Once a year, in one of the ocean's great synchronised events, the corals of the Southern Great Barrier Reef release their eggs and sperm together in a single mass spawning. Around the reefs and coral cays off the Fraser Coast — including Lady Elliot and Lady Musgrave islands — the water fills with billions of tiny bundles drifting upward like an underwater snowstorm.
When to go
Spawning is triggered by a combination of warming water, the lunar cycle and the time of day. On the Southern Great Barrier Reef it typically happens on a few nights after the full moon in late November or December.
A diver's spectacle
Because it unfolds at night and on only a handful of evenings each year, witnessing the spawn takes planning and a night dive with an experienced operator. The payoff is extraordinary — the very moment new coral life begins, and the reason these reefs continue to grow.