|
Saturday, August 27, 2011
Anyone for a game of sardines? Divers capture incredible pictures of fish shoals so dense they block out the sun
These amazing pictures show shoals of the fish packed so dense off the coast of the Philippines they block out the light of the tropical sun.
While the annual gathering of vast shoals of thousands of sardines is a well-documented event in South African waters, the Philippine sardine run was unheard of three years ago.
Tightly packed: Even in their natural habitat, these sardines have barely more space to maneuver than the more familiar tinned variety
According to world-renowned underwater photographer Dr Alexey Stoyda, the fish were first spotted gathering in large numbers around the island of Pescador, near Cebu, in the Philippines, in March 2009.
For three months, large swells of sardine were spotted circling the island before their number dwindled and they disappeared.
A year later the phenomenon occurred again when a shoal of sardines began to increase in size, and this time it showed no sign of leaving. By July whale sharks and thresher sharks descended on the island for a feeding frenzy.
Today the 'Philippine sardine run' has captured the imagination of divers from all over the world, keen to see one of nature's most impressive sights. And while the number of sardine has not decreased, neither has the variety of predators keen to take advantage of the natural occurring 'bait-ball'.
Group think: A diver swims beneath the massive shoal, which moves as if it had one mind
You eat them whole: The congregation of such vast numbers of tiny fish sparks a predators' feeding frenzy
Dr Stoyda said: 'As our boat approached the island I suddenly saw an enormous shoal in a area of water no more than one metre deep.
'We literally had to jump into it.
'As we began to descend deeper, the shoal seemed like a living, moving wall.
'At a depth of 30m the ball of sardines was so dense there was no visible sun.
'This wall was constantly moving like a cloud in a hurricane and every so often a window opened for divers, as if luring them inside before sucking them in.
'It was unforgettable experience which I'm not sure any photograph can fully convey.'
Spectacle: World-renowned underwater photographer Dr Alexey Stoyda travelled to the Philippines to capture these amazing pictures
We're used to seeing them tightly packed in tins on our supermarket shelves, but even in nature it seems that sardines stick close together.
Diver swims 20 MILES through shark-infested seas of Borneo to reach safety after being abandoned by boatman
Survived: Mr Koze managed to swim to safety over 24 hours and 20 miles
A Japanese diving instructor managed to survive being abandoned by a boatman in shark-infested waters by swimming 20 miles to shore in 24 hours.
Hishashi Koze had been left for dead following a routine dive off Borneo's Santubong peninsula with two other diving colleagues.
The three men had gone underwater for a third dive, only to be abandoned when boatmen on the surfrace lost sight of their air bubbles underwater and assumed they were in trouble.
Mr Koze, 39, was then left alone himself after trying to swim after the boat and losing sight of his two colleagues.
Exhausted, sunburned, dehydrated and emotional, Mr Koze managed to swim back to Malaysia's Borneo island, where he told how the dive boat he was on had headed back to the shore after the boatman had decided there was no hope of finding him and his two companions alive.
But Mr Koze's friends, Satoo Makoto, 40, and Ngu Teck Hua, 52, were soon picked up by a passing fishing boat.
Mr Koze, however, lost touch with his friends and did not see them being rescued - he did not even see the fishing boat that picked them up.
'I kept thinking "I must survive - I must survive",' he told The Star newspaper of Malaysia.
'I swam backstroke against the waves, covering, I think about 30km through the afternoon, through the night and through until this morning when I reached the shore.'
Mr Koze and his companions had been taken to the site of a Japanese shipwreck, some 50 minutes from Borneo's Santubong peninsula.
The dive was routine for the three men - and none dreamed it would turn into a nightmare, particularly for Mr Koze.
'We made two successful dives and then we decided to dive for a third time,' said Mr Koze.
'The third dive lasted for about an hour. Then when we surfaced I saw the boat was quite far away.'
What the three men did not realise was that the boatman had panicked after losing sight of the trio's air bubbles, a common safety indicator between divers and boatmen.
'I left the two in order to swim to the boat and get it to pick us up, but then I lost sight of it. I then couldn't find the two other divers, but made up my mind it was my responsibility to get rescue.'
