Sangeang & Bima Bay · Indonesia · Muck & macro · Night
Bontoh Reef
Sunset and night muck dive on the volcano's western black sand
Photo: Bernard Picton · CC BY-SA 4.0
Bontoh Reef is a black-sand bay on the western side of the Sangeang volcano, a gentle muck slope that runs out from the shore. With sunsets over its western side it suits a third dive of the day and a night dive, when the targets are frogfish, mantis shrimps and cephalopods such as the wunderpus or mimic octopus.
Also known as Bontoh.
Where it is and how deep
8.1959° S, 119.0698° EApproximate position — the dashed circle shows where the site lies; your operator's briefing has the mooring.
The dive
The slope descends gradually from the shoreline across black sand and small algae-covered rocks to 25 m, with no significant current to fight. Painted frogfish, juvenile angelfish and mantis shrimps hide among the small rocks, and out on the open sand there is a chance of a wunderpus or mimic octopus.
Marine life and season
- Frogfish
- Octopus & cuttlefish
- Macro critters
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fair | Fair | Fair | Good | Good | Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Fair |
Season follows Sangeang & Bima Bay: April to November is the season and June to October the peak; in January and February most liveaboard operators do not run.
Photos from Bontoh Reef
Bernard Picton · CC BY-SA 4.0
Sources
- Best Dive Sites in Sumbawa — Neptune Liveaboards
- Komodo-Sumbawa 10 days cruise — Arenui
Photo credits
- A small white-spotted nudibranch with brown-banded horns and blue tips crawling over a mustard-yellow sponge by Bernard Picton, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- A pale orange nudibranch with fine white lines and a frilly gill tuft draped over an orange sponge by Bernard Picton, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
More dive sites in Sangeang & Bima Bay
Muck & macro
Fumaroles stream volcanic gas bubbles straight up out of the black sand
Eagle rays and whitetip sharks cruising the edge of the drop-off
Reef
A lone coral bommie on the sand flat east of the volcano, ringed by bigeye trevally
Similar dives elsewhere
Zebra crabs sheltering in the spines of purple heart urchins
Black sand to 27 metres, at its best after dark
Banggai cardinalfish in the hundreds under a night torch
Mimic and blue-ringed octopus over Anilao's best-known muck slope