written by Cécile Flipo for the 2022 edition
The dolphins of Rangiroa
Rangiroa, the largest archipelago of the Tuamotu islands, is also the most famous for lovers of the big blue! In the luminous waters of the Hiria channel, the most enchanting underwater show of Polynesia is played out, with a diverse and abundant fauna, and surprising encounters, of the kind that leave a lasting impression and that you never forget. It is through the eyes of underwater photographer Bernard Beaussier that we offer you to discover this fascinating diving site where it is not uncommon to encounter bottlenose dolphins.
In the list of the most extraordinary dive sites in the world is the Hiria Pass in Rangiroa. Better known as Tiputa Channel, after the village that borders it, it offers extraordinary encounters, unique in the world, which allow divers to approach a rare, diversified and abundant underwater fauna... and especially the Tursiops, bottlenose dolphins or the Flippers of our childhood! Bernard Beaussier dives every day in the translucent waters of this pass and the family of dolphins that lives there, about thirty individuals, seems to have become familiar with the bubbles of this passionate photographer who manages to take extraordinary pictures of the playful, curious and teasing mammals.
It is in the 15-20 meters depth zone, near the pass, that dolphins are most often observed. Very curious and observant, they frequently come to meet the webbed bipeds that evolve under the surface. No other wild dive site in the world allows humans to experience such an interaction with these animals that have always fascinated human beings. The encounter is emotionally immense: the smile of a dolphin and its gaze overwhelm you with an immense happiness, an immeasurable joy, sometimes therapeutic. It is all year long and even when they have their young close to them, that the dolphins approach, get familiar and "adopt" even the regulars of the place. It is not rare that they come to admire themselves in the dome of Bernard Beaussier's camera!
The life in the Pass is marked by the daily presence of turtles, napoleons, triggerfish, jacks, surgeonfish, but also of a group of about a hundred barracudas, which like the bubbles of the divers and often start to swirl above the divers. Hiria also offers the opportunity for beautiful seasonal encounters, such as Hammerhead Sharks between January and March, large individuals of 3 to 5 meters, sometimes curious, sometimes fearful. At the same time, Leopard Rays gather for their reproduction, sometimes with up to 30 individuals: it is a wonderful ballet! The big Manta Rays are occasionally observed all year round, either on the flat side or drifting in the channel with the current coming in. Sunset dives are another facet of diving at Hiria, with fish that change their behavior, the hunt that starts, big tunas that pass by at lightning speed and a fringing light that, on the platitude side, sprays the clouds of colored surgeons with gold.
