Shark Reef Marine Reserve (SRMR) Benthic Biodiversity Assessments, Serua, Viti Levu, Fiji - September 2022

Shark Reef Marine Reserve (SRMR) is a section of patch reef approximately 3 Km from the southern shore of Viti Levu in the Fiji Islands. In 2014 it was declared a statutory marine reserve under the Fisheries Act of 1942 (Cap 158) with the specific objective of protecting shark populations in the area.

Shark feeding for the purpose of creating an attraction for tourist SCUBA divers and researchers has been carried out at one specific site on the reef front since 1999, although at a reduced level during Covid-19-related closures in 2020 and 2021.

The reef flat partially dries at extreme low tide, then drops steeply to a deep floor at around 28 to 30 metres depth on the front and sides, while the back reef slopes more gradually below 12 metres. Baseline rapid assessment surveys of several sites around the SRMR were conducted at three depths in November and December 2014.

In April – June 2022, three of these sites were selected and monitored at two depths for comparison with the 2014 study, plus an additional three sites at two depths at Combe Reef (CR), a nearby patch reef approximately 5 Km from SRMR, which is not under any fishing protection, for comparison.

Detailed surveys at these sites were carried out to be used to measure differences between protected and unprotected reefs in future monitoring of reef health, key animal populations, and fish biomass and diversity.

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Throughout the months of April and November every year, you have the opportunity to help celebrate and record Fiji’s amazing coral reef biodiversity, show you care about our world’s delicate coral reef systems, and have fun, by taking part in the FIJI-WIDE SHARK COUNT!

Easy to do, this is suitable for visitors and locals alike, whether you like to fish, snorkel, or SCUBA dive. We hope that tourists, school children, scientists and all people with an interest in the marine environment will take to the reefs with us to search for the Sharks of Fiji!

The Great Fiji Shark Count will be held across Fiji every April and November every year.

You can do a single count, or take part as many times as you like during that month, so that you cover different reefs. All data will be gratefully accepted!

So, see your resort, watersports operator or travel agent, get your Shark identification materials and dive into the beautiful blue waters of Fiji, to be a part of history!