Unaware that his friends were later picked up by a fishing boat, Mr Koze struck out for what he hoped was the direction of the shore.
'As the light faded I followed the stars as I swam. I realised I had to be calm.
'The direction of the current told me I was in the right direction and I also had the help of a compass.'
All three men were kept under observation in the Sarawak General Hospital before being released.
Asked if he would go back to sea again, Mr Koze, who manages a dive shop on Borneo, said: 'Oh yes - maybe in a week or so.'
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
Mekong dolphins on brink of extinction - WWF
REUTERS
An Irrawaddy dolphin, also known as the Mekong dolphin, swims in the river at Kampi village in Kratie province, 230 km northeast of Cambodia, on March 24, 2007.
Tokyo - The Irrawaddy dolphin population in the Mekong River numbers roughly 85, with the survival of new calves very low, suggesting they are at high risk of extinction, environmental group WWF said on Wednesday.
The Irrawaddy dolphins live in a 190 km section of the Mekong between Kratie, Cambodia and the Khone Falls, which are on the border with Laos.
Fishing gear, especially gill nets, and illegal fishing methods involving explosions, poison and electricity all appear to be taking a toll, with surveys conducted from 2007 to 2010 showing the dolphin population slowly declining, the WWF added.
“Evidence is strong that very few young animals survive to adulthood, as older dolphins die off and are not replaced,” said Li Lifeng, director of WWR's Freshwater Programme, in a statement.
“This tiny population is at risk by its small size alone. With the added pressure of gill net entanglement and high calf mortality, we are really worried for the future of dolphins.”
Research also shows that the population of dolphins in a small transboundary pool on the Cambodia-Laos border may be as few as 7 or 8, the WWF added, despite the fact that Irrawaddy dolphins are protected by law in both nations.
The group called on Cambodia to establish a clear legal framework to protect dolphins, including steps such as banning gill nets if needed.
“Our best chance of saving this iconic species from extinction in the Mekong River is through joint conservation action,” Li said.
Dolphins once ranged from the Mekong delta in Vietnam up through the Tonle Sap in Cambodia, and then up tributaries into Laos, but they have been shot by soldiers and harvested for oil in the past.
Irrawaddy dolphins are found in coastal areas in South and Southeast Asia, and in three rivers: the Mekong, the Ayeyarwady in Myanmar, and the Mahakam in Indonesian Borneo. - Reuters
The Irrawaddy dolphins live in a 190 km section of the Mekong between Kratie, Cambodia and the Khone Falls, which are on the border with Laos.
Fishing gear, especially gill nets, and illegal fishing methods involving explosions, poison and electricity all appear to be taking a toll, with surveys conducted from 2007 to 2010 showing the dolphin population slowly declining, the WWF added.
“Evidence is strong that very few young animals survive to adulthood, as older dolphins die off and are not replaced,” said Li Lifeng, director of WWR's Freshwater Programme, in a statement.
“This tiny population is at risk by its small size alone. With the added pressure of gill net entanglement and high calf mortality, we are really worried for the future of dolphins.”
Research also shows that the population of dolphins in a small transboundary pool on the Cambodia-Laos border may be as few as 7 or 8, the WWF added, despite the fact that Irrawaddy dolphins are protected by law in both nations.
The group called on Cambodia to establish a clear legal framework to protect dolphins, including steps such as banning gill nets if needed.
“Our best chance of saving this iconic species from extinction in the Mekong River is through joint conservation action,” Li said.
Dolphins once ranged from the Mekong delta in Vietnam up through the Tonle Sap in Cambodia, and then up tributaries into Laos, but they have been shot by soldiers and harvested for oil in the past.
Irrawaddy dolphins are found in coastal areas in South and Southeast Asia, and in three rivers: the Mekong, the Ayeyarwady in Myanmar, and the Mahakam in Indonesian Borneo. - Reuters
Mermaids invade Las Vegas; Plenty of tales AND colorful tails from annual Convention
(DiverWire) This past weekend, people from all over the world packed up their monofins and gathered in the middle of the blazing desert in Las Vegas, Nevada. Equipped with silicone, latex, neoprene, glitter, and sequins, these were not your typical divers. Some weren’t even swimmers. Mermaids and mermaid lovers alike were coming together for the first ever World Mermaid Convention and Awards.
