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A manta ray winging over a shallow reef. These beautiful rays can be seen easily in certain areas around Komodo
 

Indonesia is arguably the most desirable and incredible dive destination on Earth. It is a huge, sprawling country hosting exotic locations like Lembeh Strait, Bali, and Raja Ampat. One of Indonesia’s most iconic and much-loved regions is Komodo in the Wallacea region of the country.

While perhaps best known amongst the general population for its namesake dragons, Komodo is also a world-class dive destination. Komodo National Park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, protecting over 700 square miles—the UNESCO designation alone should tell you it is a place worth diving. The national park, which actually comprises 29 volcanic islands, is located in a remote corner of Indonesia and features a staggering diversity and density of marine life, from giant mantas to bustling reefs to muck sites with well-camouflaged critters like frogfish.

Komodo owes much of its biodiversity to its location in narrow sea passages between Flores and Sumbawa. These narrow channels funnel huge amounts of marine life into Komodo and bathe the archipelago in nutrient-rich currents. As with many dive locations, it is impossible to showcase Komodo exhaustively, but hopefully the selection here demonstrates what makes this place so special—and the vast variety of life to be found in its waters.
 

Looking quite different than its adult form, this larval soapfish was photographed on a blackwater dive
 

A beautiful sea fan, backlit by the sun
 

A very husky green sea turtle feeding on coral on a spectacular reef
 

Komodo isn’t all reef scenes and big animals. It has world-class macro, too, like this polka-dot nudibranch
 

Fish, fish, fish! Komodo may not be Raja Ampat, but it has stunning abundance and biodiversity nonetheless
 

Sea fans grow to monster proportions in the warm waters around Komodo
 

A green sea turtle cruising over a reef beneath the sun rays
 

Everybody loves a frogfish and Komodo has no shortage of them! This is a miniscule painted frogfish
 

A diver explores a stunningly beautiful reef in Komodo
 

A backlit thorny seahorse, emphasizing the thorns and translucency
 

Fingered dragonets are a common sight in the tropical Indo-Pacific on rubbly, sandy sites
 

A wacky scallop photographed during a blackwater dive
 

A small bommie, covered with corals and reef fish
 

Komodo National Park in all its glory
 

To see more of Byron’s work, please visit his Instagram page or check out Arctic Adventures and visit Iceland with him!