House Reef

House Reef is a protected shore-entry reef site located directly off the jetty and swimming platform of a small island resort in Alor, Indonesia. Established as a no-take natural area in cooperation with the local community and island government around ten years ago, the reef comprises a mix of substrates: black sand with soft corals and patches of hard coral, rocky volcanic terrain, and a jetty structure that provides additional habitat. Entry and exit are made from the resort's swimming platform, and after an initial guided orientation, divers may explore independently with surface supervision from the crew.

The reef runs from very shallow water down to a maximum of 18 metres. The shallowest areas, just 3–5 metres beneath the swimming platform, feature volcanic rocks, sea urchins, and soft corals. At 18 metres sits a small but active cleaning station, home to cleaner shrimps, leaf scorpionfish, and moray eels. The jetty structure itself serves as a focal point for schooling fish and resident animals throughout the water column.

Marine life at the site is unusually varied for a house reef. The shallows hold mandarin fish, cardinal fish (including egg-carrying individuals), stonefish, marble shrimp, lobsters, and trumpet fish among the volcanic rocks. Nudibranchs, crabs, shrimps, juvenile fish, schools of diamondfish, and trevally inhabit the mixed-substrate areas, alongside mid-sized snappers and sweetlips, and occasional baby blacktip reef sharks. The Indian Ocean walkman and wunderpus octopus have also been recorded, the latter considered a rare find. Mandarin fish can be observed during the day darting between rocks and are best seen at sunset, when they perform mating displays — a noted photographic opportunity.