The blue waters of Sipadan Island and its sheer walls are the most famous, attracting barracuda tornados, schools of bumphead parrotfish, reef sharks and the chance of hammerheads 40m down early mornings. But just across the channel, the shallows waters of Pulau Mabul and Pulau Kapalai deliver a different kind of diving addiction: muck diving where the smallest macro critters steal the show. For seasoned underwater photographers and critter-hunters, this corner of Sabah is a rare place where two scuba diving dream trips (pelagic action and macro paradise) can fit into the same week.
Signature species around Mabul and Kapalai
Mabul island: at dusk, mandarinfish gather for their blue-hour courtship while blue-ring octopus sightings can happen on calm mornings or afternoons; expect green and hawksbill sea turtles grazing the shallows, various frogfish species, ornate ghost pipefish, seahorses and pygmy seahorses, ribbon eels, cuttlefish and bobtail squid after dark, plus leaf scorpionfish, banded sea snakes, and the occasional mimic octopus.
Kapalai: flamboyant cuttlefish patrol the sand in broad daylight, often pausing for fantastic behavioural sequences such as hunting, mating or even egg-laying under debris and rubbles.
Seaventures house reef: crocodilefish, ornate ghost pipefish, colorful frogfish species and various nudibranchs, shrimps and crabs migrating between the rig pillars.
Stay close to the action: 4 established dive resorts on Mabul island
Sipadan-Mabul Resort & Mabul Water Bungalows
Sipadan Mabul Resort is a beautiful beach resort has serious dive infrastructure and the added perk of access to the iconic overwater Mabul Water Bungalows (your breakfast, lunch and dinners are taken at the MWB restaurant) and boardwalks for sunsets and photo opps. SMART’s dive centre runs an efficient day diving operation to Mabul/Kapalai and of course Sipadan (with guaranteed dive permits), plus Nitrox and Tech diving for longer macro sessions.
The layout suits individuals, buddies and groups of uw photographers who wish go on long muck dives while their travel partners can enjoy the beach, spa, jaccuzis or easy snorkeling (boat snorkeling trips included). For those seeking a comfortable Pulau Mabul island stay without compromising dive ops, this is the preferred choice.
Seaventures Dive Rig
A favourite for hard-core divers who want to dive as much as possible (unlimited dives). The Seaventures Dive Resort is a converted oil rig platform is located 500 metres off Mabul island and drops divers straight to one of it’s richest house reefs via a mechanical lift, meaning unlimited self-guided macro dives between normal boat trips. The dive resort offers camera-friendly logistics (such as a dedicated room, generous rinse, etc) and a tight diving operation with Nitrox available making it ideal for the rare species hunter who want to maximum bottom time. Cabins are comfortable while compact and the chef’s cuisine is delicious.
Borneo Divers Mabul Resort
The pioneer of diving at Sipadan, Borneo Divers is a well-oiled, full-service resort offering 1 or 2 guaranteed Sipadan dive permits per stay making it a strategic choice for divers who want to secure pelagic days, huge healthy corals and sheer panormaic walls at Sipadan while building a macro-heavy schedule at Mabul and Kapalai. Dive facilities and amneities are plentiful while a sunset bar, 2 swimming pools allow for groups to gather and relax between dives.
Why this area hooks macro lovers
The port town of Semporna, located on Sabah’s east coast in Malaysian Borneo, is often seen as a jumping-off point for Sipadan, Mabul, Kapalai and Mataking islands. However, Semporna should be considered as an underwater photography destination in its own right with a stop over of one day there before or after the famous islands of Mabul and Sipadan, especially the ones passionated about macro and muck diving finds.
Semporna’s shelf breaks into broad skirts of sand, seagrass, bajau laut stilt houses, rubble and wooden piers. These micro-habitats concentrate food and shelter which are an ideal nursery for the tiny macro life to thrive. Dive briefs here plan are simple: slow down, patiently scan the shallows and let the sand and rubble speak. What looks like empty silt becomes a stage for marine life that most divers won’t ever notice such as rare tiny and colorful nudibranchs, shrimp tucked into sponges and crabs masquerading as rubble.
Underwater photographers will enjoy the long dives in shallows, careful finning and expert dive guides and macro spotters who knows where are the secret spots to find and point out these tiny underwater animals that often look like ‘a lump of dirt’ until the dive torch reveals the details up close. Expect two distinct environments in a single dive itinerary:
First is the muck diving on sheltered sandy/silty bottoms, seemingly barren sandy or silty flats, perfect for nudibranchs, skeleton shrimps, cryptic crabs, bluering octopus and flamboyant cuttlefish.
The second is reef and platform habitat around Kapalai and Mabul, where coral heads, sponges, and pier pilings brim with subjects. Both are equally rewarding from a photographic perspective, and on many dives it feels like opening a new present every few minutes. Vibrant shallow artificial reefs around Kapalai and Seaventures rig platform and Mabul’s bommies, where macro life hides among sponges, soft corals and reef rubble.
