Skin & Hair Care for Divers Adventure Crossing the Atlantic Palau GLOBAL EDITION June :: July War Wrecks 2006 Number 11 Canary Islands El Hierro Portfolio Patrick Chevailler Ecology Global Warming Can Corals Adapt? ARGENTINA Great Conveyor Belt Patagonia Creating Reefs in COVER PHOTO BY MARCELO MAMMANA the Maldives 1 X-RAY MAG : 11 : 2006 DIRECTORY X-RAY MAG is published by AquaScope Underwater Photography Divers’ Costmetics Copenhagen, Denmark - www.aquascope.biz www.xray-mag.com Skin & Hair Care for Divers... page 67 ALOE GATOR LIP BALM IN SEVERAL FLAVOURS AVAILABLE FROM WWW.ALOEGATOR.COM PUBLISHER CO- EDITORS & EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Andrey Bizyukin Peter Symes Delicate Sea Anemone, Patagonia, Argentina. Photo by Marcelo Mammana - Caving, Equipment, Medicine [email protected] Millis Keegan MANAGING EDITOR - Opinions and ‘DiveGuru.net’ contents & CREATIVE DIRECTOR Michael Arvedlund - Ecology Gunild Pak Symes Jason Heller - Photography [email protected] Dan Beecham - videography ADVERTISING Michel Tagliati - Medicine Americas & United Kingdom: Leigh Cunningham Kevin Brennan - Technical Diving [email protected] Edwin Marcow Europe & Africa: - Sharks, Adventures Harvey Page, Michael Portelly [email protected] Catherine GS Lim International sales manager: Arnold Weisz Arnold Weisz [email protected] REGULAR WRITERS Robert Aston - CA, USA South East Asia Rep: Bill Becher - CA, USA Catherine GS Lim, Singapore [email protected] John Collins - Ireland Amos Nachoum - CA, USA Internet Advertising: Nonoy Tan - The Philippines Deb Fugitt, USA [email protected] CONTRIBUTORS THIS ISSUE SENIOR EDITOR Michael Arvedlund, PhD Michael Symes Dan Beecham [email protected] Andrey Bizyukin, PhD Eric Cheng TECHNICAL MANAGER Patrick Chevailler Søren Reinke [email protected] Leigh Cunningham Ethan Gordon CORRESPONDENTS Jason Heller Enrico Cappeletti - Italy Jerome Hingrat 25 33 39 45 50 plus... Jordi Chias - Spain PATAGONIA EL HIERRO DIVE GURUS ECOLOGY: DIVE MEDICALS Catherine GS Lim EDITORIAL 3 John Collins - Ireland ADVENTURE CANARY ISLANDS & OPINIONS CORAL BLEACHING BY MICHEL TAGLIATI Lev Fishelson NEWS 5 Jeff Dudas - CA, USA BY MARCELO MAMMANA BY JEROME HINGRAT BY MILLIS KEEGAN BY MICHAEL ARVELUND, PHD Thyge Dahl Hermansen EQUIPMENT 41 Tomas Knutsson - Iceland Marcelo Mammana - Argentina Marcelo Mammana BOOKS & MEDIA 83 Yonatan Nir - Israel Edwin Marcow BUSINESS DIRECTORY 90 Svetlana Murashkina, PhD 51 60 62 67 86 Svetlana Murashkina - Russia OCEANOLOGY: SCIENCE: OCEAN TRAVEL: DIVERS’ COSMETICS WAR WRECKS Gary Myors - Tasmania Gunild Symes ROSSING THE TLANTIC ONVEYOR ELT HE ALDIVES KIN AIR ARE ULAU Barb Roy - WA, USA Peter Symes C A C B T M S & H C P BY VETLANA URASHKINA H BY ETER YMES BY NDREY IZYUKIN H EDITTED BY UNILD YMES BY THAN ANIELS Yann Saint-Yves - France Michel Tagliati S M , P D P S A B , P D G S E D Garold Sneegas - KS, USA Arnold Weisz Not yet subscribed to SUBSCRIPTION columns... X-RAY MAG? Sign up now! X-RAY MAG International Edition in English is FREE. It’s FREE! QUICK! EASY! To subscribe, go to: www.xray-mag.com 48 75 77 92 SHARK TALES: TECHNICAL MATTERS: PHOTOGRAPHY: PORTFOLIO: click here... COVER PHOTO ATRICK HEVAILLER Humpback Whale, Patagonia, by Marcelo Mammana BITS & BITES THE WAKE UP CALL LUGGAGE! P C EDITTED BY PETER SYMES BY LEIGH CUNNINGHAM BY DAN BEECHAM EDITTED BY GUNILD SYMES (CONTINUED ON PAGE 4)
2 X-RAY MAG : 11 : 2006 Amsterdam Barcelona Cape Town Chicago Copenhagen London Moscow Okinawa Oslo Paris Ravenna Reykjavik San Francisco Sharm El Shiekh Warsaw editorial Reefs Artificial and Real Reefs really made the that we are putting down headlines lately. artificial reefs like never before and that the world lead- But is it enough, and is it timely? First we learnt of the depressing ers finally seem to have gotten news that huge regions of coral the message. The main issue at hand is that reefs in the Indian Ocean, tens some changes can be restored of millions of years old and the Just to name a few prominent and developments reversed, basis of the food net, have now names, California Govenor while others cannot. This may irreversibly collapsed. I don’t Schwartzenegger has imple- seem like a trivial general obser- know about you guys, but I find it mented new laws striving to vation but the area of nature hard to stomach. It I like a night- curb the state’s contribution and environment and it’s pro- mare you can’t get out of. to greenhouse effect. Former tection has too often proved fer- US vice president Al Gore has tile ground for some dangerous Ka-BOOM! Down it went! turned environmental crusader misconceptions. “The balance The former aircraft carrier USS and has just come out with a of nature” for one. Some die- Oriskany now rests on the sea- documentary film on global hard eco-romantics have often floor off Florida as the latest and warming. And now even an referred to this inbuilt ‘wisdom’ biggest addition to the growing arch-conservative as Newt of mother Nature as an almost list of artificial reefs worldwide. Gingrich the former republi- fundamental principle often Make Reefs, not War. What a fit- can speaker of the House, has with some spiritual overtones of ting end for a warship in this day written to US president Bush higher purpose thrown in to pot. and age. urging him to help create a We’re sorry, but that it not how it huge marine part around the works. But can we ever restore, or Hawaiian islands protecting the even aid nature in compensat- corals here. Even Bush himself, Ecosystems are either stable or ing for the ravages humankind who came from the oil industry unstable. While they are argu- has set loose? Can we counter and who was behind pulling the ably always undergoing some the effects of global warming? US out of the Kyoto agreement degree of dynamic transition, Some research, as reported in has now finally come around the point in case is whether this issue, seem to indicate that and acknowledged that some- the rate of transition is what we some species of coral may be thing’s amiss and something has could call an “orderly” natural, able to adapt to some rise in to be done. gradual and expected pro- temperature. And isn’t it good That’s at least a start. gression where a high level of
Help us make a better magazine Do Our Survey And Participate In A Draw For Advanced Cochran EMC-20H Dive Computer We are keen to learn more about our readership. Help us by filling out the questionnaire on: www.xray-mag.com/survey
For mere information on the Cochran EMC-20H please visit www.divecochran.com
3 X-RAY MAG : 11 : 2006 EDITORIAL FEATURES TRAVEL NEWS EQUIPMENT BOOKS SCIENCE & ECOLOGY EDUCATION PROFILES PORTFOLIO CLASSIFIED
editorial complexity is preserved - or a cata- the Indian Ocean, which have many. The issue with the emissions
strophic collapse where complexity now transformed into a completely of greenhouse gases and global and diversity is lost. Ecosystems different ecosystem of much lesser warming can only be dealt prop- are characterised by a web of complexity, productivity and diver- erly with on a higher political level complex relationships between sity. The former coral reefs are now – we need another summit. Mean- numerous species interacting just fields of dead limestone cov- while the rest of us can both help among themselves and with the ered with algae. keeping the issue in focus by initiat- ����������������� ��� physical environment - and com- ing a lot of small scale projects, like plexity often evolves with time as And like putting a collapsed build- the artificial reefs. do overall stability. ing together again it would be a While a sinking like the Oriskany Herculean task restoring these as surely creates headlines that go Think of a tall building with many you would both have to remove around the globe, lets not forget stories, compartments, shopping the cause in the first place (the the significance of the thousands malls and apartments . Tenants hightened water temperatures) of other artificial reef projects, or may move in and out, shops may and only then start piece it all say hundreds of thousands of reef open and close as they compete together again, which would take balls, some sources mention half - but the overall structure is in a ways and technologies even this a million, laid down.globally to steady state. This building can undersigned biologist cant glimpse restore ailing reefs or create new even sway elastically when sub- at this juncture. fishing and scuba diving sites. jected to external forces, perhaps Perhaps in the future. even resist an earthquake. But jolt Bottom line is there are a lot of it too hard and the whole structure The present shift in perceptions and projects that you and I can par- will come crashing down and turn acknowledgement of the problems ticipate in. It won’t save all these ������������������������������������� into a pile of rubble. This is what at hand is one big step in the right reefs, but it may make the differ- happened with the coral reefs in direction, but only a first one out of ence that could save the world.
