I am currently on assignment for the Save our Seas Foundation on a island atoll called Aldabra, situated in a remote and isolated part of the western Indian ocean. I have travelled here to photograph and document the diversity of marine and coastal life that inhabits Aldabra's seas. My primary mission is to photograph the island's shark fauna and document the wide range of habitats (mangroves, coral reefs,seagrass beds and channels) they inhabit.  Aldabra is a world heritage site and having enjoyed protection since the 1970s. The nearshore and inner lagoon waters are teeming with sharks and in a matter of a few days I have already encountered schools of 40+ blacktip reef sharks, large aggregation of Indo Pacific lemon sharks and and grey reef sharks. In addition an abundance of large schools of bohar snappers and incredibly high concentrations of large groupers indicate a  near pristine inshore marine ecosystem. However a initial search of the pelagic realm has yielded no sharks whatsoever and I have also yet to encounter tiger or zambezi (bull) sharks. It is still early days, but I am beginning to wonder if the islands remote location has meant that long-liners and other commercial fishing vessels have been able to overfish the surrounding offshore waters  for many years.

 For a daily expedition blog by Cheryl-Samantha Owen direct from Aldabra please visit:  www.sosfexpeditions.blogspot.com or www.saveourseas.com