Palau

Region: Republic of Palau, Western Pacific (Micronesia)
Type: Coral reefs, walls, channels, drift dives, caverns, pelagics, wrecks, Jellyfish Lake
Significance: Where Eric Cheng’s path to Wetpixel began; world’s first shark sanctuary; global marine conservation leader; one of the “seven underwater wonders of the world”
First Wetpixel coverage: 2001 (origin story)
Key dive operators: Sam’s Tours, Fish ‘n Fins, Ocean Hunter Liveaboards, Solitude Liveaboards

Overview

Palau is an archipelago of approximately 250 islands spanning 180 square miles in the western Caroline Islands of Micronesia (^[1]). Situated at the convergence of three major ocean currents, it hosts over 1,330 species of fish and 700 species of coral, earning its designation as “one of the seven underwater wonders of the world” (^[2]). The reefs support large pelagic populations including grey reef sharks, manta rays, barracuda, jacks, turtles, napoleon wrasses, and mandarin fish (^[3]).

Palau holds a unique place in Wetpixel history: Eric Cheng’s April 2001 trip to Palau aboard the Big Blue Explorer liveaboard with a Coolpix 990 and Ikelite housing was the trip that led to his taking over and relaunching Wetpixel (originally founded by David Breitigam in 2000). The Kona Aggressor II Digital Shootout webcast in November 2001 identified Cheng as having “recently published journals and photographs from his trips to Palau and Bora Bora” (^[4]).

Dive Sites

Palau’s underwater topography is diverse, offering walls covered in soft coral, channels, corners, caverns, and WWII wrecks (^[5]). Key sites documented in Wetpixel coverage include:

• Blue Corner — World-famous wall dive with massive schools of bigeye trevally, grey reef sharks cruising through strong currents, and black snapper aggregations. Frequently described as one of the best dives on the planet (^[6], ^[7]).
• German Channel — Manta ray cleaning station where reef mantas (Manta alfredi) stop for cleaning (^[8]).
• Ulong Channel — Drift dive site where massive schools of bigeye trevally form dramatic formations, and crescent-tail bigeyes congregate inside the channel (^[9]).
• Blue Holes — Cavern dive featuring large gorgonian sea fans in dramatic light (^[10]). Richard Brooks described filming in “the serene caverns of Blue Holes” for his showreel (^[11]).
• Big Drop Off / New Drop Off — Walls with abundant reef fish, hard and soft coral, and resting sea turtles (^[12]).
• Siaes Corner / Siaes Tunnel — Sites with giant gorgonian sea fans and schools of blue trevally on dramatic walls with colorful soft coral (^[13]).
• Dexter’s Wall — Reef wall with anthias aggregations and schools of striped large-eye bream in the shallows (^[14], ^[15]).
• Sandy Paradise — Macro site with leaf scorpionfish on bommies surrounded by glassfish (^[16]).
• Turtle Cove / Virgin Blue Hole — Reef sites with masked bannerfish, red sea whips, and dramatic walls (^[17]).
• Helmet Wreck — WWII-era wreck with hard coral growth. Part of a collection of wrecks documented by Nick Martorano in his film “Guardian of the Wrecks,” which contrasted the past (shoes, machinery, bottles) with the present (corals and crustaceans reclaiming the structures) (^[18], ^[19]).
• Jellyfish Lake — See dedicated section below.

Jellyfish Lake

Jellyfish Lake (Ongeim’l Tketau), a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is one of the world’s most iconic underwater photography locations. The marine lake contains millions of endemic golden jellyfish (Mastigias sp.) that migrate daily following sunlight patterns (^[20]).

Photography and Film

• Eric Cheng photographed Mastigias sp. jellyfish in Jellyfish Lake; the image won the Wilderness Photography category in the 2007 National Geographic Traveller / Photo District News “World in Focus” professional photography contest. The winning images were displayed at PhotoPlus Expo in New York (^[21]).
• Mark Thorpe and John Friday used Jellyfish Lake as the setting for testing three RED One Digital Cinema Camera underwater housings (AquaVideo, Gates, and SL Cine / Element Technica retrofit) while documenting daily migration patterns of Mastigias jellies. Nick Martorano posted video clips of the housings in action (^[22]).
• Richard Brooks (Lightning Strike Productions) created the film “Perceptions,” featuring time-lapse footage shot in Jellyfish Lake over a year, giving “an insight into the migration and light seeking behavior of the golden jellyfish” (^[23]).
• Matt Tworkowski won an Indonesia dive trip at the 2007-2008 Underwater Australasia photo competition for his image of stingless jellyfish in Palau’s lake (^[24]).
• Daniel Selmeczi captured a surreal image of a nautilus in Palau, describing creative techniques he used to photograph the elusive cephalopod (^[25]).

