Eel Garden, Mabul, Sabah

Site Overview
Dive Centres
Site Type: Natural sloping rocky reef with plenty of eels
Depth: Top: 5M Median: 15M Bottom: 23M
Location: Close to the southern tip of Mabul’s fringing reef

Eel Garden Mabul is the kind of natural rocky reef which is home to eels of kinds, so not surprising you’ll see a great variety. But there’s lots of other interesting stuff two, from clingfish to bubble coral shrimp.

First up, my favourite little eel: the Snowflake Moray.

Snowflake Moray diving Eel Garden at Mabul Sabah Malaysia by Diveplanit

The Yellow-margined moray,

Yellow-margined moray diving Eel Garden at Mabul Sabah Malaysia by Diveplanit

And the Fimbriated Moray.

Fimbriated Moray diving Eel Garden at Mabul Sabah Malaysia by Diveplanit

The most common nembrotha around Mabul seems to be the Lined Nembrotha

Lined Nembrotha diving Eel Garden at Mabul Sabah Malaysia by Diveplanit

Also the Bullock’s Hypselodoris, …

Bullocks Hypselodoris diving Eel Garden at Mabul Sabah Malaysia by Diveplanit

… who appears to be taking a bow.

Bullocks Hypselodoris diving Eel Garden at Mabul Sabah Malaysia by Diveplanit

The Kunie’s Chromodoris

Kunies Chromodoris diving Eel Garden at Mabul Sabah Malaysia by Diveplanit

A Peppermint seastar, but not our job move him, even though that looks uncomfortable.

Peppermint seastar diving Eel Garden at Mabul Sabah Malaysia by Diveplanit

Xenia soft coral-the – was this the idea behind a firework?

Xenia soft coral-the idea behind a firework diving Eel Garden at Mabul Sabah Malaysia by Diveplanit

Here’s a photo I never thought I’d be capable of taking: a bubble coral shrimp – Vir philippinensis. Lives in a symbiotic relationship with bubble coral.

Bubble coral shrimp diving Eel Garden at Mabul Sabah Malaysia by Diveplanit

A fish, often at first, confused with the pipefish, is the Urchin Clingfish. These are found in areas inhabited by longspine urchins, though there is no symbiotic relationship.

Urchin Clingfish diving Eel Garden at Mabul Sabah Malaysia by Diveplanit

One of the commonest boxfish around Mabul is the Solor boxfish. This one is the larger, more colourful male.

Male solor boxfish diving Eel Garden at Mabul Sabah Malaysia by Diveplanit

And, finally, just in case you thought this dive site was just eels and nudis, colourful Basslets and anthias await you on top of the reef for your safety stop.

Colourful Basslets on top of the reef diving Eel Garden at Mabul Sabah Malaysia by Diveplanit