At Katembe, we began our first coral restoration experiment in April 2020.

The project was initiated in response to a significant outbreak of Crown-of-Thorns starfish (COTS), which posed a major threat to our reef and those of neighboring islands.

In early 2020, we faced a serious COTS infestation and took action to remove them from our house reef. This marked the beginning of our efforts to test whether we could successfully replant corals and help our reef recover

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After the first month, encouraged by initial results, we decided to expand our restoration efforts gradually. By the end of the first year, the average growth of transplanted corals was approximately 10 cm. This promising outcome motivated us to work toward restoring the entire house reef to its former glory.

CORAL RESTORATION

In 2022, we began involving guests from the resort in our restoration efforts. That year alone, with the help of our incredible guests, we successfully transplanted thousands of coral fragments to our house reef.
By the end of 2024, number of transplanted frames has grown to approximately 70 frames.

Our restoration process begins with our dive team collecting coral fragments, known as "Corals of Opportunity."
These are naturally broken corals, detached due to events like turtle movements, fish activity, diver contact, diseases, or storms.

Once enough healthy coral pieces are collected, they are brought to the surface and placed in seawater baskets. The next step is fragmentation, where the collected corals are carefully divided into smaller pieces.

These fragments are then attached to specially designed frames. Once the frames are ready, they are transported back to the reef and securely positioned underwater. This meticulous process helps ensure that the transplanted corals have the best chance to thrive and contribute to the reef’s restoration.