KOTA KINABALU: Over 1,300 destructive crown-of-thorns starfish (COTs) were removed from coral reefs around Tabawan and Adal Islands in Semporna following reports of active outbreaks threatening local reef ecosystems, says NGO Reef Check Malaysia.
Its marine conservation response team removed more than 1,300 COTs in the operation conducted on June 1 and 2, said Adzmin Fatta, senior programme manager of Reef Check Malaysia based in Sabah.
He said COTs are threats to coral reefs as these starfish feed on live coral tissue and can cause extensive reef degradation when their population reaches outbreak levels.
When the NGO received information about the outbreak, a team of trained divers from Community Marine Conservation Group from Selakan, Larapan, Mabul and Kunak were mobilised to assess and respond.
Adzmin said the team conducted two dives per day over two days and successfully removed 1,318 COTs, with 742 removed from Pulau Tabawan and 576 more removed from Pulau Adal.
“Observations from the response effort revealed that most COTs in Tabawan were concentrated at depths of 18m to 20m, likely because many shallow reef areas had already been severely impacted by previous outbreaks.
“In contrast, the majority of COTs recorded around Adal were found in shallower waters between 1m and 10m, where healthy coral habitats remain vulnerable to further predation,” he said.
He said coral bleaching was also observed at both sites, but remained low, at less than 10% coverage on each island.
The team also recorded the presence of ghost nets, highlighting ongoing marine debris pressures affecting reef health.
Community-led conservation efforts are proving to be one of the most effective ways to respond rapidly to emerging threats affecting our reefs, he added.
He said removing more than 1,300 COTs in just two days demonstrates the value of investing in local conservation capacity.
While the current bleaching levels observed during the survey were relatively low, he said the situation across Sabah’s reefs requires close attention as ocean temperatures continue to rise.
Reef Check Malaysia and its community conservation partners hope divers, tourism operators and coastal communities, continue to report any signs of severe coral bleaching or unusual COTs aggregations for early detection and response.
