Apo Reef · Philippines · Wall
Mabuti
The afternoon wall, and the island's bumphead parrotfish schools
Area photo: Wiki.mjmasangkay · CC BY-SA 4.0
Mabuti is the wall on the south-east side of Apo Island, dived between 12 and 40 metres. It is the afternoon dive on the island: the face takes the sun late in the day, which is the opposite of the north-east sites. It is also the site where the schools of bumphead parrotfish are found.
Also known as Apo Island - South (Mabuti).
Where it is and how deep
12.6543° N, 120.4139° EPublished position for this site.
The dive
The site sits on the south-east side of Apo Island, and the shape of the dive is the same as the island's other walls: a published range of 12 to 40 metres, worked as a traverse along the face at a chosen depth rather than a descent to the bottom. Go in over the shallow reef, fin out to the lip, then turn along the wall and let the profile shallow out as the dive runs on.
The difference here is the light. Because the face looks south-east, the afternoon is when the sun is on it, so Mabuti is the site to save for the second or third dive of the day while the morning walls on the other side of the island are taken early. This is also the wall where the schools of bumphead parrotfish are seen, so it is worth spending time out from the reef, watching along the face rather than only into it.
Marine life and season
- Reef fish swarms
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Off-season | Off-season | Off-season | Fair | Good | Prime |
Season follows Apo Reef: Nov–Jun is the season with Mar–May best; the south-west monsoon and typhoons close the reef entirely from July to September.
Questions divers ask
When should you dive Mabuti?+
In the afternoon. The wall faces south-east, so the sun is on it late in the day, while the sites on the north-east side of Apo Island are better in the morning.
What can you see at Mabuti?+
It is the Apo Island site for the schools of bumphead parrotfish, worked along a wall dived between 12 and 40 metres, and the corals at the end of the dive are some of the best on Apo Reef.
Sources
- Apo Reef dive sites — Pandan Island Dive Resort
- Apo Island - South (Mabuti) — Scubago
More dive sites in Apo Reef
Wall
North-east wall dived from a 10 m coral plateau to 40 m
Coral garden
Coral gardens across the island's southern tip, 15 m to 40 m
Wall
Sheer drop-off at the island's northern tip, 15 m to 40 m
The island's most reliable edge for grey reef and whitetip sharks
Similar dives elsewhere
Coral outcrops one side of the village, a wall past 40 m on the other.
Sea fans and frogfish on a wall, a 150-year-old wreck below
Limestone and white sand, a wall to 35 m, rarely any current
A reef so long one dive doesn't cover it