Pamilacan Island is a small island off the coast of Bohol in the Philippines, and it’s a famous destination for scuba diving and snorkeling. The island is surrounded by a fringing reef, which is a type of reef that grows close to the shore. These reefs are teeming with life, and some of the marine life you can expect to see include starfish, seagrasses, crinoids, crown-of-thorns starfish, and cleaner wrasses.
The reefs around Pamilacan Island are also home to steep slopes, large hard and soft corals, and a wide variety of fish and marine life. Some of the interesting creatures you might see include mandarinfish, cuttlefish, robust pipefish, nudibranchs, sweetlips, garden eels, moray eels, butterflyfish, bannerfish, trumpetfish, turtles, bluefin trevally, surgeonfish, pufferfish, lionfish, batfish, bluespotted stingrays, barracuda, emperor fish, bigmouth mackerel, jackfish, shrimp, unicornfish, sea snakes, frogfish, and more.
Enthusiasts of the deep sea have the opportunity to delve into the intricate coral formations and dynamic marine biodiversity found at the Sanctuary dive site, with depths extending to 30 meters. On the other hand, divers desiring a shallower immersion can explore the varied ecosystems of the Dakit Dakit site. For a distinctive encounter, Snake Island/Cervera Shoal adjacent to the island offers the chance to witness sea snakes amid a breathtaking coral plateau. Lastly, snorkeling enthusiasts can revel in the mesmerizing underwater realm at Spanish Tower, located northeast of the island.
The west side portion of the island is a marine sanctuary. It’s called the Pamilacan Island Fish Sanctuary, and it was established in 1986. The sanctuary covers an area of 11.9 hectares and is a great place to see a variety of marine life. Pamilacan Island is part of the Bohol Marine Triangle (BMT). The Bohol Marine Triangle covers an area of over 1,120 square kilometers around Panglao, Balicasag, and Pamilacan Islands. This triangle is known for its
rich marine biodiversity and is considered one of the top 10 sites of marine conservation significance in the Philippines.
Pamilacan Island Location
Situated approximately 12.5 kilometers south of Bohol Island, Pamilacan Island is conveniently accessible by a one-hour boat journey. Departures are available from both Baclayon town on Bohol’s mainland and Alona Beach on Panglao Island. Tourists in Alona Beach can take advantage of local boat rentals for the trip. As an administrative division of Baclayon municipality, Pamilacan Island rests amidst the Bohol Sea, strategically positioned between the larger islands of Bohol and Mindanao.
Pamilacan Island Location Map
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Additional Information
Read more about Bohol. Check out the links below to discover more!
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