ISLAND HOPPING IN THE INDIAN
CHRISTMAS ISLAND MARINE LIFE
Christmas Island’s coastal zone is a limited marine environment, with little soft bottom, shallow waters or sheltered habitats — but the narrow fringing reef supports bountiful marine life.
Surveys have identified more than 650 fish species, of which 28 occur in extraordinary abundance. The island is a meeting place for Indian and Pacific Ocean species, some of which interbreed. This in turn has given the island international significance for having more hybrid species than anywhere else in the world.
The island is also unique for having three species of true land crab. These inhabit the whole island but are dependent on the ocean for the development of their larvae and spawn along the coastline in vast numbers during November.
Although there are more than 88 species of corals, species diversity is considered low compared to Indonesian reefs. It is still abundant, however, especially on the north and west coasts, reaching up to 75 per cent at Flying Fish Cove. Soft corals, sponges, feather stars, and sea fans grow on limestone walls where the reef plunges into deep ocean water.
Christmas Island’s waters provide habitat for threatened green turtles and critically endangered hawksbills. These migratory animals may travel thousands of kilometres across the Indian Ocean, but the