El Nino Crisis and Closure (2016-2019)

In 2016, a severe El Nino drought forced the Palau government to declare a state of emergency. The jellyfish population crashed from approximately 8 million to under 600,000; Sam’s Tours estimated there may have been fewer than 300,000 remaining. The Coral Reef Research Foundation attributed the decline to increased salinity from lack of rainwater, which killed off the plankton sustaining the jellyfish, warning “the golden jelly population could be on the verge of crashing, to the point where there are no more medusae (adults) swimming around the lake” (^[26]).

In May 2017, the Republic of Palau formally announced that Jellyfish Lake would remain closed to visitors. The Ministry of Natural Resources, Environment & Tourism stated that the closure was “of key significance as it essentially removes additional stress that may be caused by visitors and human activities.” As a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the government emphasized the importance of demonstrating conservation efforts to the global community (^[27]).

The lake reopened in 2019 after the jellyfish population recovered. Julia Nilsson’s photograph of free diving with thousands of stingless golden jellyfish in 2019, shortly after the reopening, was recognized at the 2022 UN World Oceans Day photo contest (^[28]).

Conservation Leadership

Palau is one of the world’s most progressive marine conservation nations, with an inherent conservation culture rooted in the ancient tradition of Bul, where the Council of Chiefs names certain reefs off-limits to fishing (^[29]).

World’s First Shark Sanctuary (2009)

In September 2009, President Johnson Toribiong declared the world’s first shark sanctuary at the United Nations General Assembly, outlawing shark finning throughout Palau’s entire exclusive economic zone (EEZ) — approximately 237,000 square miles. He stated: “The need to protect sharks outweighs the need to enjoy a bowl of soup. These creatures are being slaughtered and are at the brink of extinction unless we take positive action to protect them” (^[30]). President Toribiong received the Ocean Heritage Award from the Shark Research Institute in September 2010 in recognition of this achievement. Dr. Sylvia Earle, Honorary President of the Shark Research Institute, commented: “If we take away the top of the ocean food chain — the sharks — the whole system will break down” (^[31]).

In a 2011 interview with Annie Crawley, President Toribiong reiterated: “The need to protect our sharks much outweighs the need to enjoy a bowl of shark fin soup.” He emphasized that the next generation needed to experience and love the ocean so they would grow up wanting to protect it (^[32]).

Regional and International Expansion

• 2010: The Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) voted to outlaw the shark fin trade, joining Palau in legislative protection of sharks (^[33]).
• 2011: At the 15th Micronesian Chief Executive Summit, leaders passed a resolution to create a regional shark sanctuary covering the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, the Republic of Palau, the Territory of Guam, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas Islands — covering two million square miles, the first cooperative agreement of its kind between regional governments (^[34]).
• 2011: Eight countries (the Bahamas, Colombia, Honduras, the Maldives, the Marshall Islands, Mexico, Micronesia, and Palau) launched an initiative to prevent shark extinction, pledging to maintain or develop shark sanctuaries and advocate for science-based protections. Up to 6 million additional square kilometers could be designated as shark sanctuaries under the declaration (^[35]).
• 2013: PEW Environment highlighted enforcement challenges, noting that during 2012 there had been high-profile seizures of illegal shark fins in Palau (^[36]).

Marine Reserve and Enforcement

In 2015, Palau established a 193,000-square-mile marine reserve — the size of California and the sixth largest in the world — in which no fishing or mining is permitted (^[37], ^[38]).

Also in 2015, Palau burned four Vietnamese poaching vessels caught with sharks, shark fins, lobsters, sea cucumbers, and reef fish. They were among 15 impounded since the previous year. President Tommy Remengesau Jr. stated: “We wanted to send a very strong message. We will not tolerate any more these pirates who come and steal our resources” (^[39]).

In 2016, Palau deployed satellite tracking through the nonprofit SkyTruth to combat illegal fishing. A New York Times investigation documented how data analyst Bjorn Bergman in West Virginia orchestrated a marine police chase, directing the patrol ship Remeliik to intercept a Taiwanese pirate ship by predicting its course via satellite data (^[40]).

