Site Overview
Dive Centres
Site Type: Wreck and Reef; occasional mega fauna
Depth: Top: 16M Median: 20M Bottom: 25M
Location: Cocos (Keeling) Islands Lagoon

This site has a massive diversity of fish.

Best dive spot in Cocos Keeling Islands is Cables. Scuba diving holiday travel planning for Cocos Keeling Islands - where, who and how

How many fish species (including those fish you can only see parts of) are there in this one shot above?  (Answers are at the very bottom of this Page).

Best dive spot in Cocos Keeling Islands is Cables. Scuba diving holiday travel planning for Cocos Keeling Islands - where, who and how

Trumpet fish from all directions. (I’m sure the fish with the Mona Lisa smile in this shot is wearing lipstick!) What is she anyway? A Snapper?

Best dive spot in Cocos Keeling Islands is Cables. Scuba diving holiday travel planning for Cocos Keeling Islands - where, who and how

Chin-strap Snapper. Actually I just made that up – I have no idea what they are – looks like a snapper, but not one I can find in any of the books.

Best dive spot in Cocos Keeling Islands is Cables. Scuba diving holiday travel planning for Cocos Keeling Islands - where, who and how

Blue fin Trevally – looks like he wants to pick a fight!

Best dive spot in Cocos Keeling Islands is Cables. Scuba diving holiday travel planning for Cocos Keeling Islands - where, who and how

Peacock Rockcod and …

Best dive spot in Cocos Keeling Islands is Cables. Scuba diving holiday travel planning for Cocos Keeling Islands - where, who and how

… the really imaginatively named: Long nosed Butterflyfish. (As opposed to the ‘Really Long nosed Butterflyfish’ which has fine spots on the chin).

Best dive spot in Cocos Keeling Islands is Cables. Scuba diving holiday travel planning for Cocos Keeling Islands - where, who and how

And often a reef shark will drift through.
Quite a lot of stuff has been dumped in the lagoon over the past 80 years. Some of this is cabling and gear from the old cabling station, other bits look like the hull of an old shack.

2547-The-cables-at-Cables-diving-Cocos-Keeling-Islands-DPI-2547

Either way, not really a good background for a Camo Rockrod, who should be on the coral.

Best dive spot in Cocos Keeling Islands is Cables. Scuba diving holiday travel planning for Cocos Keeling Islands - where, who and how

You’re supposed to pretend you can’t see them and they get a bit miffed if you spot them too quickly.

Best dive spot in Cocos Keeling Islands is Cables. Scuba diving holiday travel planning for Cocos Keeling Islands - where, who and how

There is an old electronics cabinet from Cable & Wireless, lots of cables and other electromechanical paraphernalia laid along the bottom.

Best dive spot in Cocos Keeling Islands is Cables. Scuba diving holiday travel planning for Cocos Keeling Islands - where, who and how

Now home to these Giant Squirrel fish – easily recognisable by their large bushy tails!  They seemed to have reversed in like its some multi-story garage for fish.

Best dive spot in Cocos Keeling Islands is Cables. Scuba diving holiday travel planning for Cocos Keeling Islands - where, who and how

And of course, where there’s a boiler, there’s going to be a Moray somewhere inside here.

Best dive spot in Cocos Keeling Islands is Cables. Scuba diving holiday travel planning for Cocos Keeling Islands - where, who and how

Ah ha! Here she is!

Answers to the fish spotting quiz first photo: (left to right)

Tail end of a Dascyllus; three Soldierfish; Racoon Butterflyfish (bottom); Masked Banner Fish (top); tail end of a Pennant Bannerfish (bottom); and finally a Giant Squirrelfish.

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