Koh Tao

Koh Tao is an island in the Gulf of Thailand, part of Surat Thani province, north of Koh Samui and Koh Phangan. It is one of the most popular places in the country to learn to dive, with numerous dive schools operating out of Mae Haad and Sairee Beach and a scattering of granite boulder sites and reefs around the island's coastline. The waters here are sheltered by neighboring islands and headlands, making the surrounding bays a common base for both training dives and boat trips to nearby sites. This particular reef site sits at a maximum depth of around 12 metres and is rated a beginner dive, well suited to the schools working out of Mae Haad and Sairee. Divers have also reported whale sharks passing through here, though sightings are occasional rather than a given.

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

• Whale sharkWhale sharkReported here · unconfirmed
• Whale SharkRhincodon typusReported here · unconfirmed
• Hong Kong ButterflyfishChaetodon wiebeliReported here · unconfirmed
• Blue-barred ParrotfishScarus ghobbanReported here · unconfirmed
• Doublebar RabbitfishSiganus virgatusReported here · unconfirmed
• Redbreast Maori WrasseCheilinus fasciatusReported here · unconfirmed
• Blackeye ThicklipHemigymnus melapterusReported here · unconfirmed
• Longfin BannerfishHeniochus acuminatusReported here · unconfirmed
• Slingjaw WrasseEpibulus insidiatorReported here · unconfirmed
• Pink Skunk AnemonefishAmphiprion perideraionReported here · unconfirmed
• Titan TriggerfishBalistoides viridescensReported here · unconfirmed
• Scissortail SergeantAbudefduf sexfasciatusReported here · unconfirmed