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Sabayor Kecil

📍 Komodo, Indonesia

Striped Eel Catfish (Plotosus lineatus) - recorded at Sabayor Kecil

Sabayor Kecil is a dive site in Komodo, Indonesia. The sea floor at the site position lies at about 33 meters. Currents typically run at 1.3 km/h and reach 2.2 km/h on the strongest days. Water temperatures range from 28°C in February to 30°C in November. The typical daily tidal range is about 1.3 m. Species recorded in the area include Spine-cheek Clownfish, Striped Eel Catfish, Blackbelt Hogfish, Nembrotha lorosae and Philippine Chromis.

Dive Conditions

⬇️
Seabed Depth
33m
💨
Current
1.3 km/h (2.2)
🌡️
Water Temp
28–30 °C

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Typical Current 1.3 km/h (up to 2.2)
Seabed Depth 33 m
Water Temperature 28–30 °C
Tidal Range 1.3 m (typical daily)
GPS -8.5104°, 119.6936°

Data sources: currents and water temperature from Open-Meteo Marine (CC BY 4.0), hourly model values 2024; seabed depth from the GEBCO 2020 Grid, sampled at the site coordinates (grid resolution about 450 m). Tidal range is the median daily range of modelled sea level from Open-Meteo Marine, hourly values 2024. Species observations from iNaturalist, checked against the World Register of Marine Species.

Conditions at Sabayor Kecil through the year

Sea surface temperature at the site coordinates, averaged per month from hourly model values for 2024. The water is warmest in November at about 30 °C and coolest in February at about 28 °C, a spread of 2.2 degrees across the year.

Monthly sea surface temperature at Sabayor Kecil (°C)
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
28.2 28.1 28.8 29.5 29.8 29.1 28.6 28.3 28.5 29.2 30.3 29.5

Ocean current at the site runs at a typical 1.3 km/h. In the strongest tenth of the hours modelled for 2024 it reaches 2.2 km/h, which is when entries are normally timed to slack water at the turn of the tide.

The tide moves the water level by a median 1.3 m over a day, and by up to 1.8 m on the largest days of the month. That range drives how much water is exchanged over the reef and when the current turns.

In the open sea off Sabayor Kecil, the highest wave of the day exceeded 1.5 m on 0.8 % of days between 2015 and 2024. The roughest month was January (5 % of days), the calmest April (0 %).

Share of days with waves above 1.5 m, open sea near Sabayor Kecil (%, 2015–2024)
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
511000000002

The seabed directly under the site coordinates sits at about 33 m. This is a bathymetry grid value with a cell size of roughly 450 m, so it describes the depth of the area rather than the deepest point a dive can reach.

Satellite habitat mapping places Sabayor Kecil on a deep lagoon, over a seabed mapped as coral and algae.

How Sabayor Kecil compares

These comparisons use only the measured values above, set against the 376 dive sites published on findadive.com. A percentage shows the share of other sites with a lower (or higher) value, so it reads the same way wherever the site is.

Sabayor Kecil compared with all listed sites and with Komodo
MeasureThis siteCompared with all sitesMedian in Komodo
Mean water temperature29.0 °Ccooler than 74 % of the other 375 sites28.8 °C (68 sites)
Water temperature in the coolest month28.1 °Ccooler than 54 % of the other 375 sites27.9 °C (68 sites)
Typical current1.3 km/hstronger than 55 % of the other 375 sites1.2 km/h (68 sites)
Current in the strongest 10 % of hours2.2 km/hweaker than 54 % of the other 375 sites2.7 km/h (68 sites)
Median daily tidal range1.3 msmaller than 60 % of the other 375 sites1.5 m (68 sites)

Water temperature, current and tide from Open-Meteo Marine (CC BY 4.0), hourly model values for 2024 at -8.5104°, 119.6936°. Seabed depth from the GEBCO 2020 Grid. Wave statistics from ERA5-Ocean via Open-Meteo Marine (contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information 2015–2024), daily maximum wave height on a 0.5° grid; land shelter tested against Natural Earth coastlines. Reef structure and seabed cover from the Allen Coral Atlas © 2018–2023 Allen Coral Atlas Partnership and Arizona State University (CC BY 4.0).

