450 Mr Gardiner, The Coral Reefs of [Mar. 7, 



Levu 1 off the west of Vanua Levu has a lagoon, 4 — 5 fathoms 

 deep, with a sandy bottom ; the reef around is of sand except on 

 the extreme outer face where corals abound. 



Between Viti Levu and Vanua Levu is a pool about 300 fathoms 

 deep with a sandy bottom. It has not yet been properly surveyed, 

 but my information leads me to believe, that there is against it on 

 all sides a much broken barrier reef. In it is a true atoll reef, 

 the Charybdis, with its eastern side awash at low tide, but to the 

 west much broken up by passages and deep channels. The current 

 runs strongly through the Vatu-ira Channel and then spreads out 

 in all directions while the usual direction of the wind is east-south- 

 east, so that it is those parts of the reef, which lie to windward 

 and against the current, which have grown up. 



To the south-east of the Vatu-ira Channel lie a number of 

 volcanic islands, which resemble one another, with the exception 

 of Wakaya, in their hills sloping fairly evenly to the sea without 

 cliffs. Yet their reefs vary enormously ; they fringe or are barrier, 

 and have passages on all sides quite irrespective of the wind and 

 current. Mbatiki has a fringing reef, continuous except to the 

 north, where there are a large number of small patches ; in it are 

 impounded pools of water 5 fathoms in depth. Round Matuka 

 the reef also fringes, but it has a well-marked boat channel with 

 2 fathoms of water, and is broken by two large passages to the 

 west and east, leading into pools of 25 fathoms. Moala has a 

 barrier 2 miles from the shore except to the north-west, where the 

 reef fringes ; the lagoon has an even bottom at 20 fathoms. The 

 passages lie to the west, south-east and east (2) while the reef to 

 the north consists of a series of patches. Ngau has a fringing 

 reef except to the west and south-west, where there is a barrier, 

 enclosing a lagoon 30 fathoms deep and 3 miles across. The 

 fringing reef varies much in breadth and has a number of deep 

 fissures where the streams from the land flow into the sea, while 

 the barrier has three passages to the north-west. South of Ngau 

 lies the Mumbolitha, an atoll-shaped reef with a shallow lagoon 

 and rim awash on all sides, very abundantly studded with negro- 

 heads. Nairai is completely surrounded by a barrier reef 

 enclosing a lagoon, 18 fathoms deep, with passages to the east, 

 west and north-west. Totoya is a crater, the south side of which 

 has apparently blown out. Its reef is a barrier having passages 

 to the north and west, and a small channel to the south; the 

 lagoon is 1 mile broad with a depth of 25 fathoms outside and 30 

 within the crater. 



The reef of Wakaya is of the barrier class, distant 3 — 5 miles, 

 except to the south-west, where it fringes but has impounded 



1 My information about this shoal is principally derived from native beche-de- 

 mer fishers. 



