Hoki Maru

The Hoki Maru is one of the Japanese support vessels sunk in Chuuk Lagoon during Operation Hailstone in February 1944, when American carrier aircraft attacked the fleet anchorage that once served as a major Imperial Japanese Navy base. It lies in the Faichuk Islands area of the lagoon, a section seeing less traffic than the wrecks clustered near Weno. As with many of the Chuuk wrecks, cargo holds are of particular interest, sometimes holding vehicles or machinery, and the hull is encrusted with coral growth after decades underwater. Depths on these Faichuk sites often range through the mid-water column, making penetration and buoyancy control matters divers need to manage carefully. Visiting typically requires a liveaboard or dedicated boat trip given the distance from the main dive centers on Weno.

Confirmed by our research team, reported by independent divers, or observed nearby via iNaturalist — each entry is labelled with its source.

• Lined BristletoothCtenochaetus striatusReported here · unconfirmed
• Surf ParrotfishScarus rivulatusReported here · unconfirmed
• Humpnose Bigeye BreamMonotaxis grandoculisReported here · unconfirmed
• Indian Bullethead ParrotfishChlorurus sordidusReported here · unconfirmed
• Peacock DamselPomacentrus pavoObserved near here · iNaturalist
• Bluefin TrevallyCaranx melampygusObserved near here · iNaturalist
• Bleeker's ParrotfishChlorurus bleekeriObserved near here · iNaturalist
• Bigeye TrevallyCaranx sexfasciatusObserved near here · iNaturalist