Marine life recorded at this site

Research-grade observations from iNaturalist within about 12 km of these coordinates.

Spine-cheek Clownfish (Amphiprion biaculeatus)
Spine-cheek Clownfish Amphiprion biaculeatus A stocky orange clownfish with two white bars, the first bar behind the eye is wide and the second is mid-body. It has a distinctive spine on its cheek.to 11 cm · 1-16 m · by dayhost anemones, often on sheltered reef flats or slopesLook for its host anemone, often the bubble-tip anemone; the fish will retreat into the tentacles if approached. (c) Piotr Lukasik, some rights reserved (CC BY) · observation
Striped Eel Catfish (Plotosus lineatus)
Striped Eel Catfish Plotosus lineatus A small catfish with a long, eel-like body and distinctive dark and pale longitudinal stripes running from head to tail.to 32 cm · 1-12 m · day and nightsandy or silty bottoms, often near reefs or rubbleOften seen in dense, ball-shaped schools as juveniles; adults are more solitary and may hide in crevices. (c) PLAT Vincent, some rights reserved (CC BY) · observation
Blackbelt Hogfish (Bodianus mesothorax)
Blackbelt Hogfish Bodianus mesothorax A medium-sized wrasse with a striking black diagonal band separating a yellow head from a red rear body.to 20 cm · 5-40 m · by daycoral-rich areas of outer reef slopes and lagoonsOften seen swimming near coral heads or over rubble; juveniles may act as cleaners for other fish. (c) Piotr Lukasik, some rights reserved (CC BY) · observation
Nembrotha lorosae (Nembrotha lorosae)
Nembrotha lorosae Nembrotha lorosae A nudibranch with a black body covered in small, bright green spots. It has a pair of green-tipped rhinophores and a green-edged gill plume.to 6 cm · 5-30 m · by daycoral and rocky reefs, often near its tunicate preyLook closely on vertical walls and overhangs where its tunicate food source grows. (c) Piotr Lukasik, some rights reserved (CC BY) · observation
Philippine Chromis (Chromis scotochiloptera)
Philippine Chromis Chromis scotochiloptera A small, dark blue damselfish with a black spot at the base of the pectoral fin, often seen in large, shimmering schools above the reef.to 8 cm · 5-30 m · by dayouter reef slopes and drop-offsLook for a dense, moving cloud of fish high in the water column; the school often parts around a diver. no rights reserved · CC0 · observation
Redlip Parrotfish (Scarus rubroviolaceus)
Redlip Parrotfish Scarus rubroviolaceus A large, robust parrotfish with a reddish upper lip and a body that changes colour from greenish to bluish-grey as it matures.to 70 cm · 3-30 m · by dayouter reef slopes and surge channelsListen for the crunching sound of its beak scraping algae from coral; it often leaves a cloud of white sand behind. no rights reserved · CC0 · observation
Brassy Drummer (Kyphosus vaigiensis)
Brassy Drummer Kyphosus vaigiensis A silvery-grey to brassy schooling fish with a robust body, often seen grazing on algae-covered rocks.to 70 cm · 1-30 m · by dayrocky reefs and algal-covered bommiesLook for large, slow-moving schools near the reef crest where algae growth is strong. no rights reserved · CC0 · observation
Ambon Damsel (Pomacentrus amboinensis)
Ambon Damsel Pomacentrus amboinensis A small, bright yellow damselfish with a single black spot on the rear dorsal fin and a blue ring around the eye.to 10 cm · 1-12 m · by daybranches of Acropora corals on reef slopesLook for it darting among the branches of staghorn corals; it retreats into the coral when approached. no rights reserved · CC0 · observation