Please also support SOS-SeaTurtles Sign the Petition online, click here ☼
Click here to send an email with a “Letter of pro- test” to the Governor of Bali, with copies to other important officials ������������� Link to SOS Sea Turtle’s main webpage ☼ KURT AMSLER / SOS SEATURTLES
X-RAY MAG is distributed Views and information X-RAY MAG accepts no six times per year on the expressed in articles are responsibility for unsolicited Internet. © 2004-2006 those of the individual materials sent to its office, X-RAY MAG. All rights author and are not nec- nor is it liable for loss or reserved. essarily representative of damage to such materials. Material in this publica- views held by X-RAY MAG X-RAY MAG observes a News from NAUI in X-RAY MAG: tion may not be repro- or its affiliates. Unsolicited strict privacy policy. No per- This issue of X-RAY MAG includes news ���������������� duced or transferred manuscripts, photographs sonal or private information and press releases from NAUI in sec- tions designated by the NAUI logo. electronically in any form and illustrations should be will be shared with a third While the page design is done by ���� ��������� �������������� ������� ���� ���������� ��������� ����������� �������������������������������������������������������������������������� X-RAY MAG as an integrated part of the without written permission emailed to: party without the written ������������������������������������������������������������������������� ������� ����� ����� ������ �������� ����� ���� ����� ������������ ��� ���� from the copyright owner. [email protected] permission of the owner. magazine, these news stories are brought to you by NAUI at NAUI’s discretion. ���������������������������������������������������������������������� ���������������������������������������������� ������������������������������������ ���������������������������������������������
4 X-RAY MAG : 11 : 2006 EDITORIAL FEATURES TRAVEL NEWS EQUIPMENT BOOKS SCIENCE & ECOLOGY EDUCATION PROFILES PORTFOLIO CLASSIFIED New form of lionfish is evolving in Red Sea awesome A new form of lionfish has form has subsequent- been evolving in the Red ly been found out- News edited by Sea during the past four side the Red Sea in Catherine GS Lim decades, according to the Pacific Ocean. and Peter Symes a study undertaken by However, a follow- Lev Fishelson of Tel Aviv up study on the same reefs in University. Eilat a few years ago found two NEWS Rather than the normal of the new form of lionfish among 35 ray-like tentacles which specimens examined, but these fish had appear just above the the eye-spot on just a single tentacle. Variation in the ornaments of Pterois volitans tentacles: (a) eye- eyes of the lionfish , the Precisely why lionfish in the Red Sea have mark on right tentacle only; (b) tentacles feather-like on the upper new form has evolved been undergoing this evolution to pro- part only, eye-mark on left and right side of the tentacles; (c) eye- feather-like tentacles in duce a new form isn’t known. marks on left sides of tentacles (photos by the Lev Fishelson and R. which one or both have Myers). Environmental Biology of Fishes (2006) 75:343–348 a sharply defined black Function eye spot with a white ring One hypothesis is that the eye-spots This shrimp was sup- around it, not unlike the appearance of serve to artificially enlarge the head of posed to have died out a peacock feather. In adults, this new the fish, which might be important in 50 million years go New species of hammer- form of tentacles are much broader and communicating with members of the can measure up to 5cm in length and same species, or defending itself against over 1cm in width at the tip. other species. Ancient species head shark discovered The other hypothesis is that the elliptical Evolution tentacles imitate tiny bait fish to attract still alive The yet unnamed species resembles the showed their DNA was completely Fishelson has been monitoring lionfish small predators that the lionfish can then scalloped hammerhead so closely that different from all other specimens of populations in the Red sea for the past 25 swallow with its capacious mouth. “It’s a new species of the genus the only ways to tell them apart are to scalloped hammerheads, suggesting a years, but in 1975 study, also by Fishelson, The evolution of these tentacles might Neoglyphea. The Glypheides were well compare DNA and count vertebrae. separate species in the Southwestern none of the lionfish specimens had this also be due to sexual selection as many known from the Jurassic and Cretaceous Reseachers at NSU Oceanographic Atlantic. spotted, feather-like tentacle although fishes select traits such as periods and were supposed to be extinct Center use genetics to identify sharks five specimens did have wider tentacles ornamentation. ■ at the Eocene, about 50 million years ago, exploited in the international fin trade, Mahmood Shivji director of the Guy than normal. explains CenSeam researcher Bertrand which is how they stumbled on the pre- Harvey Research Institute at the NSU The additional ornamentation of Richer de Forges viously unknown species of hammer- says the two species share the same the tentacles has been known about In 1906, the US research vessel head. Hammerheads are particularly waters but do not interbreed. Shivji for some time, and Fishelson has been “Albatross” caught one live specimen off vulnerable because their fins are worth adds that the unrecognized species monitoring the structure and its spread the Philippines but the significance was hundreds of dollars in the Far East, while may be less abundant than the scal- through the lionfish populations of the not recognised until 1975. In October their meat is much less valued. In trying loped, making it more susceptible to Red Sea. It is believed to have been first 2005, Bertrand Richer de Forges con- to develop a DNA forensic marker for fishing pressure. recorded in the Red Sea at the southern ducted an oceanographic cruise to the scalloped hammerheads, the research- ‘’They’re catching these things they tip of Sinai, but fish bearing the same seamounts below the Chesterfield Islands, ers collected tissue samples from around don’t know they’re catching. You characteristics have steadily progressed on the edge of the Lord Howe Rise. the world. They were puzzled to find that could wipe out a whole genetic up the Gulf of Aqaba. Over the past Trawling on the Capel Bank at 400 m, they the test worked on all the sharks except lineage if you are not man- decade, both lionfish morphs have been caught a strange shrimp a new species of for three, which were caught by recrea- aging these species sepa- found living together at the northern end the genus Neoglyphea! tional anglers off Fort Lauderdale. rately.’’ Shivji said. ■ of the Gulf. The feather-like tentacled For invertebrate scientists this is equiva- But more extensive testing on the lent to the discovery of the second spe- three South Florida sharks The peacock cies of coelacanth in Indonesia some feather like years ago. ■ ornaments. THE FULL PAPER “DISCOVERY IN THE CORAL SEA OF A SECOND SPECIES OF GLYPHEID (CRUSTACEA, DECAPODA, GLYPHEOIDEA)” IS PUBLISHED Photo: Lev BY THE JOURNAL ZOOSYSTEMA (VOLUME 28, ISSUE 1, 2006). Fishelson FISHBASE.ORG 5 X-RAY MAG : 10 : 2006 EDITORIAL FEATURES TRAVEL NEWS EQUIPMENT BOOKS SCIENCE & ECOLOGY EDUCATION PROFILES PORTFOLIO CLASSIFIED Census of Marine Life Still more cool discoveries Corals may survive global warming by gorging themselves
A new study published in Nature is why in some bleaching events, some says some species of coral are corals quickly died off while others close by were able to recover. able to survive bleaching events The researchers collected samples of by gorging themselves. An Montipora capitata, or “rice” coral, and experiment showed that when Porites compressa, “finger” coral and bleached, one species sharply placed them in sets of tanks supplied with natural seawater. Water from the increased its intake of food, reef was filtered to remove any plank- increasing the likelihood that it ton and flowed through the tanks in the would survive elevated water same way it does in their natural environ- temperatures. ment. In one set of tanks, the water was heated, mimicking the rising temperatures leading to a bleaching event. After a month, fragments of the coral were measured for energy reserves, photo- synthetic rates and growth rates of the coral. The results showed that both Porites and Montipora used up their inter- nal energy reserves. However, after a month of recovery on the reef (where plank- ton is naturally available) Porites continued to use up its JIM MARAGOS reserves while Montipora had Finger coral, Porites compressa, at Oahu, Hawaii. This spe- somehow managed to com- Twelve new species found in deep sea in Bermuda Triangle cies faces a bleak future if global warming is permanent pletely replenish them. ■ The quantity and diversity of tiny taking samples five kilometres beneath marine animals. Many live on floating The findings were unexpected said creatures found in a deep-sea the ocean surface -- well beyond the plants (phytoplankton), and many are in James Palardy, co-author of the usual depth of 1,000 metres for such stud- turn eaten by fish, mammals and crusta- Nature paper. “Previous studies survey in the Bermuda Triangle ies. ceans. showed that thick tissue layers or region of the Atlantic Ocean Catches from the deep include a pos- One of the aims of the Census of mounded shapes made corals resil- amaze the researchers. sible new species of dragonfish. Several of Marine Zooplankton (CoMZ), part of ient. But we found a new resiliency the animals—tiny zooplankton, shrimp-like CoML, is to provide a global inventory of factor – feeding. In evolutionary During a 20-day cruise an international things, little squid, bizarre worms and puls- these tiny organisms which will help scien- terms, corals that eat more may win.” team used trawling nets and scuba divers ing jellyfish—are featured in a new image tists look for changes induced by climate The study has broader implica- to explore down to 3 miles beneath the gallery. variations or other factors. ■ tions for the health of coral reefs ocean surface to better understand the The expedition has provided a new worldwide, given the predictions beady-eyed life forms that are a key part understanding of the diversity of gelati- Part of this work was to try that bleaching events are going to of the ecosystem and could provide cru- nous zooplankton, which the researchers to go where we know the least become increasingly frequent and cial information on the effects of climate describe as “the gooiest, stickiest, and about our planet, which is the severe as the world’s oceans warm. change. most transparently fragile animals of the biggest habitat on Earth. But what has puzzled the researchers JIM MARAGOS So far they’ve found at least 12 new sea.” They are rarely captured without —Peter Wiebe, Woods Hole Rice coral, Montipora capitata, (at Oahu, Hawaii) species and catalogued 500 animals after being destroyed. Zooplankton are tiny Oceanographic Institution seem to able to somehow adapt to warmning