The two-day event commenced Friday in the Silverton Casino where convention goers walked among mermaids modeling in tails and various mermaid-related vendors. Booths showcased a wide array of things: authors, artists, tail and accessory makers, underwater photographers, and a demo of an underwater mermaid video game. There was even a mermaid pageant.
The location was a great setting for an aquatic-themed event. Known for its fish-filled 117,000 gallon salt water tank, the Silverton hosts interactive fish feedings and mermaid performances next to a mermaid-themed lounge. Like the famous live mermaid performers at Weeki Wachee springs in Florida, the hotel’s mermaids breathe from long hoses and have to be scuba certified to perform in the 14-foot deep tank. There were both current and former Weeki Wachee mermaids present at the event, such as pageant queen Kylee Troche and veteran mermaid Arlene Brooks.
A “mermaid” can be anyone from the casual enthusiast to the professional performer, artist, or model. Some do mermaiding simply for fun, but many use mermaiding as a way of educating people about the environment and other issues.Long time mermaid, ocean activist, and guest of honor Hannah Fraser, known as Hannah Mermaid, kicked off the first evening’s pool party and award ceremony. She performed a riveting fire dance before diving into the pool and swimming in one of her hand-made tails. There’s a great deal of pride amongst mermaids over their tails; many design and make their own with everything from fabric and neoprene to mold-poured silicone. As people gathered by the poolside and suited up in their outfits, a commonly heard question was “what type of monofin do you have?” For mermaids who do a lot of underwater work, a good monofin can improve the quality of a tail. Fraser fits professional Finis Competitor monofins into her tails.
Many people who consider themselves mermaids have been water lovers, snorkelers, and avid swimmers from a young age. Some, like Marla Lawrenz, got into mermaiding through scuba diving. Others hope to get scuba certified to help with their mermaid endeavors. Lawrenz started scuba diving five years ago, and through it became enthralled with free diving and monofins. She started researching monofins online and was thrilled when she discovered that people were using them to make mermaid tails. For Lawrenz, “scuba diving is always going to be my first love, mermaiding is just like icing on the cake. It’s a very different feeling.”
Similar to Lawrenz, the consensus among event goers was that swimming in a mermaid tail is completely different from scuba diving and classic free diving. While diving with scuba gear is nice because you have more time and can relax for longer underwater, many agreed that they like free diving and mermaiding in part because of the freedom they feel without the extra gear. To them donning a mermaid tail is a magical, liberating experience that makes them feel more connected to the ocean and the creatures they’re swimming with.
There’s also a fun, playful aspect to having a tail on that draws people to mermaiding. Susan Knight, a biologist, scuba instructor, and mermaid photographer located in Hawaii, shot underwater portraits for convention goers. Knight does all of her underwater photography while free diving because she says it’s easier to connect to the animals she often shoots with. She also feels that dolphins respond well to the playfulness that her models display while wearing a tail.Swimming around holding your breath with bound legs is hard work and has its dangers. For convention goer Malena Sharkey, safety is one of the most important reasons mermaids should learn about diving. Sharkey is a professional mermaid, model, and scuba instructor who now owns the Chesapeake Bay Diving Center in Portsmouth, Virginia where she first got certified. As well as being a fun and rewarding experience, having both scuba and free diving training has made Sharkey more comfortable, safe, and confident in the water. Malena was profiled in a DiverWire exclusive story earlier this year.
This year’s World Mermaid Convention focused mainly on the experiential, entertainment, and performance aspects of mermaiding, but looking elegant and glamorous in a tail is only one side of being a mermaid. As the convention grows, mermaids might benefit from booths and presentations that encourage a greater awareness of safety issues and participation in the dive community.
For more information on mermaiding and to see some mermaids in action, check out these sites:
http://worldmermaidawards.com/ – official site of the World Mermaid Awards
http://mernetwork.com/ – a community-oriented forum with a broad range of information about mermaiding
http://weekiwachee.com/ – home of the Weeki Wachee mermaids, a Florida attraction that has been around since the 1940’s
http://www.mermaidtails.net/ – a directory of places to buy tails
http://www.iamamermaid.com – convention goer and author Carolyn Turgeon’s mermaid blog
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Where's the Octopus?