Scientific Validation

A 2017 study published in PLOS One confirmed the marine reserve’s effectiveness: protected waters had twice the number of fish compared to unprotected waters and five times the biomass of predatory fish. The study was conducted by researchers from National Geographic, the Palau International Coral Reef Center, and several universities. National Geographic Explorer-in-Residence Enric Sala commented: “What we measured confirmed that no-take marine reserves help increase the biomass of fish, as we’ve seen in other areas around the world.” Notably, Palau has no military to enforce the reserve, relying instead on the ancient tradition of Bul (^[41], ^[42]).

Coral reef research at Palau’s Scott Reef also demonstrated the “Phoenix Effect” — corals regenerating from small fragments of life after bleaching events far faster than anticipated. Regeneration expected to take hundreds of years occurred in 15 (^[43]).

The Palau Pledge (2017)

On December 7, 2017, Palau adopted the Palau Pledge, the first immigration eco-pledge in the world. All visitors are required to watch a four-minute inflight film about treating Palau’s resources with care, then sign a pledge stamped into their passport. The film tells “the story of a clumsy, careless giant — representative of mass tourism at its worst — who comes to Palau, wreaking environmental damage. The local children befriend him, teaching him to be eco-aware.” The pledge has been translated into five languages (^[44]).

The Pew Charitable Trusts and their Global Ocean Legacy team also partnered with President Remengesau to advocate for marine protection, producing a video documenting Palau’s underwater splendor and conservation goals (^[45]).

Wetpixel Origin Story

Eric Cheng quit his Silicon Valley career, took a Palau dive trip in April 2001 with his first underwater camera (a Nikon Coolpix 990 in an Ikelite housing), and was recruited by David Breitigam to cover the Kona Digital Shootout later that year. The two joined forces — Cheng building the community platform, Breitigam handling the business — and together transformed Wetpixel into the leading underwater photography community. The Kona webcast described Cheng as “a software engineer and amateur underwater photographer with a propensity for thoroughly documenting his travels” who had “recently published journals and photographs from his trips to Palau and Bora Bora” (^[46]).

Events and Workshops

Digital Shootout Palau 2006

The Digital Shootout held its fifth annual edition in Palau from April 1-11, 2006, at the Palau Pacific Resort with Sam’s Tours as dive operator. The event was sponsored by Backscatter, Light & Motion, and Wetpixel. Directors were Dan Baldocchi and Berkley White, with staff including Jim Watt, Sy Harris, and Eric Cheng. Manager Dermot Keane and photo pro Kevin Davidson of Sam’s Tours provided logistical support. The event hosted 25 participants, featured daily seminars on underwater photo techniques, lighting and composition, Adobe Photoshop, workflow, and printing, and concluded with a photo contest offering over $10,000 in prizes (^[47], ^[48], ^[49]).

The package included 9 nights at Palau Pacific Resort, 7 days of diving, and access to all seminars and demo gear for $2,150 per person (double occupancy). Bonus seminars included Mike Veitch on shooting mantas in Yap and Eric Cheng on Photoshop selective color for manta images. Alex Mustard commented that “Selective Color is a great tool (especially when proofing CMYK images)” (^[50], ^[51]).

Dive sites visited during the Shootout included Blue Corner, Jellyfish Lake, Dexter’s Wall, and Helmet Wreck (^[52]).

Video Workshops

Nick Martorano, Ph.D., the resident video pro at Sam’s Tours, ran an underwater video workshop from April 5-11, 2010. An award-winning cameraman and filmmaker with credits including National Geographic and “Survivor,” Martorano limited the workshop to five participants for hands-on instruction. A $400 discount was offered for the final three spots (^[53], ^[54]).

Sam’s Tours at Trade Shows

Sam Scott and Russelle Caraig represented Sam’s Tours Palau at DEMA 2006, where Eric Cheng reconnected with people from the Digital Shootout (^[55]). Sam’s Tours also sponsored the ADEX 2017 Imaging Party in Singapore alongside Wetpixel and Scubacam (^[56]).