6 X-RAY MAG : 10 : 2006 EDITORIAL FEATURES TRAVEL NEWS EQUIPMENT BOOKS SCIENCE & ECOLOGY EDUCATION PROFILES PORTFOLIO CLASSIFIED Putin: We Must Act To World’s oldest lake news holds also world’s Protect Lake Baikal newest genus Edited by Greenpeace hails pro-environment decision as ‘wonderful’ Peter Symes Russian president Vladimir proposed routing the pipe- Putin came to the rescue line less than a kilometer from of what is called one of the Baikal, alarming environmen- Light micrograph of seven underwater wonders of talists who said the lake’s diatom Amphorotia sp the world, Lake Baikal which is unique ecology could be also the world’s largest body destroyed if the pipeline were Scientists from Natural History Museum in of fresh water. Reaching more to rupture. London have discovered a new genus of than 1,620 m at its deepest The chief of the state-run diatom. Named Amphorotia, the genus point, Lake Baikal contains pipeline monopoly Transneft, contains 14 species, including six new to sci- one-fifth of the world’s fresh Semyon Vainshtok, reiterated ence. Diatoms (Bacillariophyta) are a group water and up to 1,500 unique his position that just a small of single-celled algae that photosynthesise species of plants and animals. amount crude oil would end - a process that coverts sunlight into chemi- At 20 to 30 million years old, it’s up in the lake “if something cal energy used by animals. Diatoms live in the oldest lake in the world unbelievable happened.” marine and fresh water and are extremely Putin chose the 20th anni- Afterward, he told reporters important for many animals as they form the versary of one of the world’s later that he was surprised by basis of the food chain on our planet. greatest environmental the announcement. The diatom diversity in Lake Baikal, espe- catastrophes, the Chernobyl “Fifteen minutes ago, the cially in its deeper waters, is almost entirely nuclear disaster, to make his Our late colleague John decision was taken that fun- unknown and unstudied. It is estimated that ruling following months of Neuschwander with the lake’s damentally changes the eco- there are over 500 species of diatom found protests in defense of Lake signature speoies, a gammarid nomics of the project,” he told only in Lake Baikal. This number increases Baikal. Speaking at a discus- reporters. He did not say how with each new biodiversity survey carried out sion with regional governors Putin, following a presenta- much moving the pipeline making Lake Baikal home to one of the most over Siberia’s development, tion by the deputy head of would add to the project, but diverse diatom communities in the world. ■ Putin said that the route for a Russia’s Academy of Sciences in the past he has said mov- Source: Natural History Museum planned Siberian oil pipeline who proposed the move, ing it would make the project should be moved more than surprised both pipeline offi- uneconomical. 40 km north of the lake. That cials and environmentalist by Environmentalists say distance would put the pipe- announcing, “The pipeline that the regulatory agen- must go further north than cies responsible for vetting has been indicated. If there is the planned route manipu- even the tiniest chance of pol- lated the review process in lution” then the risks must total- Transneft’s favor. ly eliminated, he said later. Greenpeace Russia spokes- “This means that the pipeline man Yevgeny Usov called must go beyond, to the north Putin’s decision “wonder- of, the watershed of Baikal.” ful.” “We are very glad that The Kremlin-backed, 4,100 the authorities have finally km pipeline is set to run from decided to listen to the opin- Siberia’s Irkutsk region to the ion of the public, scientists Amur region on the Chinese and experts,” Usov told The line beyond Baikal’s drainage border, then on to Russia’s Associated Press. ■ area, Pacific coast. Officials had
Russian president Lake Baikal’s unique ecosystem Vladimir Putin has come is very old and affectionately to the aid of Lake Baikal. known as the “green reef” Photos: Peter Symes Filephoto: ilexikon.com 7 X-RAY MAG : 10 : 2006 EDITORIAL FEATURES TRAVEL NEWS EQUIPMENT BOOKS SCIENCE & ECOLOGY EDUCATION PROFILES PORTFOLIO CLASSIFIED WWF: New species of freshwater news stingray discovered in Thailand The Wildlife Fund Thailand (WFT) and the the discovery of Humantura Kittipongi Smithsonian Institute have jointly identi- was proof of the Mae Klong’s good eco- Edited by fied a new species of aquatic ray living logical system. Peter Symes in a river in Kanchanaburi province. “Ray species are generally very sensi- The stingray, measuring 60 centim- tive to ecological changes,” he said. eters in width, was first observed However, Chavalit expressed concern in 2004 but has only now been at the fact the rays were often caught in confirmed as a new species by fishing nets and any changes in the river, the researchers. such as a construction of a dyke, could “After research and comparing its adversely affect it’s existence. features with known species, we have “If the species disappears from the found this is a new species in the family of river, it becomes extinct. Unlike marine Dasyatidae,” said WFT expert Dr Chavalit fish, the species in the river does not Vithayanont. The new species was named have the possibility of spreading its spe- Himantura kittipongi after prominent Thai cies into the vast expanse of seas or WIKIPEDIA fish expert Kittipong Jaruthanin who first oceans,” he said. Thai rivers have been A new species of freshwater stingray observed the ray in 2004. plagued by serious pollution, overfish- has been discovered in a river in west- The ray’s outstanding features are its ing and dam building, which have ern Thailand, but its chances for long- dark, yellowish-brown shade on its back taken a deadly toll on Thailand’s once term survival are slim, warns WWF. and as many as 15 rows of small teeth diverse and abundant river life. The ray is in its mandible. Chavalit said he thought believed to exist in only small numbers. ■
���������������������������������������������������������������������������������� ���� ������� ���� ����� ���� ������ ������ ����� ���� ������ ������ ������ ��������� ��������� ������ �������� ���� ��������� ��� � ����������������� ��� ����� ������ ����� ����� ���� ����������������
����� ��������� ��� ��� ��������� ���� ������������� ��������� ���� ����������� ���������� ��������� ���� ����������� �������� ��������� ������������� ���������� ���� ������������ ������� ���������� ������������� �������� ����������������������������
��� ����������� ���� ���������� ���� ��������� ���������������������������� ����� ��� ���� ������ ��� ��������������������������������������������������� ���������������������������������������������������� ������� ���� ����������� ���� ������ ���� ������������� ������ ����� ������ ������� ���� �������� ����� �� ������ ����� ����� ���� ������ ���������������������������������������� ������������
�������������� ��������������������������
8 X-RAY MAG : 10 : 2006 EDITORIAL FEATURES TRAVEL NEWS EQUIPMENT BOOKS SCIENCE & ECOLOGY EDUCATION PROFILES PORTFOLIO CLASSIFIED NAUI EUROPE workshops
To create a bigger and stronger NAUI in Europe and The workshop handles the following topics; ► Micro teaching demonstration to assist the members better in the local language ► Stock keeping NAUI europe works with NAUI REP’s to promote NAUI ► Standards and policies leadership courses ► Cap program and to assist with quality controle. ► Quality control ► Prospecting and recruiting new members ► Marketing and sales of the NAUI educational sys- A NAUI REP is an active status Course Director and tem The final exam is a combination of an instructor- designated to teach course director workshops. ► Why NAUI instructor-trainer and course director exam. These NAUI Master Before some one can call himself a NAUI REP he or ► Translations workshops are held on regular basis in the NAUI she first goes through a REP- workshop with the NAUI ► Administrative requirements Europe office. Scuba Diver Europe trainings department. In this workshop the ► Certifying instructors-instructor trainers and course The schedule is available on NAUI Europe website. candidates will be prepared to do their job in their directors www.naui-europe.com Course Materials area ► Evaluations of class room sessions get even Better! shows with several booths ments of NAUI in Russia. presentations. NAUI is pleased to announce the NAUI and it is clear that the NAUI Europe’s training The 7-day trip was upgrade of the audio component of Russian market will be manager Jelle Buisman done during a very cold the NAUI Master Scuba Diver Education Europe at the an important market was also present at both period in Moscow, under System from audio cassette to com- for NAUI in the coming shows, where he also with the temperatures pact disc. With this new component, ► European REPW MOSCOW future. Besides manning tought the new NAUI N- went to -30 C and where your students can now receive the (2-day representative workshop) the booths NAUI Europe’s tec to a group of techni- the masses of snow same high quality information previ- Thurday 9th February 2006 dive shows CEO, Dick Lucas, pre- cal divers and instructors sometimes made get- ously contained in the Master Scuba Friday 10 th February 2006 sented price winners of as well as assisting the ting to either of the dive- Diver audio cassette using compact the Dive Tek magazine NAUI representative in shows feel almost like an disk technology. International ICC This year there was two with their prizes on the Moscow with the evalu- expedition to the Arctic. (3 day instructor cross over course) concurrent dive shows gala evening of the ation of instructors in an NAUI Europe will go to The Master Scuba Diver CDs (item Monday 20th March 2006 in Moscow. NAUI was show. During the shows IQP. The diving was be great lengths to reach #20611) are also available for indi- Tuesday 21th March 2006 present at both shows he also spoke to several done in the Olympic and meet their mem- vidual purchase if you wish to upgrade Wednesday 22th March 2006 and represented by the NAUI instructors and dive swimming arena where bers through out entire Education Systems you may already Russian NAUI representa- professionals about NAUI, they used an 8 Europe. NAUI Europe have in inventory. For your con- ► International ITW tive and a delegation “Why NAUI?” and the meter deep believes in the value of venience, the Master Scuba Diver (2 day instructor-trainer workshop) of four from the NAUI possibilities pool for being present where Education System item numbers have Tuesday 21th March 2006 Europe office. and future confined assistance is needed and remained the same: #91200D (DVD Wednesday 22nd March 2006 Both shows were well develop- water of course to meet with version) and #91200 (VHS video ver- organized with a lot existing and coming NAUI sion). ► International CDW of international members. ■ (2 day course director workshop) attendance. NAUI The content has not changed, just the Thursday 23rd March 2006 had a big pres- media. Audio cassettes are still avail- Friday 24th March 2006 ence able upon request for a limited time. ► European REPW on Along with other courses, be sure to (2 day representative workshop) the stock up on your Master Scuba Diver Monday 27th March 2006 educational materials today! Tuesday 28th March 2006 For further information on NAUI affili- ► NAUI TEC week (week 14 and 15 ated stores, resorts, and certified diving 2006) instruction, contact NAUI at (001) 813- During these weeks NAUI EUROPE 628-6284 or [email protected], or offer Technical diver, Technical visit www.naui.org. ■ instructor and Technical Course
9 X-RAY MAG : 10 : 2006 EDITORIAL FEATURES TRAVEL NEWS EQUIPMENT BOOKS SCIENCE & ECOLOGY EDUCATION PROFILES PORTFOLIO CLASSIFIED On becoming an new NAUI Rep Michael Henrichsen is his expansion in Europe and was soon shoulders. “I have been positively name, NAUIs first local enough also looking for new local surprised how many people, both reps that could carry the banner existing and prospective divers representative in Denmark. into the new territories. Needless to who already have a good prior While NAUI is one of the say one step quickly led to another knowledge about NAUI when big classic training organi- and Michael found himself ap- they come here. It seems that the pointed NAUI’ first representative in customers have already done their sations it has never had Denmark. homework and learnt about the a presence in Denmark Queried about what led him to options. I have been very pleased before, so we went to ask accept the position, the first an- with this.” Michael what made him swer came promptly: It was a mat- Michael also fancies that the ter of economy. First of all becom- courses seems to be a little more take on the challenge of ing a course director opens up a thorough, mentioning that the spearheading NAUI’s entry whole new professional venue and OWD course have 5 open water into this homeland. revenue stream for you personally. dive and includes first aid. Secondly the NAUI system makes it Having a dive center of his own We meet him In the spacious office easier to conduct instructor cours- while marketing the concept to of ‘Superdive’ - his Copenhagen es as, compared to the present other dive centers hasn’t clouded based dive center. alternative, is less requirements the matter either, Michael says. Michael explains that he has to the dive centers wanting to There are more degrees of free- been a PADI instructor since 1999 conduct instructor courses. In this dom and also a better economic when he received an attrac- system they don’t have to be an incentive in this system, he adds. tive offer to go to NAUI Europe’s ‘Instructor Development Center’ or The centers can conduct their own headquarters in the Netherlands any of the sort. instructor courses if they have an to cross over and train as a Course As regards to rising to the chal- instructor trainer. As a course direc- Director. The organisation is pres- lenge of implementing a ‘new’ tor he only needs to there as an ently undergoing a rejuvenated organisation, Michael shrugs his examinator, making the overall re- quirements less stringent and much easier to meet for the long list of Meeting Michael Henrichsen small and medium size centers that make up the bulk of the industry. So what’s the plan we wanted to know. The next steps Establishing the organisation firmly is a long term project that requires a joint effort with active involve- ment from the Headquarters in the Netherlands. Fist of all there are a range of training materials await- ing translation and distribution. Secondly it is about building up working relationships with all those centers for whom doing instructor courses is presently out of reach. It is exiting to be the first, Michael can’t quite quench a smile as we say our goodbyes. ■
