The Living Oceans Foundation embarked on our fourth research expedition to the Red Sea coast of Saudi Arabia.  The boat departed Jeddah on April 4, 2009 and headed south to the Farasan Banks; an area that had not been scientifically surveyed since Jacques Cousteau visited the area in the 1950's.  In Captain Cousteau's 1953 book, The Living Sea, he described this area as the wildest of all reef complexes in the Red Sea.  The Farasan Banks covers an area of about 350 miles north to south and 30 miles east to west, with an estimated 6 million acres of submerged reefs and small islands.  With highly unpredictible weather, few possible anchorages protected from the strong winds and waves that characterize the Red Sea, and shallow submerged pinnacles and outcrops, navigation and access to these remote coral reefs presented numerous challenges.  Based on Captain Cousteau's description of the area, we anticipated finding many diverse and healthy reef complexes.  His description of the area:  a "demented masterpiece of outcrops, shoals, foaming reefs, and other lurking ship-breakers... an area of riotous marine life, are charted only on their perimeter" provoked images of an underwater paradise teaming with vibrantly-colored marine life. 

   Our research vessel, the Golden Shadow

     Beneath the Red Sea!

The Red Sea, extending for about 1,900 kilometers is a relatively young ocean, triggered by the formation of a new sea floor along a ridge that separates the African and Arabian tectonic plates. The Red Sea has a width of about 354 kilometers at its widest point, becoming gradually narrower southward to the Strait of Bab el-Mandab, where it feeds into the Indian Ocean.  Because it is a relatively closed body of water, water temperatures can be unusually hot, with a minimum temperature of only about 27°C around the Farasan Banks.  We expected temperatures of up to around 30-32°C in reef environments at the time of our surveys, and peak temperatures in shallow bays and reef flat communities that may approach 40°C.  Unlike other tropical destinations, the Red Sea has an unusually high salinity - up to 41 parts per thousand in some areas- largely due to the hot climate and absence of river discharge. Because of its great depth, arid climate and lack of river discharge, sediments derived from both land and the seabed are minimal, which should help ensure crystal clear, aquamarine waters.

Off most stretches of the Red Sea, including coastal areas extending from Jeddah to the Farasan Islands are well established fringing reefs. In the Farasan Banks, a shallow area of seabed extends much further offshore, forming complex archipelagos and islands.  In addition to the seaward extension of the continental shelf are extensive groups of isolated reefs, pinnacles and atoll-like formations arising from deep water and extending to a few meter from the surface.  Many of these appear to have complex, deep-water lagoonal environments with seagrass beds, algal flats and protected reef environments.

Many of the reef species we saw are shared with the reefs in the Indian and Pacific Oceans, although the diversity of animals and plants is much lower. We found many species unique to the area, known as endemics, because of the isolation of the Red Sea from the Indian Ocean, warmer waters and higher salinity. There are about 170 species of corals in the area, including many branching corals in the genus Acropora and Pocillopora and smaller bushy forms in the genus Stylophora and Seriatopora, rounded massive corals in the genus Platygyra, Echinopora, Favia, and Favites, and the principal reef-building coral, Porites. This area is also known for colorful flower-like soft corals such as Dendronephthya and pulsating Xenia colonies, as well as a host of other cndiarians including black corals, sea anemones, and sea fans.

We saw several hundred varieties of reef fishes, some which feed on algae (parrotfish, surgeonfishes and damselfishes), coral and sponge eaters (butterflyfishes and angelfishes) and large predators like grouper, snapper and sharks.  Besides many of the small and colorful reef invertebrates, we also saw several species of turtles, whale sharks, and dolphins.

A common Red Sea fish, the greasy grouper

     A large table coral, Acropora hyacinthus

During our expedition we focused on three key objectives - collecting field data to map and characterize the different habitats types; underwater surveys to assess the composition and structure of corals and other invertebrates, algae and seagrasses, and commercially and ecologically important reef fishes; and an examination of the health and resilience of the reef systems.

We surveyed shallow and mid-depth reefs, comparing outer, offshore locations with nearshore and lagoonal reefs, using a variety of boat-based tools and equipment and in water SCUBA survey approaches.  By combining satellite imagery of the region, groundtruthing efforts, and underwater surveys, we identified areas of unusual biodiversity and health, as well as some of the threats affecting the region.  Having completed the Expedition, we will begin working with resource managers to identify site-based conservation strategies, such as possible marine protected areas.

Visit some of the links on the Farasan Banks pages to learn more about the science team and the officers, our research platform and research capabilities, and research objectives and methods.  Dr. Andy Brucnker also posted photographs and initial findings under the "Daily Updates".  Be sure to read Glenn Page's exciting SustainaMetrix Expedition Log archive, as well!

   Divers assessing the coral reef