Diving at Paximadi and Dia islands, and in Istron bay. www.divecenter.hu
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SCUBA diving in Fury Shoals Egypt
+okinawaslowlife.ti-da.net HGUCシャア専用ズゴックを沖縄のダイビングスポット砂辺で水中で特撮
ScienceDaily (Feb. 5, 2011) — Things are not always what they seem when it comes to fish — something scientists at the Smithsonian Institution and the Ocean Science Foundation are finding out. Using modern genetic analysis, combined with traditional examination of morphology, the scientists discovered that what were once thought to be three species of blenny in the genus Starksia are actually 10 distinct species.
The team’s findings are published in the scientific journal ZooKeys, Feb. 3.
Starksia blennies, small (less than 2 inches) fish with elongated bodies, generally native to shallow to moderately deep rock and coral reefs in the western Atlantic and eastern Pacific oceans, have been well-studied for more than 100 years. It would have been reasonable to assume that there was little about the group left to discover. Modern DNA barcoding techniques, however, suggested otherwise. While trying to match larval stages of coral reef fish to adults through DNA, the team of scientists noticed contradictions between the preliminary genetic data and the current species classification. Further investigation revealed that the team was dealing with many species new to science, including the new Starksia blennies
via Blenny bonanza: Seven new species of fish revealed by genetic analysis.
Oysters are disappearing from coastlines around the world because of overharvesting and disease, researchers said.
An estimated 85 percent of global wild oyster reefs and beds vanished in the past 20 to 130 years, according to a study led by Michael Beck, lead marine scientist at the University of California at Santa Cruz. His team examined oyster reefs in 144 bays across the world, historical records and national catch statistics in a study published in the February issue of the journal BioScience. The condition of oysters was rated as “poor” overall.
via Oysters Vanishing on Overharvesting, Disease, Researchers Say – Bloomberg.
Oysters at Risk: Gastronomes’ Delight Disappearing Globally
Discovered by an international trio of scientists, the lobster, Dinochelus ausubeli, lives in the deep ocean water near the Phillipines. The lobster has movable, well-developed eyestalks and an inverted T-plate in front of its mouth. But its most striking feature is a mighty claw with a short, bulbous palm and extremely long, spiny fingers for capturing prey. Dinochelus is derived from the Greek words dino, meaning terrible and fearful, and chelus, meaning claw. All told, the Census of Marine Life sponsored 540 expeditions over 10 years, carried out by 2,700 researchers from more than 80 countries. It was, Ausubel says, the biggest project in the history of marine biology.
via Newly discovered deep sea lobster.
GUE scuba diving meetup at Bonne Terre Mine Jan 9-10, 2010. Unfortunately, I was the only GUE diver on this trail, and I’m behind the camera….Everyone who attended had a great time and hope to be back soon….
Relax and breathe!
That could be the mantra for de-stressing everyday life. But here on tiny Grand Turk Island — part of Turks and Caicos (www.turksandcaicostourism.com) — where many believe Columbus first made landfall in the New World, the words are PADI dive instructor Hilary Sutton’s instructions to my 19-year-old daughter, Melanie, as she prepares to do her first of four open-water dives that will lead to her certification as a scuba diver, joining her dad, brother and me, and some 18 million PADI divers around the world.
Don’t miss these Travel stories MTV taking spring break party to Sin City The cable network known for its strong teen following is taking the college tradition of spring break and making it an adults-only affair in Sin City. Full story Elephant tramples tourist to death in Thailand Wheelchair-bound woman put on wrong flight Does airplane air really make you sick? Do resorts promise more than they deliver?We’ve come to the 16-room Bohio Resort (www.bohioresort.com/) so that Mel can complete the course she started online at www.Padi.com. That we’re getting a few days of just mom and daughter time is an extra plus. PADI is the largest dive organization in the world. (You have the option of taking the $120 online course and completing it at a resort or sign up for a classroom course — typically more expensive — that could also include the confined and even open-water portions of the instruction.)
We meet best friends Emily Needham and Carla Kadzin, two young women from Long Island, who took such a class before they arrived. Needham said she spent last summer, “with a textbook in my hand rather than a drink. It was more intense than we thought and that made it more interesting.”
Resort diving course
They took the course courtesy of Emily’s dad, John Needham, a diver who wanted to encourage his daughters to embrace a sport he enjoys. Over the next four days, his older daughter, Catherine Brigham, and her husband, Harry, are completing their course (it costs roughly $450) along with my daughter Melanie, learning how to manage their scuba gear and get water out of their masks without surfacing. They practice skills, like sharing air and replacing their mask, towing another diver in the pool or off the beach.
“As a divorced parent, I don’t have as much day-to-day interaction with my family,” explains John Needham, a marina owner, who paid for the diving courses, as well as the trip for everyone, including his non-diving wife and another close friend. “That makes a trip like this all the more special.”