10 X-RAY MAG : 10 : 2006 EDITORIAL FEATURES TRAVEL NEWS EQUIPMENT BOOKS SCIENCE & ECOLOGY EDUCATION PROFILES PORTFOLIO CLASSIFIED Photography by Alex Mustard
It is also important that divers are not put off from going to Sipadan - because without the income generated by tourism Sipadan would soon be consumed by the fishermen just as the rain Barge crashes into Sipadan forests and reefs around Semporna have been. If The international dive materials were intended important to note that this the island didn’t have the community was in for a for the construction of accident has not ruined divers and Malaysian army crude awakening to the improved rest facilities for diving on Sipadan. It has there it would be ravaged news that a barge - carry- divers visiting the island just heavily damaged a in days. In fact a fisherman ing thousands of tonnes of during the day, to replace section of the reef. It is was caught with nets filled coarse gravel, sand, steel the current temporary important to publicise this with Barracuda at Sipadan tubes, iron mesh, prime facilities. damage to insure it does at night during my stay. movers, a large bulldozer Writes Alex Mustard: It is not happen again. Down the same vein, the and a gigantic crane - dive operators expressed has crashed into Sipadan, in a joint statement that one of the world’s most they are collectively com- coveted and renowned mitting to working with diives sites and completel local and national govern- scoured one its famnous ment parties, who are cur- dive siites down, wiping rently conducting a dam- off the whole top coral age assessment survey, reef down to the unsightly to devise and implement limestone rick below a program for rebuilding between the old pier and restoring the affected and Barracuda Point. The area as soon as possible. ■ Viet Nam succeeds in changing seahorse colours
Vietnam’s Nha Trang Raising seahorses is by no icines, Ky said. Institute of Oceanography means easy but is gaining pop- The number of ornamental has succeeded in ularity in Vietnam as the latest seahorses exported is currently a feat once thought form of aquaculture, devel- between 5,000 to10,000 per impossible. Normally oped to improve farmer-liveli- month. However, Viet Nam’s seahorses are black, hoods in the Southeast Asian seahorse producers have not but with a little inge- country. Dr Ky believes the found access to the China nuity, the institute can seahorses can be marketed and Hong Kong markets, make a black seahorse for high profit by raisers without which demand seahorses for yellow – increasing a lot of risk. The price of an medicinal use. it’s value for aquari- ornamental seahorse is US$3-5 Although the fishery industry ums. A trial red-col- locally, but as much as $70-300 has yet to focus on a brand our seahorse in Hawaii, Ky pointed out. name, Ky feels the markets project, which is Export markets are in are there and more studies currently under- Singapore, the US and the EU are necessary on their marine way, has also achieved as aquaria fish and in China environment to perfect rear-
MANIPULATED good results. and Hong Kong as tonic med- ing for local aqua farmers. ■ PHOTO: PETER SYMES
11 X-RAY MAG : 10 : 2006 EDITORIAL FEATURES TRAVEL NEWS EQUIPMENT BOOKS SCIENCE & ECOLOGY EDUCATION PROFILES PORTFOLIO CLASSIFIED Designation Limits Oil Exploration In Unspoiled Marine Area Brazil Creates Buffer Zone Around Coral Reefs Off Atlantic Coast The Brazilian govern- Brazil’s Institute of Environment rying out their means of liveli- ment has created an and Natural Resources (IBAMA), hood through traditional fishing encompasses nearly 95,000 km2 and eco-tourism activities,” said official buffer zone – an area larger than Portugal Guilherme Dutra, director of CI- around the Abrolhos – and protects the entire Abrolhos Brazil for the marine program. National Marine Park region off Brazil’s central coast, The Abrolhos region, located off Conservation has a long to protect the bio- including several types of coastal the coastal town of Caravelas in tradition in Brazil and marine ecosystems with the far south of Bahia, northeast logically richest coral unique and endangered species, Brazil, is home to mangrove forests reefs in the South such as the humpback whales. and restinga (a uniquely Brazilian effects of oil and gas exploration Atlantic. Under Brazilian law, buffer ecosystem of sparsely vegetated and possible oil spills that helped zones around protected areas sand ridges) and a complex of motivate the effort by IBAMA to The buffer zone, created by offer strong protection, with spe- small islands, coral and algal get the buffer zone declared. cial permits from environmental reefs. Its natural resources directly Under the government declara- authorities required for any eco- support more than 100,000 peo- tion, oil and gas activities are pro- nomic use. ple. hibited in 75 percent of the buffer “The buffer zone will guaran- Since 1996, CI-Brazil has con- zone, and approval for such tee the biodiversity integrity in ducted biological monitoring at development in the other 25 per- the Park and ensure that local Abrolhos National Marine Park, cent would require detailed stud- communities can continue car- including assessments of the ies showing no adverse impact. ■
12 X-RAY MAG : 10 : 2006 EDITORIAL FEATURES TRAVEL NEWS EQUIPMENT BOOKS SCIENCE & ECOLOGY EDUCATION PROFILES PORTFOLIO CLASSIFIED ADEX is tiny compared to shows in the United States and Europe, and I Asia Dive Expo - Singapore, April 21-23 2006 was told beforehand by more than news one person to “not expect much.” But what I discovered when I arrived was a tight network of dive operators, Reporting by tourism representatives, manufactur- Catherine GS Lim ers, distributors, publishers, editors, and photographers working together to ADEX 2006 further the industry as a whole (for the & Celebrate the Sea most part). Three days hardly seemed like enough time to meet and befriend all of the people I wanted to see, and evenings February 24-26 were spent out dining and hanging out at bars, often into the early hours of the morn- ing. — Eric Cheng / wetpixel Celebrate the Sea contest finalists Photos: Eric Cheng/ Wetpixel Celebrate the Seas comprises, ADEX was perfect, as a large And then, all too soon, it was among other things, a master number of divers are also photog- over. Packing up (amidst lament- photographers gallery, photo raphers. ing the fact that ADEX lasted only and video competitions, work- At least, that was what I had three days), I was grateful that shops, seminars and sales of come to realise after manning everyone I met was happy to wel- imaging and dive equipment. the X-Ray Magazine’s booth at come a newcomer like me into That it took place alongside ADEX. It was my first time as an its midst, and I knew that I would exhibitor here, and it was cherish the experiences and enlightening to put a face friendships I had acquired here for to the people who read our a long time to come. ■ magazine. All along, I knew that divers were a friendly bunch, but I had never Where friends come to meet. ADEX 2006 were held in the Suntec venue been privy to it on such a Eric Cheng and Harald Hordosch large scale. It didn’t matter of Seacam. Photo: Paul Ng which part of the world you We had waited two industry peers and old friends at came from, it didn’t matter years for it to return to the Dive Business Seminars and whether you had a camera the exhibition proper. hanging from your neck or Uscil doloreetue feugiam consed Singapore. When it did, School students got a taste of a brand-new regulator in a magna facillaor sim iliquamcor on 21st to 23rd April, Asia the action as well, at the ADEX shopping bag, we all spoke adip exerostio dolor iurer augiam Dive Expo (ADEX) 2006 Sea Star Programme where they the same language and numsand ignibh eratis do dignim turned out to be well took part in interactive talks and shared the same passion nummodo lortionsenis nim dolup- workshops. Even members of for the underwater world. tat nibh eum ex enibh eugueri worth the wait. the public were able to take the There was a wonderful feel- uscipsu scilit lutem quat nullam plunge (literally!) for the first time, ing of camaraderie, and eugait wis auguercipsum dion- For one thing, it was ADEX’s big- donning scuba gear and diving I was forced to forget my sequisit digna facilit, quatuerit lut gest showing in 12 years, bring- into a large see-through tank at shy nature as I made new lortin velent wis estrud magnim ing a record 9,200 visitors face- the Asia Scuba Tour. friends in the industry and adip ero odolenismod te dolum to-face with 809 exhibitors from A main highlight at ADEX encouraged visitors to sign non et accum dolor init wis dio 26 countries. There was some- 2006 was the joint presence of up for free subscriptions exer ip essi blaorem incing eu thing for everyone, from the nov- Celebrate the Seas, the larg- to X-Ray Magazine and feuguer autet diamet lore dip ice diver looking for great deals est underwater film festival and Papua New Guinea: Emily Kamioka (PNG Japan), DivePhotoGuide.com, an erat aut lore tat, ver si bla alit aut- on scuba gear and photograph- competition in Asia Pacific. Held Tim Rowland (Aqua Ventures), Vilia Lawrence online resource for under- patetum velesequam erationulla ic equipment, to the dive profes- in conjunction with the World (PNG Divers Association), Max Benjamin (Walindi/ water photographers with consendre ex eliquis dunt la feuis- sional looking to touch base with Festival of Underwater Pictures, FeBrina/Star Dancer)Dive Expo - Singapore whom we shared a booth. sim non utpatem deliquat. Velit, Ron and Valerie Taylor talk about sharks
13 X-RAY MAG : 10 : 2006 EDITORIAL FEATURES TRAVEL NEWS EQUIPMENT BOOKS SCIENCE & ECOLOGY EDUCATION PROFILES PORTFOLIO CLASSIFIED The use of flippers by snorkellers news banned at all marine parks in Malaysia Resort operators have been stepped on them when trying Edited by instructed to notify their guests of to get a closer look. There was Peter Symes the new directive. widespread concern that the The move follows a recom- damage to the corals would mendation from the Fisheries become more extensive as the Department after the use of flip- number of visitors to the marine Plankton may give early pers had damaged corals at parks increased, especially dur- warning about quakes popular snorkelling sites in the ing long holidays. marine parks. However, divers will be Officials state the lure of the allowed to use flippers at dive
beautiful coral reefs was irre- sites identified by resorts and PETER SYMES sistible and snorkellers often chalet operators. ■ No, sorry - you can’t bring them Perhaps we can dive there soon Life seeps back into the Aral Sea
NASA The Aral Sea is set for a return its salinity go up from 10 grams Phytoplankton blooms can be seen to life thanks to a $60 million to 45 grams per litre. Seawater from space project to restore its water sup- has a salinity of 35 grams per plies. litre.The disaster left fishing Concentrations of the natural pig- The lake, which straddles the boats rusting in the dustbowl of ment chlorophyll in coastal waters border between Kazakhstan the former lakebed, which agri- have been shown to rise prior to and Uzbekistan, was once the cultural chemicals that ran into earthquakes. These chlorophyll fourth-largest inland body of the lake during the Soviet era increases are due to blooms of water in the world but a Soviet- were reported to have con- plankton. era programme of irrigation for taminated the dust and been
