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We decided to keep our stay in Makemo short and sail on to Tahanea, since a lot of sailors are talking about how beautiful this atoll is. With good winds we reached the biggest of the three reef passes at low water and therefor were able to sail into the atoll. We did not stay at the pass but continued on towards a small Motu (the name for sandy Island in French Polynesia) on the other side, where friends of us have liked it very much.

In this atoll there are a few islands without rats, which normally makes it difficult for ground breeding birds to breed. And there is a lot of the original vegetation left. This is also important for other birds, which only can build their nests on those native trees and bushes. We were able to find a few breeding Brown Boobies (Sula leucogaster) on the first small Motu. They build a nest out of mainly branches on the ground in which they lay two eggs. Only one of the chicks will survive. The other egg or chick will probably be thrown out of the nest or even eaten by the first born chick – this is called Siblicide. The surviving chick is now fed by the parents and grows quickly. When they hatch they are gray and almost completely naked. The white, fluffy feathers start to grow soon and they lay on a lot of weight. Fairly quickly they are almost as tall as their parents but their neck is very weak and the stomach filled to the top with food. So they have a hard time moving around and mainly sit on the ground somewhere under the bushes and trees. We were able to observe chicks from the moment they hatch until they get their first flight feathers. But one should be very careful while moving around to not disturb them too much while they are breeding. Generally one should be quiet and discrete if visiting bird Motus. This means not to spend too much time there so that the nesting birds can quickly return to their eggs and chicks, move slowly and without making too much noise, not going too close to the birds and chicks and especially not touching them (better work with the zoom of the camera), not making fire close to birds and not bringing other animals (especially dogs) onto those islands. The Motus should be left before the sun sets to give the birds time to return and settle in for the night.

01_Like_all_atolls_Tahanea_has_a_lot_of_small_motus_and_sandbanks
02_Brown_booby_sitting_on_his_eggs_(Sula_leucogaster-Weissbauchtoelpel)
03_Nest_of_a_Brown_Booby_with_the_two_eggs
04_Freshly_hatched_chick_abandoned_by_the_mother_which_then_came_back_right_away
05_Getting_out_of_the_egg_is_making_tired
06_Sleeping_on_his_nest_during_the_day
07_Two_to_three_week_old_chick_of_a_Brown_Booby
08_This_chick_is_already_well_fed_and_almost_as_big_as_his_parents
09_Pair_of_Brown_Boobies_checking_us_out
10_Older_chick_waiting_for_the_parents_to_bring_some_food
11_Amazing_White_Tern_(Gygis_alba-Feenseeschwalbe)
12_They_always_come_in_pairs
13_and_are_often_moving_synchronous
14_Egg_of_a_White_Tern_which_they_just_lay_on_a_branch
15_Sitting_on_the_egg

During our visits we usually were accompanied by elegant White Terns (Gygis alba) which seem to be very curious and fly close above our heads. Once in a while we saw one sitting on it's egg. But they are easily scared and tend to leave quickly. They lay their egg simply on a branch without building any kind of nest. On a very small Motu we found some breeding Masked Boobies (Sula dactylatra), which lay their eggs simply on the sand above the water line. Like Brown Boobies they also lay two eggs but only one chick survives. We were able to observe freshly hatched chicks as well as bigger ones around the Motu. Sadly we only found six breeding pairs all together.

Luckily we saw a lot of Tuamotu Sandpipers (Prosobonia parvirostris) which are fairly common around Tahanea. A few years ago only about 100 of those birds were left, but now the population has grown to over 1.000 individuals again. The Tuamotu Sandpipers are curios small birds, always in motion looking for food. They are also breeding on the ground and can therefor only breed on rat free islands.

Actually Tahanea is supposed to be a reserve, nevertheless the growing of coconut palm trees for copra (the dried meat, or dried kernel, of the coconut used to extract coconut oil) has already started here. For that the islands get cleaned of their natural vegetation, mostly in burning it, and instead young coconut trees get planted. Furthermore seabird eggs are still delicatessen and are collected for eating in Polynesia. So the last breeding reserves for those seabirds are disappearing quickly.

