I found some nice shots take by Nick Ambrose on Dive Matrix taken on the P-38 recently and got his permission to post them, so thanks, Nick!
The P-38 is a WWII plane ditched off the coast of Torrey Pines in 1943 in 135 ft. of water and a beautiful, if small wreck to dive when conditions are nice, accessible to recreational and Tech divers alike.
--Click on any photo to ENLARGE.....
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
New P-38 Photos....
Autopsy Confirms Attacking Shark was a Great White.....
Tooth fragments found in the body of a swimmer who died Friday off Solana Beach confirm that he was attacked by a great white shark.
The county Medical Examiner's Office conducted the autopsy. Collier, who participated in the procedure, said the serrated-tooth fragments indicate the shark was 15 to 16 feet long.
“White sharks are a natural part of the marine environment in the waters off San Diego,” Burgess, director of the International Shark Attack File at the Florida Museum of Natural History, said. “Humans are not owed 100 percent safety when we go into the ocean. The ocean is a wilderness. It's not a chlorinated swimming pool.”
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/northcounty/20080429-9999-1m29sharks.html
Miracle Rescue of Taiwan Dives After 48 Hour Ordeal.....
Eight Taiwanese scuba divers have been rescued nearly 48 hours after going missing off the island's south, the coastguard said Monday.
In a remarkable feat of endurance, one of the divers managed to swim ashore after a 10 hour swim and told rescuers where they could find the others, a spokesman said.
The six men and two women, all experienced divers, went diving at 10:30 am Saturday near Qi Xing Shi (Seven Star Rock) off Kenting national park, but failed to return to their boat an hour later as scheduled.
After a lengthy wait for rescuers, the group's coach Ding Bo-ling set off on a more than 10-hour swim for shore, finally reaching land before midnight Sunday at Tai Ma Li, 76 kilometres (47 miles) further north.
See here for more: http://www.cdnn.info/news/safety/s080428a.html
Sounds like quite an ordeal!
Monday, April 28, 2008
Fishing Throws Targeted Species Off Balance, Recent Scripps Study Shows:
Researchers Scripps Institution of Oceanography say fishing disrupts age structure, making regulation difficult
Fishing activities can provoke volatile fluctuations in the populations they target, but it's not often clear why.
A new study published in the journal Nature by scientists at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego and colleagues has identified the general underlying mechanism.
Research led at Scripps with a distinguished team of government and international experts (including two chief scientific advisors to the United Kingdom) demonstrates that fishing can throw targeted fish populations off kilter. Fishing can alter the "age pyramid" by lopping off the few large, older fish that make up the top of the pyramid, leaving a broad base of faster-growing small younglings. The team found that this rapidly growing and transitory base is dynamically unstable-a finding having profound implications for the ecosystem and the fishing industries built upon it.
See here for more: http://scrippsnews.ucsd.edu/Releases/?releaseID=896&emailed=1
Saturday, April 26, 2008
Another Gorgeous Day on Broomtail Reef
Dive #741 Date: Saturday, April 26, 2008 Location: Broomtail Reef, Pt Loma Time: 11:15 AM Dive length: 53 minutes Max depth: 54 feet Visibility: 0 to 5 feet in the top 15 foot layer, due to the Green Gloom, 20-25 feet below 20 feet Surface Conditions: nearly flat, with slow, rolling swells at 1 min intervals; sunny and warm Temperature: below 20 feet: 50° F, above 50 feet: 54° F Dive Buddies: Barb and NOAA Jim Critters Seen: large forests of Pterygophora [Northern Palm], some Southern Palm, Macrocystis, of course, numerous Sculpin, including [we think] a Red Irish Lord, Red Spotted Anemones, Lemon Dorids, numerous Hermessindas, male Sheephead, Blank and Purple Sea Urchins, Senoritas, Black Surfperch, Wavy Topped Turban Snails, Red Volcano Sponges, Puff Balls Sponges, Orange Sponges, Yellow Sponges, Kellet's Welks laying eggs…..[ISIFS: I'm Sure I'm Forgetting Something]..... While it took little courage to go out diving 25 miles south of yesterday's shark attack, we did notice the waters off point Loma strangely bereft of other dive boats, and did have one slightly suspicious last minute call-off by text messaging, claiming poor health. Lacking evidence to the contrary, we will have to take the person's word for it, and will probably never know if it was a case of Selachophobia or not. Let's just say, I had my doubts. :) We motored out under flat seas and sunny skies with Captain Barbara at the helm, prepared to throw her in the water once again after a six month hiatus due to successful neck surgery. Upon arrival at Broomtail reef, it was decided to let NOAA Jim and his famous scooter, drop in first to scout the terrain, with Barb and me bringing up the rear. After Jim it disappeared in a trail of bubbles, barb and I dropped in, and after a bit of initial fumbling, arrived