Sailors of centuries past called them mermaids. Glimpsed surfacing through sea haze, their silhouettes were strange enough to inspire legends that crossed every ocean culture. Today we know them as dugongs — and the fact that a healthy population lives in the waters directly outside Timor-Leste’s capital city, Dili, is one of the country’s best-kept wildlife secrets.
The Sea Cow of the Shallows
The dugong (Dugong dugon) is a large marine mammal, a distant relative of the elephant, that grazes on seagrass in warm coastal shallows. Despite a fluke tail superficially similar to a dolphin’s, dugongs are herbivores — methodical, unhurried feeders that can consume enormous quantities of seagrass in a single session. Males carry small, hidden tusks behind their large, whiskered lips.
They need to surface to breathe roughly every six minutes, which is what makes them findable — and what gave ancient sailors enough of a glimpse to start the mermaid myth. Dugongs are globally threatened, with populations declining across much of their range due to habitat loss, boat strikes, and entanglement in fishing nets.
Tasitolu: Where to Look
Just outside Dili, a sheltered bay called Tasitolu holds one of the most accessible dugong habitats in the region. The bay is shallow and rich with seagrass — exactly the habitat these animals need. Dugong sightings here are not guaranteed, but they are regular enough that local guides know where to search.
The best approach is patient and unhurried. Dugongs are not skittish by nature — if you move slowly and avoid sudden movements, they will often continue feeding as you approach, giving a prolonged, close-up view that’s unlike almost any other wildlife experience in Southeast Asia.
When feeding, dugongs leave visible disturbance trails in the seagrass — clouds of sediment and cleared feeding paths that make aerial or drone-assisted spotting significantly easier. From above, a dugong moving through shallow water becomes surprisingly visible against the light sandy bottom.
A Species Worth Protecting
The presence of a dugong population near a capital city is extraordinary, and it reflects the relatively low level of coastal development that Timor-Leste has experienced compared to its neighbours. Seagrass beds, which are the dugong’s entire food supply, are sensitive to water quality and coastal runoff — they thrive where coasts remain undisturbed.
As tourism in Timor-Leste grows, the dugongs of Tasitolu will need thoughtful management. For now, the chance to swim with one of the rarest marine mammals in the world, just minutes from the centre of Dili, is a privilege that few visitors are even aware exists.
Watch the Full Series
The search for Timor-Leste’s dugongs was featured in Timor-Leste from Below, a wildlife documentary series produced by Scubazoo.