A joint US-Indian team writing nearby cotton and vegetable linked to respiratory disease NASA in the journal Advances in Space farms saw it shrink from 70,000 among the population border- The Aral Sea, in 2003, had shrunk to Research say the chlorophyll km2 in 1960 to 17,000 km2 in ing the former lake. well under half of the area it had blooms are linked to a release 2004. It has since divided into A World Bank-backed project covered fifty years before. of thermal energy prior to an three separate lakes and seen rebuild the canal system has earthquake. This causes the sea redoubled the flow of the Syr Darya surface temperature to rise and river, which feeds the northern half N increases the amount of energy of the lake and restore the north- The Ultimate ew Life seeps back into the moving from the surface to the air ern lake has already seen 775km2 Scuba Tank/Spear Gun Holder story/0,,1749419,00.html?gusrc=rss due to evaporation. of the former seabed covered with Scuba Tank/Spear Gun Holder In turn, thisl leads to enhanced water anew. Initial plans envisaged TEMPORARY – no permanent damage The Aral Sea, once described as the world’s worst PRE-ASSEMBLED – no hassles or headaches ecological disaster after Soviet-era irrigation plans upwelling - the process by which it would take up to a decade to INSTANT ATTACH & RELEASE – quick & effortless reduced its size by three-quarters, is returning to life cold, nutrient-rich water is trans- reach this level. But hope that the MULTIPLE HOLDERS – 2 & 3 tank racks- 1 speargun slot thanks to a £48m project to restore its water sup- ported from the deep sea to the entire lake could be restored is 4 tank rack has 2 speargun slots plies. surface. Upwelling boosts phyto- still far off. The southern portion of SPACE SAVER – compact for easy storage plankton productivity and gives depends on the Amu Darya river, 800-920-2910 The lake, which straddles the border between rise to blooms, which can be seen which is so heavily irrigated that PO Box 1967, Nokomis, FL 34272 Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, was once the fourth- They say that monitoring peaks its waters rarely reach the former (941) 484-0714 Fax: (941)-484-2749 largest inland body of water in the world but a in chlorophyll could provide early shores of the lake. ■ www.scubastorage.com programme of irrigation for nearby cotton and veg- information on an impending earthquake. ■ Orphaned ship in former Aral sea, near Aral, Kazakhstan, 2003 P. CHRISTOPHER STAECKER 14 X-RAY MAG : 10 : 2006 EDITORIAL FEATURES TRAVEL NEWS EQUIPMENT BOOKS SCIENCE & ECOLOGY EDUCATION PROFILES PORTFOLIO CLASSIFIED PADI now recognised by Greece Marine archeologist & “Sea Hunter” PADI has been officially recog- with current European Diving James Delgado gets new job Training nised as a diver training organi- Standards enabled the Greek sation in Greece by the Greek authorities to easily establish its Marine archeologist James Park Service before joining the Ministry of Merchant Marine. suitability for recognition. Delgado, co-host of The Sea Vancouver Maritime Museum in Edited by Official recognition was grant- The recognition of PADI by Hunters TV series, has resigned 1991. Peter Symes ed on May 4 2006. the Greek authorities will assist as executive director of the As co-host, with Clive Cussler, Recent changes to the laws PADI dive centres and resorts Vancouver Maritime Museum. of National Geographic’s The governing recreational diving in their use of the world’s most to become executive direc- Sea Hunters, the California-born in Greece have considerably popular diver training pro- tor of the Institute for Nautical Canadian Delgado was part of DAN improved the local business cli- grammes. It means that PADI Archeology, a Texas-based a team of underwater archeolo- Announces mate there for the diving indus- instructors can now work as pro- research group that has under- gists who explored famous and try. PADI’s proven compliance fessional instructors in Greece. ■ water archeological projects unknown shipwrecks. The show, the DES Quest around the world. Delgado will produced by Halifax- leave the Vancouver Maritime based Eco Nova Diving Emergency Specialist is a DAN Museum on June 30, but is dis- Productions, has Training recognition program designed SSI Creates Motion cussing whether to remain on been sold to more to commend divers who have continued its board of directors. He will than 170 countries. their education and training in order to Picture Diver Rating remain based in Vancouver. He also has trained obtain knowledge and be both better A California-born Canadian, archeologists in sur- buddies and better divers. It incorpo- for Movie Industry Delgado was the head of the veying and preserving rates DAN Training programs with those U.S. government’s maritime pres- sunken vessels and of other training agencies, providing the Scuba Schools International has ervation program and maritime their contents. ■ diver with a well-rounded dive education. joined forces with the Local 80 Divers historian for the U.S. National Association to create a recognition To achieve the level of Diving Emergency rating system that will help motion pic- Specialist, a diver must: ture production companies hire under- 1. Be a rescue level (or higher) diver with water “grips” (technicians) for filming their training agency movies. This alliance will help with the 2. Hold a current CPR and First Aid certifi- safety and efficiency of making movies cation underwater. 3. Hold a current certification in Oxygen Historically, there has been inconsist- First Aid for Scuba Diving Injuries (or Pirates of the Caribbean, star- ency in the training of grips and an equivalent) ring Johnny Depp, was just inability for film production companies 4. Complete three of the following: but one movie having pro- to easily know if a grip they are hiring – Advanced Oxygen First Aid for duction staff work underwater has the skills needed to perform the Scuba Diving Injuries (or equiv.) required duties of a specific produc- – First Aid for Hazardous Marine Life tion. The SSI Motion Picture Diver recognition rating system has four Injuries (or equiv.) levels to identify the diver’s experience and training level. ■ – AEDs for Scuba Diving (or equiv.) – On-Site Neurological Assessment for Divers (or equiv.) PADI Chamber Endowment Award winning Fiber Artist, Alma de – Remote Emergency Medical Oxygen la Melena Cox, creates “Telamadera (REMO2™) Fund to distribute more than Fusion,” by bringing fabric and wood The DES Quest will run from June 1 – Dec. together in a dynamic and unique mixed- 31, 2006. During the Quest, when DAN US$30,000 media expression. Her fine artwork is notified of a diver’s achievement of can be found in galleries in California DES, the diver will receive a specially Many divers assume there will be a hyperbaric chamber near and Oregon and by contacting the art- designed T-shirt and ballcap prize pack- their diving destination, but this is not always the case. To support ist directly. Please visit her website at: age. In addition, the diver will automati- these critical facilities, PADI established The Chamber Endowment cally be entered in a drawing for a DAN Fund in 2004. This fund is supported by a $2 donation from every Gift Certificate worth $250. ■ enrollment in the Diver Protection Program – which is available The Thief www.almaart.com Canyon to all divers globally and accepted by institutions worldwide. This 28 x 18 in. US$625.00 Alma de la Melena Cox 24 x 24 in. US$625.00 www.DiversAlertNetwork.org year, more than $30,000 is available to qualified applicants. ■
15 X-RAY MAG : 10 : 2006 EDITORIAL FEATURES TRAVEL NEWS EQUIPMENT BOOKS SCIENCE & ECOLOGY EDUCATION PROFILES PORTFOLIO CLASSIFIED Tiny Kiribati Creates World’s news First Deep-sea Marine Reserve The tiny Pacific island nation of Kiribati, islands stretching across several hundred Edited by located between Hawaii and Fiji, kilometres. Peter Symes has created the world’s third-largest It is the world’s first marine park with marine reserve. Commercial fishing will deep-sea habitat, including underwater be banned in the reserve, called the mountains, and the third-largest. The larg- Phoenix Islands Protected Area, to pro- est reserve is the 65,000 km2 Heard Island Taiwan urged to tect more than 120 species of coral and and McDonald Islands Marine Reserve in create coral reef 520 species of fish inside its 184,700 km2. Australia Kiribati comprises three coral island “If the coral and reefs are protected, protection agency groups and one volcanic island with a then the fish will grow and bring us ben- total land area of only 717 km2 spread efit,” said Kiribati’s President Tong. “In this The Taiwanese govern- over more than 3 million km2. It is the way all species of fish can be protected ment has been urged largest atoll nation in the world, with 33 so none become depleted or extinct.” ■ to establish an agency exclusively devoted to the protection of coral reefs in Sweden Denmark To Get Its First waters near Taiwan and Norway the removal of shipwrecks. Skagerak Marine Reservation Presently at least four gov- ernment agencies has to The European Union has granted Denmark 2 mil- get involved whenever the lion Euro to restore the marine seabed around the issues of shipwrecks and island of Læsø in the Northern Kattegat, and cre- coral depletion are raised. ate a diver’s paradise. Stone reefs are going to be Various wrecks litter the restored or created as they have previously been coastline and contrary to Kattegat mined for construction materials. The big stone reefs widespread belief that in Kattegat habours a very diverse marine life and these sites could become Denmark is covered with kelp, small sponges and softcorals. underwater artificial fishing The restoration of the reefs are going to cost DKK 35 reefs or foster coral growth Læsø lies in the Northern Kattegat. million and will require up to 80,000 m3 of new rocks the wreckage has instead Skagerak and Kattegat connects which has to be shipped to the island from Norway continued to impair the the North Sea with the Baltic. or Sweden. ■ growth of coral. The com- bination of the sharp metal Convention on missed the opportunity to fishing practices in inter- edges and the ocean’s Biological Diversity act themselves,” said Kristina national waters, including currents turn these areas Gjerde, World Conservation bottom trawling.” Such a a into “coral graveyards.” Flopped Union. ban should remain until As the debris is spreading, The Convention on This was in spite of a pro- appropriate conservation coral coverage continues Biological Diversity (CBD) posal for a moratorium on and management meas- to drop. The only option is in Brazil in April failed to do high seas bottom trawling ures have been established to remove it before more more than reiterate the presented to the meeting under international law. The coral, the local ecological previous calls for immediate by Palau. On the 22 March threat of loss of biodiversity is system and Taiwan’s tour- action. “The decisions on Palau banned bottom trawl- bigger than climate change ism resources are further high seas reflect that gov- ing making the practice in if we consider that once a compromised. It is estimat- ernments now recognize the Palau’s waters or by any species is lost, no mitigation ed that unless something grave threats to the unique citizen of Palau anywhere in measure can help bring it is done immediately, new high seas biodiversity and the world, illegal. back Dimas added. coral growth isn’t expected the need for urgent actions. EU Environment Commis- As the debate continues, to appear in these areas But countries have shifted sioner Stavros Dimas: “We high seas bottom trawling for the next 20 years. ■ the responsibility for action should put in place an inter- vessels continue to destroy SOURCE: TAIWAN NEWS to the United Nations, and im prohibition of destructive biodiversity. ■
16 X-RAY MAG : 10 : 2006 EDITORIAL FEATURES TRAVEL NEWS EQUIPMENT BOOKS SCIENCE & ECOLOGY EDUCATION PROFILES PORTFOLIO CLASSIFIED ROSS SEA INFO — WWW.ROSSSEA.INFO — INFO SEA ROSS whales
Do Whales Talk? Dolphins know each other by name
Edited by Humpback whale Songs Bottlenose dolphins call each other Gunild Symes by name when they whistle, mak- ing them the only animals besides Resemble Human Language humans known to recognize such identity information, scientists report- Humpback whales have ture (but does not necessarily give spoken vowel or syllable contains at ed. The evidence suggests dolphins