at the bottom and got our bearings. The plan was simply to precede west until our agreed turnaround point, and then head back: to keep mishaps to a minimum, the KISS Principle was to rule the day. Upon arrival at the bottom, we were pleasantly surprised to see good visibility, after a decent through the top 15 feet of Green Gloom. Initially, we found ourselves in a waist-high forest of Pterygophora [Northern Palm], similar to the ones we were familiar with the from our Reef Check surveys, waving gently in the current. Almost immediately, we came across a scarlet- red Scorpion fish, about 6 inches long, which looked very similar to a Red Irish Lord, hiding among the Pterygophora , but we will need to confirm this. He was almost perfectly camouflaged against the background of red algae growing along the bottom, and at first, he hunkered down along the algae, hoping his camouflage would render him invisible to us, but alas, for him, it did not. When he realized he had been spotted, he leaped straight up in the water column, flaring his fins, to try and scare us away, and failing this, he took off like a bullet, back into the Pterygophora , obviously annoyed with us for disturbing him. Barb and I preceded west, into deeper water and soon found ourselves in a dark forest of tall Macrocystis in about 55 ft. of water. Here, we saw numerous Red Spotted anemones, ranging in size from the smallest, only an inch or two across, to the much larger ones, several inches across. Barb tore off a small pieces of kelp and began feeding it to the nearest anemone, which eagerly grabbed the kelp with its tentacles, and began feeding on it. Getting into the spirit of things, I too, tore off a piece of kelp and did the same thing, and watched as the anemone nearest me began doing the same thing. We amused ourselves with this for a few minutes, before resuming hour trek westward, heading deeper into the kelp forest. We passed over several large overhangs, which dropped down 5 or 6 feet, before resuming along a rocky bottom, strewn with Giant Spined Sea Stars, Blood Stars and Bat Stars. About halfway into the kelp forced, we're reached our agreed turnaround pressure, and began heading back the way we came. Despite the 5 mm gloves, my hands were beginning to notice the cold; by dive buddy blessed with her Playtex dishwashing-dry gloves, seemed not to notice. Soon, we came across another large overhang, facing us like a cliff, strewn with black and purple sea urchins, Lemon Dorids, Hermessindas and some Kellet's Welks, in the process of laying eggs. Patrolling the perimeter, were several fairly large male Sheephead, with harems of smaller females bring up the rear. It was decided to sacrifice a purple sea urchin to attract the Sheephead and give them lunch, despite my normal misgivings about doing this type of thing. Out came the titanium knife and the hapless sea urchin was soon sliced in two, and the feeding frenzy began. The largest of the male Sheephead quickly charged forward, baring his urchin-crushing beak, snatching up pieces of urchin floating in the water column, and swimming away. His slightly smaller male peers, after allow eat the Alpha male to feed first, moved in eagerly to finish off the scraps. By this time, we were feeling the 50° F cold and running low on gas, and it was time to make a leisurely ascent, through the green gloom, to the surface and waiting boat. Back on board, Barb agreed that her first dive in almost six months, had been a success and I knew she was back to normal, when she began good naturedly critiquing my dive technique as if I were the newly minted diver just out of open water class. The more things change, the more they stay the same! [Chuckle…] Oh, and to make a perfect ending to the day, NOAA Jim believes he caught some footage of a Broomtail Grouper on the video camera in the nose of his scooter. At least he thinks it was a Grouper……….what other large fish could it have possibly been? J Dive safe, everyone……. And don't let a little Selachophobia keep you from enjoying the colorful waters of Southern California! :) [This dive report was dictated into voice recognition software]
Friday, April 25, 2008
Great White: Organs of Lorenzini.....
If you click to enlarge the photo below, you will notice tiny, almost invisible holes dotted around the snout of the Great White, between the nostrils and the eye....these are known as the Organs of Lorenzini and they are sense organs which pick up low level electrical fields at close range.
It is presumed that these come into play in the final stages of an attack, when the animal is closing in on its prey, but is too close for a good visual image of it.
Let's just say you don't want him close enough to be 'sniffing' you with these!
Attacking Shark Believed to be a Great White.....
Richard H. Rosenblatt, a professor emeritus of marine biology at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, said he believed the shark involved in today's attack was a Great White Shark, between 12- and 17-feet-long. He said he made his determination based on the wounds on the victim and the description of the attack from witnesses.
