Kuredu Caves Turtle Airport

More than 45 resident green sea turtles rest in the overhangs, whose ceilings are covered in soft coral. Porcupinefish, lionfish, moray eels, leaf fish and scorpionfish also live in these overhangs, and soldierfish can be seen swimming upside-down. There are also stingrays, and reef sharks and eagle rays in the blue. The site is called the "turtle airport": the turtles leave their resting spots, come up for air, drift past and "land" back with precision.

A photo-identification study counted 130 green sea turtles around the island of Kuredu, out of a total of 147 identified in Lhaviyani Atoll. In the region, the green turtles of Kuredu rest on the reefs to the north and east of the island, Kuredu Caves among them, but forage only on the south side. Piper, a female green turtle who frequents the site, is missing her right back flipper; it is not known whether it was a predator bite, a propeller strike or an entanglement, but it does not seem to hinder her.