The Philippine Sea naturally lies off the coast of the Philippines and covers a surface area of 2 million square miles. Under its waves, the sea harbours all sorts of amazing things, from wonderful sealife to terror-inducing deep chasms.
Philippine Sea | Image Credit : PHG, PamalicanMainBeach, marked as public domain, more details on Wikimedia Commons
The Seafloor
Interestingly, the Philippine Sea’s most distinguishing quality can be found right at the bottom of it. Here, the seafloor is ruptured all over due to geological fractures and faults that have taken place over millennia. In fact, it is here that you’ll find the deepest point on the planet – the Mariana Trench.
Marine Biodiversity
Amazingly, the Philippine Sea contains the highest degree of biodiversity in the Indo-Malay region, boasting over 3000 species of fish, 486 coral varieties and over 1000 different algae and seaweed types. This also includes certain endemic species such as the blue-spotted angelfish and sea catfish.
The Coral Triangle
One of the reasons for this sea’s extreme biodiversity is the vibrant coral reef called the coral triangle. Considered to be the very centre of marine biodiversity, the Philippine section of the triangle encompasses an area of over 10,000 square miles, all full of an array of stony corals and unique reef denizens like the moray eel and loggerhead turtle.
What’s There to Do?
If you’re staying at a hotel or at one of the service apartments Makati has to offer, such as the Ascott Makati, you should definitely consider taking a trip off the coast. There’s plenty of tour operators that will set you up with exciting snorkeling or scuba diving session here.