“This is the first family vacation we’ve had in eight years,” said Catherine Brigham, acknowledging she was nervous about being able to complete the course once she got in the ocean. (She did just fine.) “This is so special,” she said. “I’m grateful this is something that we can share from now on.”
Like tennis, golf or snow sports, diving is a life sport and one that can be shared with kids (they can get their junior certification at age 10, though you must be 13 to take scuba lessons online and 15 to upgrade to PADI Open Water Diver certification) and adult children. Before committing to the course, try out diving with a brief (less than three hours) resort course to see if it is something you’d like to pursue. Brigham added that she was glad for a family vacation where they are doing more than “staring at each other.”
They didn’t come seeking fancy digs. In fact, it’s just the opposite — simple rooms painted cheery, bright Caribbean colors, the beach so close you go to sleep and wake up to the sound of waves and a barefoot beachfront bar that offers a can of bug repellent, because you will get bitten, especially at dusk. The restaurant is just as casual (we eat all of our meals here) and you can order anything from a pizza to lobster quesadillas to fresh grouper and steak. Thanks to South African Chef Jurika Mehnde, it is considered the best on the island. “My goal is to not put on shoes the entire week,” joked Scott Flaherty.
The Turks and Caicos Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (www.tcspca.tc) can even arrange for you to adopt a puppy or kitten that has been temporarily living with “foster parents.”
‘One big party underwater’
Scott Flaherty, here from Richmond, Va., with his wife Melissa, explains that divers seek out resorts where the diving is stellar and the dive operation safe. These islands, of course, are surrounded by one of the most extensive coral reef systems in the world (65 miles across and 200 miles long) and under the National Parks Ordinance vast areas have been designated as marine park. Here on Grand Turk, the reef is just 500 yards offshore, which means there are no long boat rides to get there and between dives we can return to the resort for the required surface interval.
Bohio managers Tom and Ginny Allan, Canadians in their 50s, treat us all like family. We make instant friends with the other divers, sharing meals, rum punches and, of course, dives where we are awed by the underwater life along the Grand Turk Wall — the varieties of coral, the sting rays, the flounder hiding in the sand with just their eyes visible, the octopus on a night dive.
“It was one big party underwater,” Carla Kadzin said excitedly one morning after the first dive. But with diving, like anything else, all doesn’t go as planned. Emily gets a cold and can’t dive the next day; Carla has a problem with her ears.
Everyone, meanwhile, cheers on the novices. We’ve just finished the most spectacular dive of the day called “anchor,” so named for a 10-foot anchor deep in the water that is probably more than 100 years old. Somehow, I miss seeing the anchor but am awed by the swimming sea turtle, hog fish, huge grouper, an underwater eel garden and all kinds of other big and little fish — blue and purple, silver and spotted.
“Let me introduce our newest PADI diver,” instructor Hilary Sutton says when we get back on the small Bohio boat. After six sections of e-learning, two mornings in the resort pool and beach and four dives mastering the equipment and skills, Mel is now a certified diver. We all applaud. She grins.
If only we didn’t have to go back to the snow.
For more Taking the Kids, visit www.takingthekids.com and also follow “taking the kids” on www.twitter.com, where Eileen Ogintz welcomes your questions and comments.
© 2011 Eileen Ogintz … Distributed by Tribune Media Services, Inc.
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Discover SCUBA – Images by Kentucky Kernel
By Kirbye Meaux
Accompanied by an oxygen tank and a snorkel, UK students discovered how to breathe underwater.
Lexington’s New Horizon Dive Center held a scuba dive training session Tuesday night in the Lancaster Aquatic center pool.
“Anybody that might have an interest with scuba or want a little orientation to breathe underwater is more than welcome to dive in!” KHP scuba instructor Mike Sullivan said.
“The experience is good for anyone interested in aquatic biology or environmental science,” said Ed Gabe, a New Horizons employee who has been diving for nine years. “It’s a good angle to experience especially when doing underwater research.”
Before the course began, more than 40 students signed up to get into the pool.
While some students spent time learning how to clear their tank’s regulator, others were interested in learning how to level their bodies with the pressure of the water.
Sophomore Caleb Fligor said he would like to experience breathing underwater, while sophomore Nathan Hudson said he wanted to learn how it feels to be an astronaut.
A student organization called CAPPS was started to promote scuba diving and organize dive trips for its members, UK?student Nick Capps said.
“I did it last year and I learned about UK’s KHP class and other information about where you can go to get certified,” senior Andy Whitney said.
“I want people to embrace a new experience,” said Travis Land, New Horizons Dive Center owner. “It’s a good way to open people’s eyes to a whole new world, which, by the way, is the coolest job in the world.”
“I think people should do it because it’s a super unique experience,” Gabe said. “It’s the chance to experience weightlessness.”
For any information on scuba dive courses, go to www.NewHorizonsDiving.com.
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