17 X-RAY MAG : 10 : 2006 EDITORIAL FEATURES TRAVEL NEWS EQUIPMENT BOOKS SCIENCE & ECOLOGY EDUCATION PROFILES PORTFOLIO CLASSIFIED whales China Builds Reserve For Rare Dolphin �����Puts More Ogle in Your Goggle! Flat masks block over 75% of your natural field-of-view. Enjoy natural China is to the end of the year. panoramic vision. See almost 5X more through a Double-Dome™ lens Edited by set up a Pollution from factories, paper perfected with NASA technology. NanoFOG™ coating, applied at the Gunild Symes sanctuary mills and chemical plants has factory, ensures fog-free dives. Only naturally nearsighted divers (broad for the high- destroyed much of the dolphins’ Rx range) can use the MEGA® 4.5DD mask with their naked eyes. But over ly endan- habitat, the director of the project 700 divers around the world with 20/20 vision wear disposable contact gered white said. Only around 2,000 white dol- lenses to use this mask. These divers become temporarily nearsighted. The dolphin, phins are thought to exist, with most incredible view is worth the effort. Endorsed by 1,000 eye doctors worldwide. Older divers love the Magic Bifocal phenomenon. Seeing is believing! a spe- living in the Pearl River estuary. Australia Sees cies unique to the country. writes Some 19 white dolphins, also Recovery Of Xinhua News Agency. The reserve, called “pandas in the ocean” n the eastern province of Fujian on because of their rarity, have died Humpback www.HydroOptix.com LLC © 2006 HydroOptix the southern coast of China, will over the past three years as a result Whales include a rescue centre near the of pollutants, Chen Jialin, direc- city of Zhuhai. The reserve be about tor of the Chinese White Dolphin Whale conservation- 460 km2 with building to begin by Natural Reserve, said. ■ Newborn dolphins don’t sleep for a month NOAA Helps Ocean Racers ists are celebrating evidence of a come- Newborn dolphins and killer whales do not sleep for a Avoid Right Whales back by humpback whole month after birth, new research has revealed, and whales in Australian neither do their mothers, who stay awake to keep a close The round-the-world Volvo Ocean Race waters and a decision ter and wait. Once an unsuspecting eye on their offspring. that ends in June, after covering more than by private backers of gull would come down for a meal, The feat of wakefulness is remarkable given that rats die 28,000 miles of open oceans. With consider- Japanese whaling to the whale would lunge at it with if forcibly denied sleep. And in humans, as any new parent able time spent in the active (marine mam- quit the industry. open jaws. The whale, pleased with will know, sleep deprivation is an exquisite form of torture. mal) waters of the Atlantic, the safety of the results, set up the trap over and But the newborn whales and dolphins were continually race participants and marine species such as An International over again. After a few months the active, surfacing for air every 3 to 30 seconds. They also the endangered North Atlantic right whale Whaling Commission whale’s younger brother gave it a kept at least one eye open to track their mothers, who is improved greatly with the help of the committee meeting try. seemed to set the frenetic pace by always coursing ahead NOAA Right Whale Sighting Advisory System. in Hobart in April was “It looked like one was watching of their offspring. ■ Throughout the race’s trek across the North told humpback whales while the other tried,” says Noonan. Atlantic, the NOAA Fisheries Service has been off Australia’s east and Next, his mother adopted the trick, providing reliable and timely information on west coasts now num- and pretty soon all the orcas at the whale locations to Volvo Ocean Race bered about 16,000, facility were at it. UK warships are to be equipped organizers to ensure the safety of race compared with fewer participants and the endangered North than 1000 in the 1960s. Killer Whales “In general, humans have long with whale-sensitive scanner Atlantic right whale. ■ However scientists cau- pictured themselves as separate tioned that the recov- from nature, but one of the lessons To limit the danger of killing marine mammals when ery should not provide Set Traps for that we repeatedly learn when we powerful new sonars are used UK warships are to 104 hurt after any comfort to Japan, study animal behavior is that ani- be equipped with whale-sensitive scanners . The which would begin kill- mals and humans are much more Royal Navy is working with St Andrews University’s ferry hits whale ing 50 humpbacks a Gullible Gulls alike us than we ever imagined. It sea mammal research unit on a sonic data- year in 2007-08 under was once believed that most ani- base of whales and other marine animal More than 100 people were its so-called scientific Orcas learn from each other how to mal behavior, from the food they calls. They hope to use the calls to detect injured when a hydrofoil hit a program. set traps for prey. Michael Noonan, a ate to the places they slept, was any marine mammals within a two-mile range. whale off Cape Sata, Kagoshima They said Pacific professor of animal behavior at Cani- based on instinct,” Noonan said. The move follows post-mortem examination of beached Prefecture, on April 10. According populations near sius College, have observed how a “This new discovery supports the whales in Spain which linked their deaths to military emis- to the Regional Coast Guard 98 Tonga, Fiji and New four-year-old killer whale set up a growing view that animals like sions disrupting their echo-location systems. The RN’s of the 103 passengers and all six Zealand were still fail- trap for seagulls by spitting fish onto killer whales are very prone to 2087 sonar, which cost £160m to design, uses low-fre- crew members on the high-speed ing to recover from the water’s surface as bait. learning by imitation, and that quency pulses to seek out lurking submarines hiding ferry Toppy 4 were hurt. Of those, commercial whaling. ■ The whale would sink below the wa- they are ‘cultural’ in nature. ■ in ambush in the cluttered waters close 12 were seriously injured. Thirty-six to shore. ■ were hospitalized.■
18 X-RAY MAG : 10 : 2006 EDITORIAL FEATURES TRAVEL NEWS EQUIPMENT BOOKS SCIENCE & ECOLOGY EDUCATION PROFILES PORTFOLIO CLASSIFIED outside the bay, when two Mexican brigs were spotted wreck chasing a Texan supply ship headed for Galveston. The rap Invincible engaged the two larger Mexican warships. The course of the battle saw the Invincible run into the shoals as a storm were approach- ing. The ensuing storm broke up the Invincible and over the next 48 hours she sunk below the water and ulti- mately below the sand where her nine cannon and a storehouse of other histori-
cal artifacts lie today. HMB ENDEAVOUR FOUNDATION. Texas Navy ship Invincible was lost outside of Galveston after The Endeavour fight with two Mexican ships on August 27, 1837. Finding her The National Underwater Captain Cook’s Endeavour The Search for Republic of and Marine Association (NUMA) began searching for may be found off Rhode Is. Texas Navy ship Invincible the Invincible in 1985. In 2004 the Texas Navy Association Four ships from a British fleet used during the National In the fall of 1835, with the the blockade and driving the joined NUMA to locate the Revolutionary War have been found off Rhode Underwater Mexican Navy blockading Mexican Navy from Texas Invincible. Last year the joint Island. One of them may be The Endeavour, the and Marine Texas ports, the provisional waters. But the Invincible, the venture completed a Marine ship that Captain Cook commanded on his first Association government of Texas cre- Navy’s finest, was given an Magnetics (Canadian com- voyage across the Pacific Ocean. The Endeavour (NUMA) ated the first Texas Navy. additional order - find and pany) magnetometer survey was the first British vessel to reach New Zealand in and the The flagship was the fast destroy the Montezuma, the of the new high-probability 1769 and Australia in 1770. Texas Navy clipper Invincible which was Mexican Navy’s newest and area which resulted in the Researchers with the Rhode Island Marine Association built in Baltimore and arrived most formidable warship. discovery of several promis- Archaeology Project said they believe the four has part- in Galveston for duty on On August 26, 1837 the ing targets. Test excava- ships, and two others previously discovered, are nered with January 1, 1836. Upon her Texas Navy returned to tions will be conducted part of a 13-vessel transport fleet intentionally sunk Cochran arrival, the Invincible was Galveston triumphantly. using Cochran Undersea by the British in Newport Harbor in 1778 to keep Undersea immediately outfitted with The Brutus towed a prize Technology DDRs (Dive Data French ships from landing to aid the Americans’ Technology 9 cannon. She then joined ship crossing the bar into Recorders) and EMC-20H drive for independence. to find the her sister Texas Navy ships Galveston Bay, while the dive computers. Dive pro- Archaeologists said it was unclear which ship Invincible and the privateers to protect larger, heavily laden (with files will be recorded using could be the Endeavour. “There is a 47 per- Texas shipping by breaking booty) Invincible anchored Cochran Analyst software. ■ cent chance that we have our hands on the Endeavour,” said D.K. Abbass, executive director of the Rhode Island Marine Archaeology Project. Photo-mosaics help scientists map Florida shipwrecks Four of the ships were discovered in August 2005 by the use of historical materials and sonar by Scientists with NOAA have docu- worked for more than a week to Professor Rod Mather of the University of Rhode mented five historical shipwrecks off create never-before-seen pictures of Island and graduate student Jamin Wells. the Florida Keys using a custom-made five historic wrecks that make up the Divers found ballast piles about 30 feet underwa- underwater sled fitted with advanced sanctuary’s shipwreck trail - the City ter, with the ship’s keel and other parts embedded SONAR and video equipment. of Washington, Benwood, San Pedro, in the sea floor. They also found at least one can- Now they will use their findings to Adelaide Baker and North America. non, an anchor with a 16-foot shank and a cream- produce photo-mosaics which will The images will be made available colored fragment of an 18th-century British ceramic provide NOAA with supplemental this summer at maritimeheritage. teapot. “As is the case with many 18th Century data of the ships’ remains and edu- noaa.gov. ■ shipwrecks, the newly discovered vessels were cate the public about the sanctu- Archeologists at work pinned to the bottom of Newport Harbor with their ary’s wrecks. The five-member team NOAA filephoto own ballast stones,” said Mather. ■
19 X-RAY MAG : 10 : 2006 EDITORIAL FEATURES TRAVEL NEWS EQUIPMENT BOOKS SCIENCE & ECOLOGY EDUCATION PROFILES PORTFOLIO CLASSIFIED Rare Spanish Ship Found On US Navy Base A rare Spanish ship pos- later period. The ship gin, archaeologists found wreck sibly dating as far back had been hidden under ceramic tiles, ropes as the 1500s has been sand for centuries, and and pieces of olive jars. rap unearthed at a navy researchers estimate the The Spanish settlement base in Florida by con- ship is currently buried in was founded in 1559; its struction crews rebuilding about 22 metres of sand. exact location is a mys- after Hurricane Ivan. The The exposed keel of the tery. The Spanish did not discovery could mark ship points upward from return until more than a the earliest of its kind the sandy bottom of century later in 1698 at dating back to the first the pit and gives some Presidio Santa Maria de Spanish settlement in the indication of the vessel’s Galve, now the naval U.S. but the presence of form. station. The Navy plans Divers have found two gold bars and iron bolts makes it more During initial work to to enclose the uncov- 15 silver coins which had been buried likely the ship is from a determine the ship’s ori- ered portion of the ship.