Roger Hanlon, senior scientist at the Marine Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole, studies camouflage in cephalopods--squid, cuttlefish and octopus. They are masters of optical illusion. These are some of Hanlon's top video picks of sea creatures going in and out of hiding
Thursday, August 18, 2011
Vladimir Putin's Greek urns claim earns ridicule
Vladimir Putin carries his archaelogical trophies which - despite their cleanliness - were purported to have languished at the bottom of the Black Sea for centuries. Photograph: Alexei Druzhinin/AP
When a scuba-diving Vladimir Putin found two ancient Greek urns on the floor of the Black Sea this week, it seemed a startling discovery. In his latest spurt of televised heroics, the Russian prime minister raised a triumphant thumb as he circled the pair of amphorae in shallow waters off the Taman peninsula near Ukraine.
The find came to "everyone's utter surprise", claimed the slavishly devotional Russia Today and other state-controlled TV channels. Once on dry land, Putin posed in his wetsuit with a jug in each hand.
But independent media and Russia's lively blogosphere are now ridiculing the incident, in a sign of increasing weariness of Putin's macho photo ops – such as bare-chested fishing, piloting a "water bomber" over forest fires and diving to the bottom of lake Baikal in a mini-submarine.
Critics said Putin's pots were suspiciously unmossy and were probably planted specially for him to discover.
"Diving in the Taman gulf, the Russian prime minister immediately found two amphorae that had been waiting for him since the 6th century AD at a depth of two metres," wrote the Novaya Gazeta newspaper in an editorial dripping with sarcasm. "He was lucky: in the same place, over the last two years archaeologists and divers of the Russian Academy of Sciences managed to find only a few pottery shards."
Putin's visit was meant to highlight the work of Russian scientists exploring the remains of an ancient Greek city, Phanagoria, sometimes called "Russia's Atlantis". The site is not far from Sochi, the Black Sea resort that will host the 2014 Winter Olympic Games, and authorities hope to develop its tourism potential.
Yet critics saw the dive as another farcical stunt designed to boost Putin's image before elections in December and March.
"We have become witnesses of a remake of The Diamond Hand and the famous fishing scene at the white cliff," said radio host Anton Orekh, referring to a scene from a Soviet film in which a diver attaches fish to an angler's hook in order to simulate a plentiful catch.
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
Under Pressure: Worldwide Map Identifies Important Coral Reefs Exposed To Stress
NEW YORK, New York -- Marine researchers from the Wildlife Conservation Society and other groups have created a map of the world's corals and their exposure to stress factors, including high temperatures, ultra-violet radiation, weather systems, sedimentation, as well as stress-reducing factors such as temperature variability and tidal dynamics.
The study, say the authors, will help to conserve some of the world's most important coral reefs by identifying reef systems where biodiversity is high and stress is low, ecosystems where management has the best chance of success.
The paper appears online in journal PLoS One. The authors include: Joseph M. Maina of WCS and a doctoral student at Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia; Timothy R. McClanahan of WCS; Valentijn Venus of Netherlands Institute for Geo-Information Science and Earth Observation; Mebrahtu Ateweberhan of the University of Warwick; and Joshua Madin of Macquarie University.
"Coral reefs around the globe are under pressure from a variety of factors such as higher temperatures, sedimentation, and human-related activities such as fishing and coastal development," said Joseph M. Maina, WCS conservationist and lead author on the study. "The key to effectively identifying where conservation efforts are most likely to succeed is finding reefs where high biodiversity and low stress intersect."
Using a wide array of publicly available data sets from satellites and a branch of mathematics known as fuzzy logic, which can handle incomplete data on coral physiology and coral-environment interactions, the researchers grouped the world's tropical coral reef systems into clusters based on the sum of their stress exposure grades and the factors that reinforce and reduce these stresses.
The first cluster of coral regions—Southeast Asia, Micronesia, the Eastern Pacific, and the central Indian Ocean—is characterized by high radiation stress (sea surface temperature, ultra-violet radiation, and doldrums weather patterns with little wind) and few stress-reducing factors (temperature variability and tidal amplitude). The group also includes corals in coastal waters of the Middle East and Western Australia (both regions have high scores for reinforcing stress factors such as sedimentation and phytoplankton).