Competition Prizes

Palau dive trips have been offered as prizes in major underwater photography competitions, including:

• SanDisk/Red Sea 2006 competition: 7-day diving trip for two aboard Ocean Hunter ($5,400 value) (^[57])
• Ocean Views 2013: 7-night cruise aboard Ocean Hunter III (sponsor: Fish ‘n Fins and Ocean Hunter) and a separate dive package sponsored by Sam’s Tours (^[58])
• Ocean Art 2019: 7-night Palau liveaboard trip with Solitude Liveaboards (^[59])

Film and Video Productions

Palau has been the setting for numerous underwater film and video projects documented by Wetpixel:

• “Critter Comforts” (2006) — DiveFilm Podcast Video Episode 30 by Mark Thorpe (CamDiver), featuring the species of Yap and Palau, dedicated to “macronuts.” Producer Mary Lynn Price called it a film of “simple grandeur” (^[60]).
• “Guardian of the Wrecks” (2006) — DiveFilm Podcast Video Episode 34 by Nick Martorano, a tribute to Palau’s WWII wrecks and their marine life, contrasting past (shoes, machinery, bottles) with present (corals and crustaceans) (^[61]).
• “The eyes have it” (2011) — Showreel by Richard Brooks (Lightning Strike Productions), highlighting wildlife events from Palau and the Philippines filmed over three years. Brooks described Palau as “famous for being a Shark Sanctuary, but there is a whole lot more to this vibrant archipelago” (^[62]).
• Sea of Love 3D IMAX (2014) — Filmmaker Pawel Achtel used Palau for scouting and filming 3D IMAX footage of fish spawning aggregations, shark and manta ray behavior, using modified RED Epic cameras in 3Deep titanium housings (^[63]).
• Nautilus encounter (2015) — Barry Skinstad filmed a rare nautilus encounter in Palau’s shallow waters for Earth Touch’s Wild Oceans series (^[64]).

WWII History and the BentProp Project

Palau was the site of significant WWII military activity, and many aircraft and vessels remain in its waters. The BentProp Project, a long-running initiative to find and identify downed WWII planes and missing airmen in Palau, enlisted the help of GoPro and collaborated with Scripps Institution of Oceanography (UC San Diego) and the University of Delaware. The team used aerial drones and UAVs equipped with GoPro cameras. When a downed aircraft is found, the organization holds a flag-folding ceremony in the water; a retired Navy lieutenant commander receives the flags on behalf of the families (^[65]).

Scientific Research

• Photogrammetry — The Hydrous, a nonprofit organization, used underwater photogrammetry in Palau to produce 3D models of coral specimens, enabling scientists to measure endangered coral species non-destructively (^[66]).
• Bumphead wrasse spawning — Stephen Frink planned a trip to Palau with Sam’s Tours timed to a specific lunar cycle to photograph bumphead wrasse spawning (^[67]).
• Two-spot red snapper spawning — Tony Wu spent years (from 2012 onward) returning to Palau to document thousands of two-spot red snappers spawning in tandem with the full moon. His image “Snapper party” won the Underwater category of Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2016, capturing a dynamic arc of spawning fish amid clouds of eggs. He noted the fish rapidly changed color during mating, including their characteristic two white spots fading and reappearing (^[68]).
• RED One housing field test — Mark Thorpe and John Friday tested three RED One underwater housings while documenting Mastigias jellyfish daily migration patterns (^[69]).

Notable Figures

• Eric Cheng — Founding Palau trip (2001), Jellyfish Lake award winner (2007), Digital Shootout Palau staff (2006). Tested Stephen Frink’s anti-vignetting device while in Palau (^[70]).
• Berkley White — Digital Shootout Palau co-director (2006) (^[71]).
• Tim Rock — Micronesia-based photojournalist; authored a Palau coffee-table volume (2008) with over 240 photographs covering the 100-mile-long island chain from north to south, plus the Diving & Snorkeling Guide to Palau and Yap (2012 and updated 2016 editions) (^[72], ^[73], ^[74]).
• Stephen Frink — Invented his SOS Safety Sausage after being swept out to sea in Palau with cameras in both hands. Planned Palau trips to photograph bumphead wrasse spawning (^[75]).
• Nick Martorano — Resident video pro at Sam’s Tours; award-winning filmmaker (National Geographic, “Survivor” credits); created “Guardian of the Wrecks” and ran the 2010 video workshop (^[76], ^[77]).
• Tony Wu — Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2016 Underwater category winner for snapper spawning in Palau (^[78]).
• Francesca Diaco — Photographer who produced a comprehensive photo essay documenting Palau’s dive sites and marine life (^[79]).
• Mike Veitch — Began his diving industry career in Palau, where he first encountered manta rays while working on liveaboards. Later became photo/video pro at Manta Ray Bay Hotel in Yap (^[80], ^[81]).
• Jim Watt — Digital Shootout Palau staff member (2006); his switch to a Canon 20D with 10-22mm zoom in Palau influenced Tim Rock to abandon Nikon (^[82], ^[83]).
• Pawel Achtel — Filmed 3D IMAX footage in Palau for Sea of Love using custom RED Epic / 3Deep housing rigs (^[84]).
• Norbert Wu — Photographed fluorescing coral at Palau, featured as the Bing homepage photo (^[85]).

