Swimming with Crocs

The Crocs yacht sailed into Tioman recently to help divers conduct coral reef surveys. Even seasickness and the fear of sunburn didn’t stop SOFIANNI SUBKI from having a great time

“I’ve been here twice before,” says American Grant Knisely, referring to Tioman Island. “The seawater’s so clear you can see right through the bottom. You don’t get that in Singapore.” Singapore-based Knisely, a digital content specialist for American footwear brand Crocs, was recently back for his third visit, to take part in a survey of coral reef conducted by non-profit organisation Reef Check Malaysia. As the Crocs’ rep, he was there to answer any questions that I, the only media covering the event, would have. Our adventure was made possible by the Crocs yacht, which ferried us and the Reef Check eco-divers from Tioman to surrounding dive sites to do the survey.

The joint effort marked the first time that Crocs was working with Reef Check Malaysia (part of the Reef Check Foundation, the world’s largest international coral reef monitoring programme). Founded in the United States in 1996, it recruits volunteer recreational divers and marine scientists to monitor the reefs. Why coral reef conservation? “The heritage of Crocs is in boating,” says Knisely, 28. “Crocs was designed to be a comfortable, lightweight shoe that doesn’t leave marks on boats. Even before the co-founders of the company designed the shoe, they were already aquatically oriented and boating enthusiasts. Sponsoring Reef Check really takes us back to our heritage which is that, at our core, we’re a bunch of boating enthusiasts.” The Saturday morning was sunny when Knisely, seven Reef Check eco-divers and I set sail. We were taken to two dive sites by the full-time crew — skipper Guerre-Genton Francis and first mate Cedric Desseaux. The two Frenchmen live on the 16.4m (54ft) yacht that Crocs bought a year ago as a marketing tool.

“We chose the sites because they’re popular with snorkellers and scuba-divers,” says eco-diver Daniel Lee, who is also Reef Check’s programme manager. “It’s exposed to medium impact from divers, which is why we surveyed the same sites last year.” He explains that while there are 42 islands in Malaysia that are designated as marine parks, only five, including Tioman, have marine park centres. The other four are Redang, Perhentian, Tinggi and Payar. Reef Check has done surveys at Redang, Perhentian, Tenggol and Tioman. Marine parks are basically areas at sea that are protected by the government.

“We monitor the health, condition as well as changes to the reefs over a long period of time as we can’t get an accurate picture with just one visit,” says Lee, 24. The data is then compiled into a report and sent to marine parks. “We work mostly with marine parks but we also keep an eye on what’s happening on land too. We work with resorts and local non-governmental organisations like Wild Asia to promote responsible tourism.” After over an hour of sailing on choppy waters that induced sea-sickness, which I alone suffered from, we arrived at the first site, Malang Rock.

While the divers plunged in to do their work, I was taken to the nearby island of Tulai in a dingy to recuperate. I was accompanied by Jesse, the kind wife of eco-diver R. Thiagu, who joined us for the trip. After I felt certain I wasn’t going to puke for the seventh that time that day, Jesse and I did our own survey of animals that live the island, like the ginormous monitor lizard whose home we accidently invaded and birds of prey that circled the area.

When the divers were done, Jesse and I rejoined them on the Crocs yacht and headed for Kador Bay, the second dive site. This time, while the divers did the survey, I did some snorkelling and saw for myself the breathtaking beauty of the coral reefs so worthy and deserving of protection. It was a nice way to end the trip. “When we do a survey, we look at the seabed to see whether it’s been polluted or not,” says eco-diver R. Thiagu, a manager in the shipping line. “Fishermen sometimes use dynamite and as a result, fish find it difficult to breathe.” He adds that counting certain types of fish is also part of the survey. “For example, if you find just five garupas in one spot, you know something’s wrong. But if you find more than 20 garupas, then the conditions are healthy.” Thiagu, a certified diver since 2003, says that eco-diving is different from other types of diving as it also focuses on marine life education. “With other diving courses, the emphasis is on various diving styles and equipment.” Fellow eco-diver Azahar Mohd Said says that the best part about doing a survey is that you learn a lot about marine life. “You get to know the different types of reefs and fish,” says the customer relations management officer with Sime Darby Property. “It makes you appreciate Nature more.” Reef Check’s main objective of conserving the coral reefs is done through the certified training of eco-divers and a survey programme. Last year, 21 sites at four east coast islands were surveyed. This month, it started an outreach programme with primary schoolchildren. A coral reef camp with a group of schoolchildren was recently done at the islands of Tioman, Tinggi and Sibu. The outdoor, activity-based programme teaches children about the marine ecosystem, the importance of conserving it and role of the marine parks. Next month, Reef Check’s taking it to Redang and Perhentian. Lee, who majored in Ecology and Bio-diversity at University Malaya, has been with Reef Check for over a year, He says he joined the organisation because he’s always been interested in marine life. Born and raised in Kuantan, he lived near the beach so the sea was a big part of his childhood. “Have you ever seen a turtle swim underwater?” he asks. “It’s one of the best things I’ve ever seen in my life. If we want the future generation to see it too, we have to protect the turtles and all the other creatures of the sea before it’s too late.”