■ beneath the ocean floor off Florida Keys for almost 400 years. The objects are believed to be from the shipwreck The Search For The El Salvador Exploration Of Sunken of the Nuestra Senora de Atocha, a Shipwrecks On Hold Spanish galleon that sank in 1622. A team of six scuba divers from Utah The bars were discovered by divers hopes to salvage gold, silver, and jewel- In 2004, Fathom Exploration found from Mel Fisher’s Treasure Salvors lery from the El Salvador, a Spanish ship four shipwreck sites near the mouth on the treasure-hunting ship the they believe went down in a hurricane of Mobile Bay. Needless to say they Magruder about 35 miles off of Key in 1750 and now rests in about 70 feet then wanted to salvage the sites West. They were found beneath about of water. Wilf Blum, president of Deep and claim any valuable artefacts 12 feet of sand in 20 feet of water. ■ Blue Marine, and leader of the expedi- that may exist. But those efforts tion, claims the ship’s manifest indicates have been tied up in federal court, there may be up to $500 million worth of where both the state and federal Thai Firm Wants To Search For WW2 Minisubs treasure among the wreckage. If the hull governments have laid claims to the is intact, Blum’s team will attempt to bring sites. A private citizen also has chal- A Thai marine-supply company based in is related to national security, the envi- it to the surface in one piece. Otherwise, lenged Fathom Exploration. southern Phuket is seeking permission to ronment and archaeology, and hence they intend to use dredging equipment salvage what it believes are two British the province had to first consult sev- to sift the seafloor for treasure. Whose wreck is it then? “human torpedoes” or Chariots, that eral agencies, such as the Fine Arts The federal government maintains have been lying in the sea near Phuket Department, the National Resources that the ships are U.S. property if since World War II, The Chariots sank and Environment Ministry and the Harbor the vessels belonged to the United near Dok Mai Island of Phuket Province Department, he added. States or a foreign country. State during a mission in World War Two. The Chariots are archaeological finds authorities contend the vessels However, authorities in Phuket would under the authority of Thai Fine Arts belong to Alabama if they lie sunk- first like East Marine to get British govern- Department, as they have been sub- en in state waters and that Fathom ment confirmation that the two vessels merged in Thai waters for more than Exploration would have to get a really belonged to the British Royal Navy 60 years “We also have to study the permit and negotiate an arrange- Some records say the British sub- environmental effects,” he said. “We still ment to split any proceeds it reaps. marine Trenchant carried two Mk-2 need information about how deep the At one point, the Alabama Historical Chariots for a mission at Phuket harbor naval weapons are under the water and Admiralty Pulls Out Of Search Commission was negotiating with on Oct. 27-28, 1944. how thick is the soil burying them.” ■ For US$1.2 Billion Spanish the company for such a permit “We need to have the evidence Source: www.chinaview.cn All parties agreed in December first, otherwise it could create prob- Booty Off Jamaica to put the case on hold for a year, lems for us later if the torpedoes US- based Admiralty Holding Company while they came to a consensus on are found to belong to another has pulled out from its search for Spanish how to proceed with the identifica- country,” Governor Udomsak precious metals and artifacts valued at tion of the ship or ships. Although said. Salvaging of the Chariots US$1.2 billion on the Pedro Banks, and Fathom Exploration found four loca- instead conducted a bathymetric search tions, the sites may have come from for oil also on the Pedro Banks which has a single sunken vessel that has bro- HMS Trenchard just been concluded. ■ ken into pieces over the years. ■
20 X-RAY MAG : 10 : 2006 EDITORIAL FEATURES TRAVEL NEWS EQUIPMENT BOOKS SCIENCE & ECOLOGY EDUCATION PROFILES PORTFOLIO CLASSIFIED Historic Schooner Shipwrecks Added to wreck US National Register of Historic Places
rap The wrecks of the coal schoon- sailors onboard ers Frank A. Palmer and Louise the vessels B. Crary, which rest on the lost their lives Stellwagen Bank National Marine when the ships Sanctuary seafloor, have been plummeted to listed on the National Register the bottom. of Historic Places, the National The remain- Oceanic and Atmospheric ing 15 sailors S.S: Baychino was sighted still afloat in 1969 by Eskimos, fast in the pack-ice of Administration has announced made it into the Beaufort Sea between Icy Cape and Point Barrow. Image shows her at The Maine-built wooden-hulled the Palmer’s S. S. “Baychimo” at anchor, Port Burwell, NU, June 1921 schooners Frank A. Palmer and longboat with Louise B. Crary played a vital only the cloth-
role as coal carriers during the ing they were NOAA/SBNMS AND NURC-UCONN ‘Arctic Ghost Ship’ Keeps Spooking urbanization and industrialization wearing, but Schooners Frank A. Palmer and the Louise B. Crary of New England at the begin- without food Treasure Left For decades, mariners in the The Captain realizing he and his ning of the twentieth century The or water. During the following four coal schooner archaeological western Arctic reported sight- crew were stuck and radioed for schooners rest on the seafloor, days, five more men perished site is there the same opportunity Unprotected In ings of an unmanned Hudson’s a rescue initiating what would their bows touching in the same from exposure in the open boat to study two vessels with such Indonesian Capital Bay Company cargo steamer. become the first “air lift” from the orientation in which they plunged before being rescued more than extensive preservation. How the Since 1931, the S. S. Baychimo Arctic. Twenty of the ships crew to the seafloor after their collision 60 miles east of Cape Cod. schooners sank, and the condi- Southeast Asia’s richest underwa- was seen drifting back and forth were flown out in two aircraft. in 1902. A miscalculation by the Investigations of the site revealed tion of the wreck site, provide a ter archaeological find in dec- across hundreds of kilometres of The crew decided to winter in a Louise B. Crary’s mate caused the vessels’ hulls to be nearly unique archaeological opportu- ades is stored in a leaky stable in ocean. Its last recorded sighting close by coastal area and rescue the schooner to smash into the intact with rigging splayed across nity to compare two similar, but Indonesia’s capital, guarded by was in 1969 and the question of the ship in the spring of 1932 as Palmer’s portside bow. Within min- the deck from the toppled masts. slightly different vessels, engaged marines who claim a solitary gun its whereabouts has become one she would free herself from the utes of the collision, six of the 21 At no other located New England in the same trade. ■ between them. At risk is priceless of the North’s most enduring mys- icy arctic grip. However a severe Indonesian history. Timber and iron teries. Now, a new Alaskan gov- storm in late November freed beams from a tenth-century wreck ernment project to locate and the ship unexpectedly, setting Finally! The USS But Who Can Sink This - which could provide information protect historic shipwrecks could her adrift and she disappeared Oriskany Sent To The One? Frigate Centre Of about ancient trading routes and finally answer that question. only to be seen occasionally ever the arrival of Islam in Indonesia since. Seabed Off Florida One Last Battle - lie in a bath under the tropical The 1,300 tonne steel ship was It took only 37 minutes for Tenders for the sale and disposal sun behind yellow police tape. built in Sweden in 1914 and Spotted repeatedly since the 888-foot ship to sink of the 36-year-old Leander class Several thousand centuries-old acquired by the Hudson Bay In 1932 an arctic explorer caught below the surface while hun- frigate will be closing as X-Ray Chinese ceramic bowls, fragile Company in 1919. The steamer sight of her as he was sled- dreds of misty-eyed veterans Mag goes to press with at least six copper mirrors, beautiful glass bot- was a key player in the open- ding across the arctic. The next looked on after strategically groups known to be interested in NAVAL HISTORICAL CENTER tles and ancient ship parts are also ing of Northern waterways with year, Inuit hunters saw the ship placed explosives were det- ROYAL NAVY securing the old Navy vessel. being stored. After sitting under beginnings in 1920’s and set sev- and boarded it just as a storm onated on May 17. The the The Bay of Islands Group wants the ocean for a thousand years, eral long distance records during approached encouraging them 32,000 ton ship now rests upright on the ocean to add to a Northland dive trail covering Tutukaka, the treasures urgently need com- its annual 3,000 kilometre runs to leave. The ship was spot- floor in a north-south orientation at an existing Bay of Islands and Matauri Bay. However, Dive plex preservation treatments. Of between Vancouver and the ted again in September of 1935 artificial reef site at a depth of approximately Tutukaka director Jeroen Jongejans, who hopes to particular concern are the ship’s North West Territories. and November of 1939 near 212 feet, as requested by the state of Florida. The add the frigate to two other wrecks off the Tutukaka structural timbers and iron bars, Wainwright Alaska. In 1962 anoth- Navy will start to offer additional ships for artificial coast, believes the Bay of Islands group has left its which are sitting outside in a tank Getting caught by ice er group of Inuit kayaking the reefs later this year. ■ run too late. Dive Tutukaka has already applied and of salty water. While the fragments Each trip was dangerous and Beaufort Sea, sighted it. The last been approved resource consent to scuttle the frig- are not financially valuable, they each year it had to escape the sighting was in 1969 when a US ate. ``If you haven’t got a resource consent you’re provide important clues to trade grip of the polar ice. In 1931, the oil tanker Manhattan was cross- wasting your time.” ■ between Indonesian kingdoms, steel ship encountered one of the ing the Northwest passage and Persia, Africa, and China, said Horst worst years for ice and she was a party of Inuit said they spotted The Oriskany was the first ship to be environmentally Liebner, a maritime historian. ■ caught good in the ice masses. the SS Baychimo once again. ■ prepared using the US’ Environmental Protection Agency’s “Best Management Practices for Preparing
MILITARY NEWS Vessels for Use as Artificial Reefs. 21 X-RAY MAG : 10 : 2006 EDITORIAL FEATURES TRAVEL NEWS EQUIPMENT BOOKS SCIENCE & ECOLOGY EDUCATION PROFILES PORTFOLIO CLASSIFIED TED DAESCHLER
Just 0.6 percent Secret Of Snail’s Food for thought of the oceans are currently protected Escape news as reserves, com- Can Cod Help Clean Up pared with 12 per- Snails with left-handed shells can have cent of the world’s a big advantage in life - predators The Baltic Sea? Edited by land, according to may find it impossible to eat them. Peter Symes UN data Scientists wrting in Royal Society’s jour- Imagine being out on a fish- through the microscopic nal Biology Letters have found that the Fossil ing trip in the Baltic, hauling plants and tiny animals of the crab Calappa flammea. is unable in cod for dinner. But rather plankton into fish and seals to open left-handed shells Of First than gutting the fish and and seabirds, which end up because it only has a tool - a throwing the offal overboard getting the biggest doses. ‘canopener’ - for peeling Fish That for gulls to feast upon, you put In particularly strong con- Scientists Find them on its right claw; so it Crawled Onto them away in plastic boxes centrations are found in cod Four New discards them. ■ carrying them ashore to make livers and researchers from Land Discovered sure they are safely inciner- Danish Institute for Fisheries Fish Species ated. Research has shown that fish- Off Western About 400 million years ago our fishy ing removed as much or more African Fish Leaps ancestors began hauling themselves Why? PCBs from the Baltic than Australia onto dry land. evolving from fish into There would be an underlying some other natural processes For Land Bugs land animals. Now a fossil from the very meaning to this seemingly irra- known to eliminate PCBs - as During a four-day Calappa beginning of that crucial transition has tional behaviour. In doing so for example by break-down in research trip scien- flammea Scientists have described a fish that been found in a river delta on Ellesmere you will have helped removing the water column, export to tists from Australia’s can hunt and catch its prey on Island in Arctic Canada some ugly toxins from the sea. the North Sea by ocean cur- Commonwealth land. The eel catfish, Channallabes The Baltic is still one of the seas rents. Scientific and apus, is found in the muddy Tiktaalik most polluted with chemical Industrial Research swamps in western Africa. The 30- The fossilized remains included a near- contaminants are long-lasting The numbers Organisation (CSIRO) 40cm-long fish is able to propel complete front half of a fossilized skel- pollutants such as PCBs (poly- For example the Baltic Sea has found four new itself out of the water and bend eton of a crocodile-like creature, whose chlorinated biphenyls) which contained 260 kg of PCBs in species of fish includ- its head downwards to capture skull is some 20 centimetres long and with are poisonous compounds the late 1980s–early 1990s. ing a stingray in deep