous animals require of an outstanding control of the diving equipment, of flotation skills, and, of course of the limits allowed for performing in-depth diving. It is very easy to focus in trying to take the best shots and then forget that we only a few minutes to stay in that submarine paradise.
If you would like to read an article about French Polynesia and obtain more details about the diving opportunities that this place offers, please click here.
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