The approach with your specialized divemaster is intentionally slow. Every clump of algae or hydroid can be a clue. Many visiting UW shooters remark that ‘the tiniest ones hold the strangest shapes and ‘vibrant detail’ and that’s the thrill, feeling like Christmas day with so many rare finds: turning apparent nothingness into a bursting frame that can be enjoyed in full when zooming these microscopic details later in the dark room on the computer.
Currents here are generally mild and predictable, largely influenced by the tidal cycle. Typically, they pose minimal challenge for divers, allowing for safe and enjoyable drift experiences, though it’s always best to check local conditions before heading out.
How locals find the tiniest and rarest macro critters:
Use an underwater torch even during daytime and scan slowly and patiently in a regular pattern so no to miss anything. Mask level with the substrate; scan laterally for rhythmic shapes (cerata, gills, egg spirals). Minimal finning, no ‘sand storms’ Many subjects sit on living bryozoans or delicate algae. The photography is never worth the damage to the living environment.
A hit list of rare and unusual critters
The Mabul, Semporna area along with the Tun Sakaran Marine Park has recently produced an enviable list of rarely seen nudibranchs and sea slugs, including:
- Sakuraeolis, Hypselodoris, Phestilla, Tenellia, Trinchesia, Cratena spp.
- Cyerce katiae, Cyerce blackburnae (‘butterfly nudibranch’)
- Phyllodesmium crypticum, Melibe spp. (including M. engeli)
- Aegires spp. (e.g., A. malinus) and Trapania armilla
- Favorinus spp. (egg-ribbon specialists)
- Thecacera spp. (‘what a beautiful specimen’ is a common reaction when the orange tubercles glow under the flashlight)
- Goniobranchus spp.,
- Placida sacoglossans, the so-called Ghost nudibranch
- Yellow Tritonia
- Eubranchus ocellatus
- Costasiella kuroshimae (‘leaf sheep’, ‘Rosy-cheeked’ and ‘Pink-nipped’ variants)
- Colpodaspis, Tropicana, Goniodoris (incl. pellagella), Pruvotfolia rhodopos, Vellicolla bubbleshells, etc.
And the list doesn’t end with nudis. Expect exquisite micro-crustaceans: cryptic sponge shrimp, Phycocaris (hairy shrimp), Synalpheus stimpsoni, plus Caliphylla and Hermaea sacoglossans. Your macro dive guide might find ‘the teeniest, tiniest Tambja’ less than a millimetre wide, so bring your magnifying glass.
Some species are notorious: the kind that elicit groans when your macro dive guide signals them because they can be crazy to photograph. Think of them as macro royalty: technically demanding but worth the effort and patience when the shot lands. Others play tricks with camouflage (Batesian and Müllerian mimicry); ‘optical illusion’, ‘glow sticks’, and ‘popping with neons’ are apt remarks after your dive is done when all the nudis protuberances catch the strobes.
Choosing the right macro dive guide
Experienced macro spotters are the force multiplier here. The best know seasonal micro-habitats (egg ribbons for Favorinus, bryozoans for Cyerce, specific sponge types for Aegires), and keep dives intentionally super slow. An expert divemaster macro guide will rotate UW subjects so that each buddy team can get time to adjust their camera settings, manage silt and help with clean backgrounds and backscatters – critical when subjects are only a few millimeters long. For visiting underwater photographers, request a guide which has macro-photography experience and their own camera gears; it changes everything about pacing, positioning, lighting, composition and the rarity of the finds.
Building a balanced week of diving at Sipadan & Mabul
A classic 5-6 day plan combines one or two Sipadan days dive for blue-water pelagics and sea turtles galore with four macro focused days split among Mabul, Kapalai, the rig house reef and possibly Siamil island. Add sunset dives and unlimited dives under jetties or at the house reef looking for tiny nudibranch, cryptic crustaceans and juvenile cephalopods. Photographers chasing underwater rarities should request a private macro specilized dive guide and early or late boat slots for softer light and less diver traffic over sand patches. Dusk dives are prime for mandarinfish and for certain seaslugs and sea snails that venture onto exposed algae at low angles of light.
Responsible muck diving & reef-safe habits in the Semporna area
Muck diving and macro dive sites are fragile. Choose reef safe sunscreen, keep gauges and octos clipped and practise the ‘photo triangle’ (one finger on dead substrate, buoyancy trimmed, fins still). There are some specific micro/macro zones; respecting these keeps the marine habitat healthy and the critter pipeline steady for future trips.
The underwater photographer’s takeaway
Few destinations let wide-angle underwater dreams and macro critter obsessions coexist so seamlessly. Plan on Pulau Sipadan for the grand spectacle made famous in the 1980’s by late Captain Jacques-Yves Cousteau, then settle into the deliberate rhythm of Mabul and Kapalai where rare neon-trimmed nudis turn sand and rubble into a treasure hunt. With a seasoned macro spotter guide, patient dive pacing and a base that matches the style – luxury beach comfort at SMART or Mabul Water Bungalows, piorneer Borneo Divers or round-the-clock diving time at Seaventures – this region delivers the kind of portfolio that keeps famous local and international underwater photographers coming back. And when your dive guide’s rattle signals that next tiny queen of the rubble? Take a breath, steady the rig, and let your camera do the talking.