• Young staghorn corals growing on a rope in a Ropes of Hope coral nursery, Mafia Island Marine Park
    Coral Gardening

Coral Gardening with The Ropes of Hope

Young staghorn corals growing on a rope in a Ropes of Hope coral nursery, Mafia Island Marine Park

Only at Chole Mjini. The Ropes of Hope is our partner, a coral restoration organisation (NGO) run by a local team that is bringing the reefs of Chole Bay back to life. See how a reef is restored, explained from start to finish by its marine biologists, then dive their coral nursery and plant out coral yourself.

How the reef is restored

One of our staff scientists from The Ropes of Hope walks you through how the team works and the whole restoration process. It starts with collecting corals of opportunity: loose, broken-off coral fragments that would otherwise die from the abrasion of sand on the seabed. These are cut into smaller pieces and suspended on ropes in a nursery, built from bamboo poles and coconut rope made by the women and children of Chole Island. One of the team’s many tasks is to keep the nursery clean of bio-fouling: unwanted algae and other organisms that grow on the ropes and corals and feed on them. Over time the nurseries become a living gene bank of many coral species. Finally, the corals are out-planted, which means fixed onto artificial substrate laid out on degraded reef.

Dive the nursery yourself

Then put it into practice on a 60-minute dive in shallow water, at the coral nursery just beyond the mangroves north of treehouse Nne and at the restoration sites in Chole Bay. You help plant out coral yourself. You need to be an Advanced diver, or a very experienced diver with good buoyancy control.

Snorkel instead

Not a diver? The Ropes of Hope snorkel lets you see the restoration sites from the surface.

The price includes a donation to The Ropes of Hope.

Our managers plan the next day’s activities with you each evening.

See prices for this and all our activities (PDF)

A diver holds up a branch of young coral, ready to fix it to a nursery rope, Mafia Island Marine Park A diver swims beneath long ropes of young corals in a Ropes of Hope coral nursery, in deep blue water A diver cleans young corals growing on nursery ropes with a small brush, The Ropes of Hope, Mafia Island Marine Park Rows of ropes covered in young corals stretch over the reef in a Ropes of Hope coral nursery, Mafia Island A diver carries a crate of coral fragments over the reef, ready to plant them on the seabed A crate of coral fragments floats at the surface of turquoise water, ready to be taken down to the nursery

Details

Duration: A 30 min briefing, then a 60-minute dive

Start Location: Chole Mjini

Fitness Level: Advanced divers, or very experienced divers with good buoyancy control

Highlights

  • Only at Chole Mjini
  • Led by The Ropes of Hope’s marine biologists
  • The whole restoration process, from corals of opportunity to out-planting
  • A 60-minute dive at the nursery, planting out coral yourself
  • The price includes a donation to The Ropes of Hope