Just after dawn, a silvery ocean blends seamlessly into sky. Together with a handful of fellow passengers, I’m belting along in King Diver, a large tender to our small cruise vessel, the 32-passenger Eco-Abrolhos.

Pulling up beside a gap in the reef, two deckhands winch up wooden lobster pots. Enthralled, we watch as feisty western rock lobsters are measured for legal size. Back at the mother ship, our chef is duly presented with 46 prized crustaceans.