16_Small_motu
17_Beautiful_Masked_Booby_breeding_(Sula_dactylatra-Maskentoelpel)
18_Masked_Boobies_lay_their_eggs_on_a_sandy_spot_without_making_a_nest
19_A_very_young_chick_(Sula_dactylatra-Maskentoelpel)
20_The_second_egg_is_still_intact_and_some_fish_is_in_front_of_the_birds
21_The_fast_growing_chick_is_always_hungry
22_Old_chick_of_Masked_Booby_waiting_for_his_parents_and_food
23_We_saw_many_Tuamotus_Sandpipers_on_the_western_motus_(Prosobonia_parvirostris-Tuamotus-Strandlaeufer)
24_Tuamotus_Sandpipers_are_very_curious_birds
25_There_has_been_a_study_on_the_Tuamotus_Sandpipers_so_many_are_still_tagged
26_Beautiful_Tahanea
27_A_very_shy_Red-footed_Booby_(Sula_sula-Rotfusstoelpel)
28_Tuamotu_Reed_Warbler_is_found_only_in_Polynesia_(Acrocephalus_atyphus-Tuamotus_Sumpfrohrsaenger)
29_Group_of_Greater_Crested_Terns_resting_on_a_sandbank_(Thalasseus_bergii-Eilseeschwalbe)
30_Young_Greater_Crested_Tern_resting_on_the_sand
31_Too_close_for_comfort_so_it_took_off
32_We_saw_a_lot_of_Bristle-thighed_Curlews_around_Tahanea_(Numenius_tahitiensis-Borstenbrachvogel)
33_One_very_nicel_anchorage
34_Noddie_feeding_frenzy_on_our_way_through_the_lagoon
35_The_Black_Noddies_look_like_they_are_walking_on_the_water_surface_(Anous_minutus-Wiesskappenseeschwalbe)
36_Noddies_and_Boobies_hitting_the_water_surface

A wonderful exception is a small Motu in the middle of the lagoon where a big population of Lesser Frigate birds (Fregata ariel) is breeding. Here the ground is too stony for coconut trees and so it is not interesting for copra production. Many Frigate birds are breeding on the bushes close to the water. With our kayak we got very close to the breeding birds as well as chicks and again saw everything from eggs to almost grown chicks. On one occasion we found a chick which fell out of the nest and was sitting on a stone surrounded by water. With the paddle we lifted it onto the shore, so that it still might have a chance to survive. In the middle of the Motu there are a lot of tall trees where a lot of Black Noddies (Anous minutus) have their nests. But they are very high up in the tree and therefor we could not say if they had any eggs or chicks in them. During sailing through the lagoon we often observed a big group of Black Noddies as well as some Boobies hunting together. If they find a swarm of small fish which are hunted by bigger ones, they all went down to the water surface and tried to catch the small fish. There were 50 or more birds on the water at the same time trying to catch something. Very spectacular!

37_There_is_a_big_breeding_colony_of_Lesser_Frigate_Birds_(Fregata_ariel-Arielfregattvogel)
38_Female_sitting_on_the_nest_made_out_of_branches
39_They_ghet_frightened_very_easily_so_you_can_see_nest_with_the_single_egg
40_This_chick_is_a_few_weeks_old
41_Waiting_for_the_parents_to_bring_some_food
42_Sitting_on_the_egg_all_day
43_Fluffy_feathers
44_Half_grown_chick
45_This_chick_is_already_losing_his_white_fluffy_feathers

Under water we saw a few very nice coral reefs. Even here we found traces of the global coral bleaching event of the last years. Generally the coral reefs and coral bommies are in a good condition from the surface until a few meters depth. Sadly deeper than 4-5 meters we did not find a lot of living corals. One exception are the reef passes into the atolls. Here one can find healthy corals in much deeper waters than inside the lagoons. Everywhere you go snorkeling you get accompanied by Black-tipped (Carcharhinus melanopterus) and White-tipped Reefsharks (Triaenodon obesus). We had to get used to them since there sometimes are really a lot of them around. In the reef passes we saw a lot of Grey Reefsharks (Carcharhinus amblyrhynchos), once in a while a big Lemon Shark (Negaprion acutidens) or a Tawny Nurseshark (Nebrius ferrugineus). Especially at the southern side of the western pass, where there is a place with a swarm of Crescent-tailed Bigeyes (Priacanthus hamrur). There you can find, next to different sharks, a lot of Damselfish, sometimes a Maori Wrass (Cheilinus undulatus) and swimming around the swarm a few Dogtooth Tuner (Gymnosarda unicolor). You can see those Tuner always around reefs since they hunt the fish there. If you have time you will see them catching one of the Bigeyes and eating them with two big swallows.

