MYANMAR DIVING
MERGUI ARCHIPELAGO, BURMA
MERGUI ARCHIPELAGO, BURMA
With over 800 islands, covering more than 36,000km2, the immense size of the Mergui Archipelago in Myanmar (formerly Burma), means any diving holiday here is guaranteed to be an adventure. Myanmar diving has only been accessible since 1997. A fragile infrastructure and former military government resulted in most diving operations being based in Thailand.
Although tourism is gradually increasing and day trip diving is slowly becoming an option, currently the easiest way to dive Myanmar is from a Thai operated liveaboard. The Mergui Archipelago still remains relatively unexplored. It is very common to be the only divers on a dive site. The area is not a National park and over-fishing/dynamite fishing have had negative impacts, but Myanmar diving has enough underwater surprises to make for a magnificent holiday.
Myanmar certainly has a troubled past. Long considered a pariah state, it was ruled by an oppressive military dictatorship between 1962 and 2011. With many restricted areas, the World had a limited idea of what was happening here. The Mergui Archipelago was one such area.
The Mergui (Myeik) Archipelago first opened to divers in 1997. Travel restrictions, long travel distances and a lack of dive operators have left Burma relatively unexplored. The first people that dived here in the late 90’s told us of magnificent dive sites with pristine corals and huge schools of sharks. Most guides available today are still based on this 20-year-old information, so it is time for an up to date guide.
Most of the information on this page is based on diving in the Southern portion of the Mergui Archipelago. Most operators are based in Thailand, so liveaboards only get to explore certain areas.
For most boats, the Northern reaches of the Mergui Archipelago are simply too far away. Black Rock (currently Myanmar’s most famous dive site) is about as far as most liveaboard trips can go. Many boats will not even make it that far.
Every year Diversion carry out ‘Off The Chart’ expeditions in conjunction with the Marine Megafauna foundation.
The aim of these trips is to look for new Manta Ray aggregation sites based on recent satellite tagging research, and to explore the Northern extremities of the Mergui Archipelago.
If you would like to join us on one of these exclusive adventures you can check out our Manta Ray Research trips to see the next upcoming adventures. You can also refer to this guide for the most up to date information on the best diving in the Southern portion of the Mergui Archipelago.
”Lost in time, diving in the Mergui Archipelago feels like being transported back to a time when diving was not a popular commercial sport. I rarely see other boats in this region and it remains incredibly pristine, saturated in soft corals and carpeted by anemones. This is Indian Ocean diving at its best”
Andrea ‘Queen of Mantas’ Marshall, Marine Megafauna Foundation
Much has changed since the first Burma Diving guide books were written in the late 90’s. However, one thing remains the same. The remoteness of the Mergui Archipelago makes it possible to have an entire day of diving without encountering another dive boat. Even in the early evening, just in time for a sunset or night dive, you may still be the first person to jump there that day. Myanmar still maintains an air of mystery and exclusivity difficult to find elsewhere.
Another huge benefit of a Myanmar Liveaboard is the type of divers it attracts. The majority of guests are experienced divers that want to make the most of their experience. This allows for a lot more flexibility. It is not uncommon for experienced divers to go off in buddy teams. Or it may be possible to carry on a dive after the guide has ascended with those low on air. This allows divers to maximise their time underwater and generally creates longer dive times.
Myanmar diving is also a photographers dream. With few other divers around there is plenty of time to stay in a single location and focus on getting that perfect pic. The photo opportunities are much greater because of the wider varieties of species. There are many more species of Sea Urchins, Sea Stars, anemones, sea fans, soft and hard corals that cannot be seen in neighboring Thailand. There are also much more regular sightings of rarer species like harlequin shrimp, ghost pipefish, frogfish, seahorses and much more.
Unfortunately, there have been some unwelcome changes in the last 20 years. You may still see evidence of them on your Myanmar Liveaboard trip. Surprisingly factors like the Tsunami and global coral bleaching events have had very little impact in Myanmar. These events have had a huge impact in Thai waters, but barely touched Mergui Archipelago. By far the biggest negative impact on the marine environment has been illegal and unregulated fishing practices.
Fishing is intertwined with the history of the Mergui Archipelago. Most settlements are small fishing villages or home to the traditionally sea faring Moken tribes.
Traditional ways of spear or line fishing have given way to more destructive practices. Large trawlers, many said to be Thai owned, have depleted fish stocks dramatically over the last few decades.