Fore more, see San Diego Union/Tribune article:
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/northcounty/20080425-1223-bn25shark3.html
--Also, an astute analysis from Time Magazine:
http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1735577,00.html?xid=rss-topstories
Fatal Shark Attack off San Diego....
Details are still sketchy, but from what we understand, it was a swimmer or surfer on the surface, who may have been mistaken by the shark, possibly a Great White, for a seal.
It's their ocean, after all......we're just visiting [without permission].
Notice that divers are rarely attacked by sharks and the reason for this is that they spend less time splashing about on the surface than do swimmers and surfers, which is what sends out the vibrations which register along the lateral line of the shark's body up to 1000 meters away, and brings him to investigate possible prey.
Most cases of shark attacks on swimmers or surfers are a case of mistaken identity with a seal.
For more, see: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24313314
SOLANA BEACH, Calif. - A shark attacked and killed a swimmer Friday morning who was training in the ocean off San Diego County with a group of local triathletes, authorities said.
A 66-year-old man was swimming with others at Tide Beach around 7 a.m. when he was attacked, according to a statement on the Solana Beach city Web site.
Condolences to the family.
More breaking details from Fox News, Channel 6:
"Medics have responded to a fatal shark attack in Solana Beach. Authorities say that the 66-year-old man was swimming with a triathlon group before he was attacked.
A witness reported seeing a shark from the shore and another witness reported seeing the victim's leg being severed from the knee.
Researchers from Sea World are investigating the bite marks on the victim to determine the type of shark.
Rancho Fire is notifying bordering cities lifeguard services and Coast Guards about the attack."
Here is [an incomplete] List of Unprovoked Shark Attacks in the US, 1900-2008, from Wikipedia, including today's attack, in reverse chronological order, by decade:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_fatal,_unprovoked_shark_attacks_in_the_United_States_by_decade#_note-11
Saving Sharks with Metal: Palladium Neodymium
A recent study by NOAA scientists and colleagues on captive juvenile sandbar sharks showed the presence of an electropositive alloy, in this case palladium neodymium, clearly altered the swimming patterns of individual animals and temporarily deterred feeding in groups of sharks.
Click here for more:
http://www.ocean.com/article.asp?locationid=1&resourceid=10658&ProdId=&CatId=1&TabID=&SubTabID=
Thursday, April 24, 2008
DNA in Shipwrecked Jars Reveals Clues to Ancient World....
Newly developed genetic technique can reveal the contents of amphorae, the two-handled earthenware jars commonly used to store and transport goods in the ancient world, especially by sea.
DNA in Shipwrecked Jars Reveals Clues to Ancient World New tool offers a way to find out what past civilizations were shipping and trading, see:
Oceanus Magazine, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute:
http://www.whoi.edu/oceanus/viewArticle.do?id=40672§ionid=1021
Photos from Paradise.....Kevin Lee
Please join me in welcoming back the stunning photos of Kevin Lee, who just returned from Lembeh Indonesia, along with Mike Bartick, both of whose photos I will be showcasing over the next few days and weeks as they become available.
Below we see the tiny and beautiful Pigmy Seahorse, one of the few species in nature where the male can become pregnant. The images below are about 5 times their actual size: 5-15 cms.
Male seahorses compete with each other to become pregnant for three weeks (during which time they cannot move around to search for the best food), go through 72 hours of labour and exhausting final contractions to release up to 200 baby seahorses.
And, boy, are they cute!
Monday, April 21, 2008
Lembeh, Indonesia
Talented underwater photographer Mike Bartick has just returned from Lembeh, Indonesia and I will be featuring some of his best shots here, as they become available, so stay tuned!
See below for teaser photo.....
