Coral reef, Marovo Lagoon, Solomon Islands

© WaterFrame/Alam

Coral reef, Solomon Islands

The Marovo Lagoon in the Solomon Islands is the largest saltwater lagoon in the world. Protected by a double barrier reef, it's home to unique marine life and coral, making it a bucket-list destination for divers. Below these 27-degree Celsius waters is a 699-square-kilometre sanctuary for a stunning variety of ocean life.

Although coral reefs occupy less than 0.1% of the planet’s oceans, they support up to 25% of the world’s marine species. They have rightfully earned their nickname, ‘Rainforests of the Sea’. Coral is not a plant, but part animal and part mineral, a marine invertebrate that secretes calcium carbonate to form a hard skeleton. They grow in colonies, usually in warm, shallow waters, and form huge colonies that we see as reefs, providing the environment for marine life to thrive around them. They even provide benefits to land, protecting shorelines from the forces of the ocean.