Dynamite fishing is the most blatantly destructive fishing practice, as it can destroy entire reefs in an instant. This is still a fairly common practice in Mynamar.
Individual fishermen cannot be held entirely responsible. They are usually employed, on a tiny wage in poor working conditions, by foreign markets catering for an ever increasing demand for fish.
The practice of dynamite fishing was said to have been introduced by colonial soldiers who would throw grenades into a reef to get a quick catch.
What is Dynamite/blast fishing?
This photo, taken by one of our instructors, shows the leftovers of a homemade bomb. This engine oil container remains relatively intact after the explosion, and has ironically become the home of a juvenile Scorpionfish.
Technically not dynamite, these small bombs are detonated through simple chemical reactions. Bombs typically contain nitrogen-based fertilizers or other easily accessible oxidizing agents. This makes them cheap and easy (but dangerous) to use. The chemicals will be put into any kind of bottle or container and then gasoline is added on top. A fuse is put into the ‘blasting cap’ and the bomb is ready to go.
The explosions will stun or kill all the fish within a designated radius. They can also do extensive damage to the coral reef itself. One common method used, is to start with a small explosion and kill the smaller fish. This attracts larger species and concentrates them into a smaller area.
A second larger bomb is detonated, killing everything in the area. The fishermen wait for things to settle, then dive in to collect their catch. Usually many of the dead fish are just left on the sea floor.
Dynamite fishing is technically illegal, but has been poorly regulated in Myanmar. It is highly destructive, and also not particularly efficient as many of the fish are not even collected.
What evidence of Dynamite fishing might I see?
In 2016, it is still possible that IUU vessels may be a part of your Myanmar liveaboard experience. Although the practice has seemed to reduce in the last few years, you can sometimes arrive at a dive site not long after it has been bombed. From our own diving experience, this is what we have seen from previous bombings.
All the fish on the dive site are dead, dying or at a minimum stunned. The blast does not have to be that close to the coral reef. The explosion is amplified by the water, and it is the huge shock wave that ruptures the fishes swim bladder. This leaves the bodies of the fish relatively intact.
Slowly the fish begin to rot or get eaten by the surviving species. Marine life that do not have a swim bladder will survive the explosion. This means there are still plenty of moray eels, sea urchins, octopus and crabs that will begin to clean up the dive site.
The dive site feels deserted and quiet. There is not much evidence of the explosion, but still very few fish around. You can still see morays, octopus etc., but are unlikely to see much else.
Gradually life returns to the dive site. Juvenile fish begin to attract larger predators and the site slowly becomes populated once more. It is surprising how relatively short a time it takes before a location once again looks healthy. However, with fish stocks being rapidly depleted, it will become more and more difficult each time a site needs to entirely repopulate the various species of fish.
Are things getting better?
In the last few years we have personally noticed a slight reduction in dynamite fishing. As of June 5 2016, Myanmar officially became legally obligated to actively work against reducing the number of IUU (Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated) fishing vessels. The ‘Port State Measures’ agreement consists of 29 countries with the aim to ‘prevent, deter and eliminate’ IUU vessels.
Secondly, as Myanmar opens up to the World economy, they will also start to be more closely monitored by International organisations. Neighboring Thailand has been under much scrutiny from the European Commission, and put on a ‘Yellow Card’, with the threat of a complete ban on fish exports worth $3 billion dollars a year.
It has been alleged that a high majority of fishing boats in the Mergui Archipelago are run by Thai companies. A lot of the catch gets sent straight back to Thailand. With the newly enforced regulations, Thai companies will need to have a ‘catch certificate’ to prove where the fish have come from. Fishermen need to get a certificate from the fishery department, identifying the species and location it was caught.
Changes are coming, but they are slow. It is hoped that a boost in tourism may also play its part. Practices like dynamite fishing are dangerous and they hamper the development of the tourist industry. The Burmese government and foreign investors have big plans for the area, and are aware they need to clamp down on such destructive and illegal techniques.
As divers, the best thing we can do is to publicly open the discussion. One privilege we have as divers is the ability to share the things we see with the World.
Fishing has undoubtedly had an impact on the marine environment, but there are still so many wonderfully colorful coral reefs in Myanmar. The outer islands in particular are home to some of the most pristine reefs in the Andaman Sea. For example, consider Richelieu Rock, Thailand’s’ best dive site, which is known for its stunning soft corals and Whale Shark visits. Richelieu is a unique dive site in Thailand and really stands out from other dive sites. In Myanmar on the other hand, dozens of dive sites are covered with the same pristine soft corals, but much denser and in even greater quantities. Coral coverage in Myanmar is generally bigger, better and more diverse than in Thailand.