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Sunday, April 20, 2008
Saturday, April 19, 2008
Scripps Canyon and Lady Yukon in the Green Gloom
Date: April 19, 2008 Location: Cathedral Heights, Scripps Canyon/Yukon, Wreck Alley Dive Times: 11:46 AM/2:22 PM Dive Lengths: 34 minutes/25 minutes Max Depths: 127 ft./98 feet Temps: 50 F/50 F [beginning to see a pattern here?] Surface Conditions: wind waves 2 feet, occasional white cap, 15 knot winds, with occasional 3 ½ foot swell; weather: cloudy, gray, cold and windy Dive Teams: me and Navy Dan, the scooter twins: NOAA Jim and Charlie Critters Seen: Red Gorgonians, Gold Gorgonians, Senoritas, large schools of silversides, Tree fish, Surf Perch, Giant Spined Sea Stars, California Sea Cucumbers, Black Sea Urchins, Blood Stars, Short Spined Sea Stars, Warty Sea Cucumbers and a weird longbone……. Remarks: Dive #739: Cathedral Heights, Scripps Canyon With Captain Barbara back at the helm again, and soon to begin diving next weekend, I was happy to receive a demotion to First Mate and let her guide us out to Scripps Canyon and Wreck Alley today under cold gray skies and choppy seas. Upon arrival at Scripps, we dropped anchor over Cathedral Heights and it was decided that the Scooter Twins should go in first and set the flashing strobe, tied by a line to the anchor, on the edge of the canyon at about 70 feet, and Dan and I would follow. With Captain Barbara watching the boat, Dan and I wasted no time suiting up and jumping in. Today, the Green Tide was not so much the layer to pass through on the way down, as it was everywhere at once. Dynoflagellates were to rule the day, I'm afraid. Dan and I followed the anchor line to the edge of the canyon and the flashing strobe, and then dropped down into the black abyss below. First we passed over sandy ridges speckled with gorgeous 3 foot wide fans of golden Gorgonians swaying gently in the current, followed by the rocky terraces which mark the descent into Scripps Canyon. As we dropped past 100 feet, large schools of blacksmith fish and silversides darted around us. Passing 120 feet, we arrived at the steep, vertical cliffs which dominate Cathedral Heights and drop away into the blackness many hundreds of feet below. Although the green gloom surrounding us gave everything a greenish hue, as soon as we shone our lights on something, it exploded in living color: black and white Tree Fish and spiny California lobster could be seen hiding way back in the horizontal crevices, 6 inches high and 4 ft. back. Red volcano, orange and yellow sponges added brightness and color wherever we looked. At one point, we came across the largest giant Spined Sea star I'd ever seen in my life, curled up on our rock, next to a beautiful golden Gorgonian: this puppy had to have been 24 inches across if he was an inch and the Golden Gorgonian was at least 3 ft. across. Giant schools of silversides, looking like silver freight trains continued to flash by us as we swam along. We continued heading South and down into the canyon until we're reached our turnaround pressure, and then I gave the signal to begin heading back the way we came. After the other night at Vallecitos, I didn't want Dan to think I was a complete cowboy, so I planned this dive a little more conservatively. As we were heading back, who should we run into, but the scooter twins, lights winking in the green-ish gloom, just ahead of us. We arrived at the flashing white strobe would still a little back gas to spare, so Dan and I played around for while on the sandy slopes at 70 feet, and then I began reeling in the line attached to the strobe and we had a nice leisurely ascent to the surface. But, not before I spotted something white laying in the sand: it was a bone about 6 inches long; straight, not curved. It looked very similar to one of the long bones found in the forearm of a mammal. I'm not anatomy expert, but it looks very similar to a human radius, but I will have it checked by a biologist first to make sure it is mammal and not human. Everyone agreed that despite the cold temperatures and the green gloom, Scripps Canyon was as beautiful as ever in the beams of our lights. Dive #740: Lady Yuke, Wreck Alley After a rather bump the ride down south to Wreck Alley and the Yukon, it was decided once again that the scooter twins would splash in first followed by me and Dan. This time, the cold and windy weather and chilly bottom temperatures had begun to take their toll: and this was not to be a long dive for me or Dan. Upon arrival on the stern, we could see that Lady Yuke was also enveloped in the green gloom, and I was noticing a stream of icy cold 50° water trickling through my neck seal and soaking the top part of my liner. Despite this, we gazed in wonder as huge schools of blacksmith fish enveloped the Yukon, darting first one way and then the other in the surge, at times engulfing us and we could not help but notice the glowing beauty of the bright white Metridia and strawberry anemones in the beams of our lights. Once again, we ran across Jim zooming about on his scooter near the Radio Tower in his promised quest to try and locate a lost fin for a diver on the Orange County list; alas, it was nowhere to be seen. Sorry, Ruth! We hadn't made it much past their rear guns, when I noticed that the trickle of icy cold seawater through my neck seal was becoming a flood, and I decided I was done being cold for the day, and signaled to Dan and that I would like to begin coming up. Having spent the day in 50° water in a wet suit, it didn't require a lot of arm twisting to get into agree. However, there was some initial confusion over my hand signal for "my neck seal is leaking and I'm freezing," so, back on the boat, we later agreed on a rather comical but more direct signal which implied shrinkage of certain body parts which shall remain nameless, but which gets the message across much faster. I will leave it at that for now. J Back on the boat, despite the green gloom and ass- freezing temperatures, we all agreed that fun had been had by all, and it had been well worth braving the choppy seas and cold gray weather. Dive safe everyone, Mikey Note: this dive report was dictated into voice recognition software
Friday, April 18, 2008
Dusk Patrol, La Jolla Shores: Night of the Living Shrimp
Date: 4/17/08
Time: 7:30 pm-ish
Dive Length: 43 mins
Max Depth: 137 ft.