The second cluster— including the Caribbean, Great Barrier Reef, Central Pacific, Polynesia, and the Western Indian Ocean—contained regions with moderate to high rates of exposure as well as high rates of reducing factors, such as large tides and temperature variability.
Overall, stress factors such as surface temperature, ultra-violet radiation, and doldrums were the most significant factors, ones that ecosystem management has no control over. What is controllable is the mitigation of human impacts that reinforce radiation stress and where managers decide to locate their protected areas.
"When radiation stress and high fishing are combined, the reefs have little chance of surviving climate change disturbances because they both work against the survival of corals that are the foundation of the coral reef ecosystem," said Dr. Tim McClanahan, WCS Senior Conservationist and head of the society's coral reef research and conservation program.
The authors recommend that the study results be used to formulate management strategies that would include activities such as fishing restrictions, the management of watersheds through improved agricultural practices, and reforestation of coastal watersheds that play a role in healthy coral systems.
"The study provides marine park and ecosystem managers with a plan for spatially managing the effectiveness of conservation and sustainability," said Dr. Caleb McClennen, Director of the Wildlife Conservation Society's Marine Program. "The information will help formulate more effective strategies to protect corals from climate change and lead to improved management of reef systems globally."
The study, say the authors, will help to conserve some of the world's most important coral reefs by identifying reef systems where biodiversity is high and stress is low, ecosystems where management has the best chance of success.
The paper appears online in journal PLoS One. The authors include: Joseph M. Maina of WCS and a doctoral student at Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia; Timothy R. McClanahan of WCS; Valentijn Venus of Netherlands Institute for Geo-Information Science and Earth Observation; Mebrahtu Ateweberhan of the University of Warwick; and Joshua Madin of Macquarie University.
"Coral reefs around the globe are under pressure from a variety of factors such as higher temperatures, sedimentation, and human-related activities such as fishing and coastal development," said Joseph M. Maina, WCS conservationist and lead author on the study. "The key to effectively identifying where conservation efforts are most likely to succeed is finding reefs where high biodiversity and low stress intersect."
Using a wide array of publicly available data sets from satellites and a branch of mathematics known as fuzzy logic, which can handle incomplete data on coral physiology and coral-environment interactions, the researchers grouped the world's tropical coral reef systems into clusters based on the sum of their stress exposure grades and the factors that reinforce and reduce these stresses.
The first cluster of coral regions—Southeast Asia, Micronesia, the Eastern Pacific, and the central Indian Ocean—is characterized by high radiation stress (sea surface temperature, ultra-violet radiation, and doldrums weather patterns with little wind) and few stress-reducing factors (temperature variability and tidal amplitude). The group also includes corals in coastal waters of the Middle East and Western Australia (both regions have high scores for reinforcing stress factors such as sedimentation and phytoplankton).
The second cluster— including the Caribbean, Great Barrier Reef, Central Pacific, Polynesia, and the Western Indian Ocean—contained regions with moderate to high rates of exposure as well as high rates of reducing factors, such as large tides and temperature variability.
Overall, stress factors such as surface temperature, ultra-violet radiation, and doldrums were the most significant factors, ones that ecosystem management has no control over. What is controllable is the mitigation of human impacts that reinforce radiation stress and where managers decide to locate their protected areas.
"When radiation stress and high fishing are combined, the reefs have little chance of surviving climate change disturbances because they both work against the survival of corals that are the foundation of the coral reef ecosystem," said Dr. Tim McClanahan, WCS Senior Conservationist and head of the society's coral reef research and conservation program.
The authors recommend that the study results be used to formulate management strategies that would include activities such as fishing restrictions, the management of watersheds through improved agricultural practices, and reforestation of coastal watersheds that play a role in healthy coral systems.
"The study provides marine park and ecosystem managers with a plan for spatially managing the effectiveness of conservation and sustainability," said Dr. Caleb McClennen, Director of the Wildlife Conservation Society's Marine Program. "The information will help formulate more effective strategies to protect corals from climate change and lead to improved management of reef systems globally."
Saturday, August 13, 2011
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)