Tubod Mar Marine Sanctuary

Overview

Tubod Mar Marine Sanctuary is located in Barangay Tubod Mar, Jagna, on Bohol’s southeastern coast facing the Mindanao Sea. The sanctuary is noted for its hard coral coverage and the variety of tropical fish species it supports. A sea drop-off in the area descends toward the deep waters of the Mindanao Sea, making it a site of interest for divers seeking wall or drop-off terrain.

Local fishermen have reported shark sightings in the area, which adds to the sanctuary’s draw for experienced divers. The presence of sharks is typically a sign of a healthy marine food chain rather than a hazard to visitors.

Tubod Mar is one of three marine sanctuaries Jagna established by municipal ordinance in 2001, alongside Pangdan and Naatang — a deliberate, multi-site protection scheme rather than a single reserve, and one that predates much of the international attention now paid to the wider Danajon Bank. That reef system, which runs along Jagna’s coast, is one of only two double-barrier reefs in the Indo-Pacific; long stretches of it elsewhere have suffered documented damage from blast and cyanide fishing over the decades, which makes an intact, shark-supporting food chain at Tubod Mar a meaningful marker of how well the municipality’s no-take zones have held.

Location

Barangay Tubod Mar, Jagna, Bohol. The sanctuary is along the southern coastline of Jagna, facing the Mindanao Sea.

Getting There

Jagna is approximately 65 km east of Tagbilaran City along the Bohol Circumferential Road. From the Jagna town center, the barangay of Tubod Mar is accessible by habal-habal or tricycle. The exact distance from town to the sanctuary’s water access point, and whether dive boats are available on-site or need to be arranged in advance, are worth confirming locally — ask at the Jagna tourism office or a Bohol-based dive operator before your trip.

Practical Info

• Marine sanctuary — fishing restrictions apply within protected zones
• Suitable for snorkeling and scuba diving
• Drop-off diving is a key feature of the site
• Sanctuary fees, which dive operators service this specific site, and current conditions (drop-off depth, coral coverage) are not consistently documented — confirm these directly with a Bohol dive operator or the local barangay/tourism office before booking a trip out here

What to Expect

Hard coral formations with significant fish diversity. The drop-off provides a dramatic underwater topography. Shark encounters are possible but not guaranteed — fishermen’s sightings indicate occasional presence rather than regular aggregation. The Mindanao Sea setting gives this sanctuary a different character from Bohol’s north-coast or Panglao dive sites, with less commercial traffic and fewer visitors.

Notes

• Jagna is known for calamay (sticky rice cake in coconut shells) — a stop at Ching’s Calamay in Barangay Can-upao, where the confection is still hand-stirred over low heat for four to six hours per batch, is a practical food note for visitors.
• The Lonoy Martyr Site and Luinab Rice Terraces offer land-based counterpoints in the same municipality for a fuller day itinerary.
• Enforcement of the sanctuary’s fishing restrictions falls to the barangay and municipal government rather than a private concessionaire, consistent with how Jagna manages its other two ordinance-designated sanctuaries — a community-based model that ties reef health directly to the livelihoods of the fishing households living along this stretch of coast.