Marine scientist Dr Teina Rongo and his Kōrero o te ‘Ōrau team have removed 6371 crown-of-thorns starfish from Rarotonga reefs since Operation Taramea began in 2020.

After completing his 257^th dive since Kōrero o te ‘Ōrau, a non-government organisation based in Rarotonga, started the initiative, Rongo said: “Every dive and every taramea I remove is my way of paying off my debt to those who will come after me.”

In his latest dive on Saturday, he was joined by five young indigenous Māori students getting certified as open water SCUBA divers through the NGO’s ‘Ātui’anga ki te Tango programme, adding to the many students they have certified over the years from open water to advanced and rescue divers. These students also participate in Operation Taramea.

“Thirty years ago, I was in their position getting my certification on a nearby reef in Kavera, just before the taramea (crown-of-thorns starfish) outbreak of the mid-1990s.  I recall that reefs were vibrant with many colourful, platey, and branching corals hosting clouds of small reef fishes hovering above them before the outbreak hit,” Rongo said.

“Taramea is the most immediate threat to our coral reefs on Rarotonga.  They feed on corals, and in an outbreak situation, can completely decimate an entire reef.  The consequences of a degraded reef include loss of marine resources due to ciguatera poisoning, loss of biodiversity, loss of traditional knowledge, loss of income, and a less aesthetic reef for our people and visitors to enjoy.”

Rongo said they have had two taramea outbreaks on Rarotonga: one in the 1970s, and the other in the mid-1990s. Both outbreaks could not be contained despite Government’s efforts to control the situation, and Rarotonga reefs were wiped out, he said.

“I participated in the removal of taramea during the 1990s outbreak, while I was the acting director of Research at the Ministry of Marine Resources. Reefs after the 1970s outbreak took around 10 years to recover, and reef recovery after the 1990s outbreak took almost 20 years. There is reason to believe that climate change impacts have a role to play in the slower recovery after the second outbreak,” he said.

“Fortunately, we caught this current outbreak early enough, and have been able to keep pressure on to keep our reefs in a healthy state and give them a fighting chance in the face of climate change. However, we must also do our part to fix the problems on land that are contributing to the taramea outbreak.”
Rongo said he was fortunate to have seen what a beautiful reef looks like on Rarotonga, and “I want our future generations to be able to experience the same”.

“We have taken more than our share of this world’s resources, and we owe it to our future generations to leave this place better for them.”

Kōrero o te ‘Ōrau has led the project in collaboration with Nia Tero, Synchronicity Earth, GEF Small Grants Programme, Climate Change Cook Islands/GCCA+SUPA, Seventh Generation Fund for Indigenous Peoples, Cook Islands Tourism, and local and international partners.