01_Motu_(Island_in_Polynesia)_with_reef_in_front
02_One_of_many_interested_Black-tipped_Reefsharks_(Carcharhinus_melanopterus-Schwarzspitzen-Riffhai)
03_Group_of_Crescent-Tail_Bigeyes_is_always_gathering_on_the_side_of_the_pass_(Priacanthus_hamrur-Gewoehnlicher_Grossaugenbarsch)
04_Dogtooth_Tuna_looking_for_Bigeyes_(Gymnosarda_unicolor-Hundezahn-Thunfisch)
05_You_can_watch_Dogtooth_Tuna_hunting_and_eating_fish_in_the_pass
06_Maori_Wrass_looking_for_food_between_the_corals_(Napoleon-Lippfisch-Cheilinus_undulatus)
07_One_of_many_very_curious_White-tipped_Reefsharks_(Triaenodon_obesus-Wiessspitzen-Riffhai)
08_Beautiful_Acropora_Coral_with_lots_of_small_damselfish_(Riffbarsche)
09_Brushtail_Tang_(Zebrasoma_scopas-Weissdorn-Segelflosser)
10_Grey_Reefsharks_are_cruising_above_the_Bigeyes_(Carcharhinos_amblyrhynchos-Grauer_Riffhai)
11_Regal_Angelfish_(Pygoplites_diacanthus-Pfauen-Kaiserfisch)
12_Group_of_Parrot_fish_along_the_reef

We were very lucky since we found some Reef Mantas (Manta alfredi) on our first snorkel trip there. During a few days we saw a lot of copepods (small shrimplike crayfish) in the water column and those attract Mantas, which love to eat them. On those days we found about 20 of those giants swimming through the pass with wide open mouths to filter the copepods out of the water. We really enjoyed watching them and let ourselves wash through the pass in the middle of them. We were even able to get a few good ID-pictures and found out that there a mostly females feeding in this pass.

13_Group_of_Parrotfish_grazing_along_the_reef_(Scarus_sp_strongycephalus-Papageifisch)
14_Reef_Manta_swimming_into_the_lagoon_of_Tahanea_(Manta_alfredi-Riffmanta)
15_Manta_alfredi_eating_small_Copepods_in_the_pass
16_The_filter_apparatus_of_a_Manta_Ray
17_Tawny_Nurse_Shark_swimming_across_the_reef_in_the_middle_of_the_pass_(Nebrius_ferrugineus-Indopazifischer_Ammenhai)
18_Reefflat_on_the_southwestern_side_of_Tahanea
19_Saddled_Butterflyfish_(Chaetodon_ephippium-Sattelfleck-Falterfisch)
20_Spotted_Eagleray_(Aedopatus_narinari-Gefleckter_Adlerrochen)
21_Solanders_Sharpnose_Puffer_(Canthigaster_solandri-Augenfleck-Krugfisch)
22_Late_afternoon_on_the_reef
23_Threadfin_Butterflyfish_(Chaetodon_auriga-Faehnche-Falterfisch)
24_The_Pineapple_Sea_Cucumber_grows_to_a_length_of_50_cm_(Thelenota_ananas-Ananas_Stachelseegurke)

One time, while looking towards the pass, we saw a group of four Humpback Whales (Megaloptera novaeangliae) coming into the lagoon. They travel all the way here to give birth and stay for a few months before leaving for Antarctic summer again.

50_Sailing_inside_the_lagoon_(Shelley_Rothery)
51_Our_anchorage_between_the_passes
52_Humpback_Whales_arriving_in_Tahanea_(Megaloptera_novaeangliae-Buckelwal)
53_They_arrive_in_French_Polynesia_during_the_antarctic_winter_to_give_birth_to_their_young
54_Amazing_Tahanea

Tahanea is definitely a place to stay for a while and always find something new to see or observe.