Publications

• Tim Rock: Palau coffee-table volume (2008, Blurb), over 240 photographs (^[86])
• Tim Rock: Diving & Snorkeling Guide to Palau and Yap (2012 e-book, updated 2016 in print and e-book) — over 125 photographs with 40+ dive sites and maps (^[87], ^[88])
• David Doubilet: Two Worlds: Above and Below the Sea (2021) includes Palau imagery among diverse habitats (^[89])

Timeline

• 2001-04: Eric Cheng’s founding Palau dive trip with Coolpix 990 and Ikelite housing leads to Wetpixel relaunch (^[90])
• 2003-06: George Vincent reviews Aquatica D100 housing; sample gallery from Palau mentioned (^[91])
• 2005-07: Tim Rock in Palau witnesses Jim Watt’s switch to Canon 20D, prompting his own Nikon-to-Canon transition (^[92])
• 2005-11: Digital Shootout Palau 2006 announced (^[93])
• 2006-04: Digital Shootout Palau 2006 takes place at Palau Pacific Resort with Sam’s Tours; 25 participants, $10,000+ in prizes (^[94])
• 2006-09: Mark Thorpe’s “Critter Comforts” DiveFilm featuring Palau and Yap species released (^[95])
• 2006-11: Sam Scott represents Sam’s Tours Palau at DEMA 2006 (^[96])
• 2006-12: Nick Martorano’s “Guardian of the Wrecks” DiveFilm released (^[97])
• 2007-02: Eric Cheng’s Jellyfish Lake photograph wins National Geographic Traveller / PDN “World in Focus” Wilderness Photography category (^[98])
• 2008-12: Tim Rock’s Palau coffee-table volume published (^[99])
• 2009-05: RED One housing appraisal conducted during Jellyfish Lake shoot (^[100])
• 2009-09: Palau becomes world’s first shark sanctuary (announced at UN General Assembly) (^[101])
• 2010-04: Nick Martorano runs underwater video workshop at Sam’s Tours (^[102])
• 2010-09: President Toribiong receives Ocean Heritage Award (^[103])
• 2010-12: Northern Mariana Islands outlaws shark fin trade, following Palau’s lead (^[104])
• 2011-08: Micronesian Chief Executive Summit proposes 2-million-square-mile regional shark sanctuary (^[105])
• 2011-09: Eight countries pledge international shark protection initiative including Palau (^[106])
• 2012-01: Tim Rock’s Diving & Snorkeling Guide to Palau and Yap published (^[107])
• 2013-02: PEW highlights enforcement challenges; illegal shark fin seizures in Palau during 2012 (^[108])
• 2014: Pawel Achtel films 3D IMAX footage in Palau for Sea of Love (^[109])
• 2014-11: BentProp Project collaborates with GoPro to find WWII aircraft in Palau (^[110])
• 2015: Palau establishes 193,000-square-mile marine reserve (sixth largest in the world) (^[111])
• 2015-06: Palau burns four Vietnamese poaching vessels (^[112])
• 2016-02: Palau deploys SkyTruth satellite tracking to combat illegal fishing (^[113])
• 2016-04: Tim Rock’s dive guide series updated including Palau & Yap edition (^[114])
• 2016-05: El Nino drought crashes Jellyfish Lake population; state of emergency declared (^[115])
• 2016-10: Tony Wu wins Wildlife Photographer of the Year Underwater category for snapper spawning in Palau (^[116])
• 2017-04: PLOS One study confirms marine reserve doubled fish numbers, increased predatory fish 5x (^[117])
• 2017-04: Francesca Diaco’s comprehensive Palau photo essay published on Wetpixel (^[118])
• 2017-05: Jellyfish Lake formally closed to visitors (^[119])
• 2017-12: Palau Pledge unveiled — world’s first passport eco-pledge for visitors (^[120])
• 2019: Jellyfish Lake reopens after population recovery (^[121])

References