In August 2015, the FFI (Flora and Fauna International) carried out extensive studies in the Myeik (Mergui) Archipelago. In under two weeks they recorded ‘over 700 coral, invertebrate and fish species, including a number of unidentified specimens that may prove new to science’. This is even more proof that there is still a lot to be discovered in the Mergui Archipelago.
“With Myeik proposed as a potential World Heritage Site, we wanted to get a clearer picture of what the situation was on the outer reefs, where human impacts were likely to be less severe. What we found was a seascape bursting with life.”
Sophie Benbow, Flora & Fauna International
They found the coral coverage to be ‘consistently high’. Certain reefs had 80% hard coral coverage and rated ‘excellent’ on a standardised global scale. During this same period, the great barrier reef in Australia and countless other locations are becoming devastated by coral bleaching. It is quite surprising that healthy coral coverage is still so high.
One factor that may play an important role in the healthy reefs of Myanmar, is the general sea conditions and the location of the islands. In the section below you can find out a bit more about what makes Myanmar diving conditions so unique.
The main thing you can expect from a Myanmar diving holiday is variety. For any divers that have spent a lot of time diving in Thailand, you will certainly be able to find many species of fish and corals that you have never seen before. The huge variety of marine species and rare creatures mean there is always something interesting to find.
Currents are generally stronger in the Mergui Archipelago than in the neighboring Similan Islands. When the currents are strongest it can be quite difficult to dive. Visibility can also be quite poor around Full Moon. You can contact us to find out the best times to visit.
The positive side of strong currents is that a huge amount of nutrients are bought to the dive sites. This attracts larger species of fish and provides food for pelagic giants like Manta Rays and Whale Sharks. Also, the constant flow of nutrients allows for some of the coral (particularly gorgonian sea fans) to grow to an immerse size. Some of the sea fans grow so big that they can collapse under their own weight.
At some dive sites the schools of fish can be massive. Barracuda and Rainbow Runners are common, but perhaps more impressive are the schools of fusilier. Different generations of fusilier all swim as one. They create a giant ball, rapidly moving and changing direction among the feeding frenzies. The displays from large schools of fish can be quite magnificent.
Unfortunately, as with many places in the world, the number of sharks has dropped compared with 20 years ago. Hopefully, if the demand for shark fin reduces then numbers can replenish. It is still very possible to encounter sharks. Where you might see a black tip reef shark in the Similan islands, you are likely to see the more impressive Grey reef sharks in Myanmar. There are also still a good number of Leopard sharks, Guitar fish and various other sharks and rays in the Mergui Archipelago.
The islands are so far spread out that dive sites vary greatly. To understand a bit more about why some creature are seen in specific places, we will need to look at individual Myanmar diving locations.
The dive sites in Myanmar vary greatly. One of the best things about the islands is that the majority of them are limestone. Limestone seems to promote more diversity when compared to the bare faced granite boulders of the Similans.
Western Rocky is a beautiful limestone island and the coral coverage is better than anything in Thailand. Just to add to the excitement, a massive 20m long hole cuts directly through the island and is one of the coolest swim-throughs in the Andaman Sea
Black Rock is currently Myanmar’s most famous dive site. It is a magnet to life. During peak season the rock is occupied by Dolphins, Sharks, Manta Rays, Eagle Rays, Whale Sharks and even passing Whales. This is not to mention the plethora of Macro life waiting to be found here.
Andrea ‘Queen of Mantas’ Marshall has referred to Black Rock as one of her top ten dive sites in the World. As an aggregation point for giant Manta Rays, it is also a very important research site.
Three Islets (pictured) is a great example of just how remote some of the dive sites can be. These small islets are hours away from the mainland. Currents can be strong with similar marine life to Western Rocky. Here it is even possible to see birds diving into the water to join in the feasts taking place beneath the surface.
Burma Banks is often a name people have heard when talking about Myanmar diving. There are no islands here, just football pitch sized banks hidden under the surface. Unfortunately, even though many divers expect to go, most liveaboards do not travel there. If you wish to dive the Burma Banks, contact us for advice.
These sites represent some of the best dive sites in the Southern portion of the Mergui Archipelago. Every year, as we carry out research expeditions to the far North, we will update the page with new information. If you would like to join us on one of our Myanmar discovery expeditions, find out more here.