insects in its jaws. The research- joints in its front arms. The new animal, that can impair reproduction. During the same time period, waters off Western ers hope this discovery will help to which lived some 375 million years ago, They have entered the fishing for herring, sprat, cod, Australia’s coast, explain how fish moved from sea to has been named Tiktaalik after sugges- Baltic Sea via the atmos- and salmon removed on aver- just beyond Rottnest land millions of years ago. ■ tions from Inuit elders. The name means phere and rivers and although age at least 31 kg of PCBs per Island. “large freshwater fish”. manufacture of PCBs stopped year. Scientist Peter Last Anti Freeze Gene Palaeontologists describing their find in 1976, they are still in the Because fishing also appears he is amazed that Fish such as cod that live in subzero polar waters posses special anti- in the journal Nature calls the specimen marine environment and to be the only method of PCB Cuttlefish are Masters the new species were freeze proteins that work by binding to ice crystals to prevent the crystals from the Devonian a true ‘missing link’, likely to be there for many removal over which we have found so close to growing larger and causing problems as it helps to fill in a gap in our under- years to come as they do not some control, one might ask of Disguise Despite Australia. More than standing of how fish developed legs for break down easily. Because whether environment and half of the 100 spe- Now scientists at the University of Illinois have discovered land mobility, before eventually evolving PCBs are easily absorbed by fisheries agencies around the http://www.underwatertimes.com/ cies of fish collected how the antifreeze-proteins have evolved from existing into modern animals. marine organisms, they tend Baltic should consider banning news.php?article_id=10816953274 are only found in the proteins by natural selection. Since the creation of these The fish-like tetrapods it seems did not to get mag- nified up the discard of cod liver and south-west of Western antifreeze proteins is directly driven by polar glaciation, by so much conquer the land, as escape the food chain other fish organs at sea. Cuttlefish are wizards of cam- Austrialia. Dr Last says studying their evolutionary history the scientists from the water. They haves bony scales SOURCES: BRIAN R. MACKENZIE, STURE ouflage. Adept at blending the fish are yet to be was hoping to pinpoint the time of onset of and fins, but the front fins are on their HANSSON, LISA ALMESJÖ AND NEIL FLETCHER DANISH INSTITUTE FOR FISHERIES RESEARCH in with their surroundings, named. “It’s a fairly freezing conditions in the polar and subpolar way to becoming limbs; they have the CHARLOTTENLUND DENMARK cuttlefish are known to have long process naming seas. However, Professor Christina Cheng and internal skeletal structure of an arm, E-MAIL: [email protected] a diverse range of body fish, not a five-minute her group have found the gene for the cod including elbows and wrists, but patterns and can switch job,” he said. ■ antifreeze protein has come from a non-cod- with fins instead of clear between them almost instan- ing region of their DNA known as “junk DNA”. fingers. The team is still taneously. New research from looking for more com- MBL Marine Resources sci- Arnold Schwarzenegger “This appears to be a new mechanism for plete specimens to get a entists, to appear in the May starring as Mr. Freeze in the evolution of a gene from non-coding better picture of hind part 2006 issue of the journal Vision Batman & Mr. Freeze DNA”, says Professor Cheng, ■ of the animal. ■
22 X-RAY MAG : 10 : 2006 EDITORIAL FEATURES TRAVEL NEWS EQUIPMENT BOOKS SCIENCE & ECOLOGY EDUCATION PROFILES PORTFOLIO CLASSIFIED Dingle, summer 2005: Dingle Turtle caught & Leatherback takes 5,000 mile journey Bay of Nova Scotia Biscay Marine biologists have been tracking have been started by the University of news Route taken by turtle a 15 year-old Leatherback turtle found Exeter who are focusing on the leath- first and tagged off the British Isles and erbacks who travel south from the UK Madeira journeying south all the way to the down to nest on the beaches near Ga- Edited by ATLANTIC OCEAN Canary Islands Equator around the Cape Verde Islands bon, West Africa. It is the animals last glo- Gunild Symes off Africa. The animal was rescued bal stronghold, It is thought by research- Cape Verde from entanglement in lobster pots in ers that the turtles may be traveling January Islands Dingle, Co Kerry, UK, by scientists from as far south as South America and the Turtles 2006 CARIBBEAN April 2006 Oceanworld aquarium. The turtle was Indian Ocean in search of jellyfish prey. ■ Signal regained Madeira fitted with a satellite tracking turtle heading Leatherbacks in the north device by experts from uni- versities in Cork and Wales. It Caribbean make a come-back is thought that the turtles long Red Tide kills endangered turtles journey was a quest for food Twenty-five years of con- of Planning and Natural rather than nesting beaches. servation and monitor- Resources. In the 1990s, A mass die-off of sea turtles on the Pacific shores of El Salvador was This the first time a leather- ing have helped the the U.S. Fish and Wildlife triggered by a lethal algal bloom called “Red Tide” reported a U.S. back has been tracked from endangered Caribbean Service made the nesting conservation group. Two hundred turtles perished last year from the North Atlantic southward. Leatherback turtle to beach at Sandy Point a exposure to Red Tide. Traces of saxitoxin was found in their blood, Data gathered will help con- increase their hatchling national wildlife refuge and which is produced by a species of sea plankton and algae found in servationists save this endan- numbers from 2,000 per participated in the moni- Red Tide, according to a report by the Wildlife Conservation Society gered species. According year to 49,000 according toring program. based in New York. Most of the affected turtles were Olive Ridley to experts, the turtles num- to a report published in Despite the good sea turtles and some were Green and Hawksbill turtles. bers have decreased from news for these Scientist say that Red Tide is becoming more common around the 115,000 adult females in 1980 Caribbean tur- world and causing profound impacts on wild marine animal popu- to less than 25,000 worldwide tles, leatherback lations such as shellfish, the industry of which has suffered massive today. turtle populations economic losses. Human waste such as agricultural fertilizer run-off Other tracking projects PHOTO BY NANCY BLACK. NOAA world-wide have and urban sewage contribute to the increase in algae blooms. ■ declined recent- ly from destruc- tive fishing practices such Tri-national protection as longline fisher- ies and human for Pacific sea turtles impact on nest- ing beaches. The Bismark Solomon Seas eco-region is set to ini- Despite beach tiate a conservation partnership between three conservation governments for the protection of Wester Pacific
PHOTO BY MATTHEW GODFREY. NOAA measures in the Leatherback Turtles. Indonesia, Papua New Guinea Eastern Pacific, and the Solomon Islands are joining forces to con- Biological Conservation. leatherback populations serve and manage the sea turtles, their nesting sties It is the first time increas- there have virtually col- and feeding areas as well as their migratory routes in ing trends for leather- lapsed and show little signs the region. www.layanglayang.com backs have been linked of recovery. It is the first partnership of its kind between three to nesting beach conser- Scientists supported by countres according to a statement from the WWF vation researchers told Earthwatch and working Solomon Islands. The move will help conservation ef- Earthwatch. Intensive mon- with leatherbacks in Costa forts of these endangered turtles to continue in the itoring efforts take place Rica report that nearly Solomon Seas Eco-region or BSSE, which is recognized at St. Croix’s Sandy Point twice as many turtles area of globally important biodiversity, and covers National Wildlife Refuge came to nest this season the Birdshead Peninsular of the provice of Papua in under a project that than last, but it is still 90% Indonesia,crosses the Admiralty and Bismarck archi- started in 1982 by the US less than the numbers 20 pelagos of Papua New Guinea and makes it way to Virgin Islands Department years ago. ■ Makira Island of the Solomon Islands. ■
23 X-RAY MAG : 10 : 2006 EDITORIAL FEATURES TRAVEL NEWS EQUIPMENT BOOKS SCIENCE & ECOLOGY EDUCATION PROFILES PORTFOLIO CLASSIFIED Inuit see signs of Arctic change news The Arctic, where 155,000 Inuit peo- and other elements the Inuit use for ple in Alaska, Canada, Greenland predicting the weather. and northern Russia, make their The Canadian government report- Edited by home, is disappearing. The warm- ed the warmest winter on record Gunild Symes ing trend and melting of ice caps is since 1948, and NASA satellites have forcing the people to face a new measured a meltdown of the ice way of life and abandon traditional sheet in Antarctica and Greenland Artic ecosystems see methods of survival. over the past ten years. Some Global warming has hit the Arctic regions are transforming from artic major changes from the hardest, where fish and wildlife to subarctic climate such as the global warming are following retreating ice caps Bering Stait according to researchers northward and polar bears are starv- at the Oceanography and Climate Animals are struggling to survive ing as the ice floes they need for Science program of Canada’s fish- as the profound impact of cli- hunting become fewer and fewer. eries department. mate change on their ecosys- Seals are also affected according Scientists predict that the changes tems, which may be irreversible, to local reports. They are not able to happening here in Inuit country is affects life and feeding grounds find stable ice upon which to give just the beginning, that the phenom- in the Arctic including the Ber- birth. Newcomers such as robins, ena will move southward to affect ing Strait where whales, walruses, barn owls and hornets are showing the rest of the planet. ■ seabirds and fish are starving and up in Arctic vil- dying off. lages where they Researchers state from obseva- were previously tions and surveys they have wit- unknown. nessed a major transformation of Inuit elders say an entire ecosystem which hosts they cannot pass almost half of all American com- on traditional mercial fishing. knowledge to the The norther Bering Sea is retreat- next generation ing and the sub-Arctic system of because it is no the south is taking over formerly longer reliable. Artic regions according to ex- They say every- perts. These changes could be thing has changed irreversible even if cold weather including cloud returns say Canadian and U.S. and wind patterns researchers who are part of a the Arctic study sponsored by the Uni- Polar Bears versity of Tennessee, the National Ursus maritimus PHOTOGRAPH COURTESY U.S. FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE Science Foundation and the Na- tional Oceanic and Atmospheric UK Pop Stars support new climate laws with song Administration (NOAA). Scientists say the Arctic is warm- Several famous British singers played over global warming. The UK govern- ing twice as fast as the global av- at a concert to support Friends of the ment recently stated that the UK will erage. Waters if the Bering Strait Earth’s Big Ask Live campaign. Rock- most likely not meet its target emis- have risen dramatically in the ers such as Thom Yorke and Jonny sions reductions goals of slashing 20% past ten years. Seals, polar bears Greenwood of Radiohead and of CO2 by 2010. and walruses are struggling to Gruff Rhys, of the Super Furry Animals The new law supported by Friends survive. Pacific grey whales are according to local reports. First in a of the Earth would force government heading northward to find food in series of concerts to draw attention to cut emissions of carbon dioxide by cooler currents. The hole they left to the campaign to change laws on 3% each year. The organization says in previous pastures have been CO2 emissions, participants said the that most people want their govern- filled by millions of pink salmon, experience was empowering, tak- ment to take action regarding cli- which affected bottom-dwelling ing away the sense of powerlessness mate change according to surveys. ■ species unable to adapt. ■ 24 X-RAY MAG : 10 : 2006 EDITORIAL FEATURES TRAVEL NEWS EQUIPMENT BOOKS SCIENCE & ECOLOGY EDUCATION PROFILES PORTFOLIO CLASSIFIED