Mix: 21%
Bottom Temp--no thermoclines: A b-b-b-bone numbing 50 F [Is it really April?]
Surface Conditions: dodged terrifying 2 footers on the way out, a couple ‘real’ waves coming back in….
Viz: 5 ft. in shallows, much better deeper down: 10-15 ft.
Critters Seen: several octos, numerous Coon Stripe Shrimp, numerous Target Shrimp, Brittle Stars, Swimming Crabs, Hemphill Crabs, Strawberry Anemones…..
Remarks:
Quite a large gang converged on La Jolla Shores last night, but due to a less than favorable parking situation [tourists!], some of us parked on Vallecitos St. and some of us had to park in the North Lot, by the Main Lifeguard Tower.
I ended up in the North Lot with Jimbo, Dave, Tom and Navy Dan. Since Navy Dan and I were the only two unfortunates sporting a non-Nitrox mix in our tanks, it was decided that we ‘deserved each other,’ so we buddied up together, so has not ‘hold back’ anyone at depth. Pffftt!
After a short but invigorating walk from the North Lot with full gear on into the surf at Vallecitos, it was decided we would stick to the Really Simple Dive Plan, which is basically: swim out West, drop down to the bottom and head either North or South, depending on our mood.
Dan said he would just follow my lead, so I figured that we’d just drop down and head North so I could show him Vallecitos Point, which he hadn’t seen much of before.
Started getting ‘ice cream’ headaches almost immediately as we dropped and our gauges were reading 50 F from the minute we hit bottom.
We trundled West into the canyon until we entered the detritus pits, which is not really as ‘icky’ as it sounds. Sure, trash tends to collect down there, and we try and pick up our share of it on each dive, but the most interesting marine life also congregates down there too.
Tonight, as most nights recently, it’s been the Coon Strip Shrimp who congregate in the greatest numbers. They were everywhere on top of the decaying Macrocystis and strands of Boa Kelp, eyes and white stripes glowing brightly in our lights.
They were surprisingly fearless, too. They didn’t seem the least bit bothered when I’d invite one to climb onto my finger for a short visit. They’d just climb onboard and look up at you quizzically, like: “Hey, What’s up, dude?”
They were quite large too: 3-4 inches, which is about as big as they get—I think.
Then, there were the Target Shrimp, who were everywhere else the Coon Stripes were not. With the obvious ‘target’ on their tails, they were not hard to spot. But, they tended to scuttle away when approached and were not quite as ‘sociable’ at their Coon Striped cousins.
Dan and I continued moseying on Northward at depth for quite a while, just playing with the shrimpies and hangin’ out, until I looked at my computer and realized you can’t really just stay at 135 ft. on 21% for as long as you feel like it, without incurring significant penalties from Mother Nature, so I signaled that we should begin heading up and Northward, towards V-Point.
My navigation was spot-on, if I do say so meself, and we come up directly under V-Point, which was thriving with Brittle Stars, there furry arms waving in the current to catch passing phytoplankton along with the usual assortment of Giant Kelp and Strawberry Anemones, glowing pink in our lights.
Unfortunately, due to my rather careless attitude at depth, some might even say narcosis [say it ain’t so!], we were pretty much out of bottom time and were forced to continue seeking shallower depths to appease Mommy Nature who was a bit annoyed with us at this point.
Plus, my hands were beginning to burn from the cold. Not a peep out of Dan, in a wet suit, of course. That’s why he was in the Navy and I wasn’t, I guess.
We cruised through the shallows, chasing Swimming Crabs, who periodically [and very comically] would put up their dukes and challenge one of us to a boxing match. Don’t those guys ever do size comparisons when they challenge a human? I guess not……
We saw a couple sizable octopi and a really cute baby Thornback Ray on the way in as well.
We surfaced just South of the Main Life Guard Tower, near the where we parked and I congratulated myself on another superb job of navigation and a great dive with Dan…..until that is, I heard later that Jimbo and Tom had seen an Angel Shark not 30 yards from where we were. Jimbo: I hate you. J
I’ll try and post some of Jimbo’s pics later.
Dive safe, everyone…….
Sunday, April 13, 2008
Saturday on Matt's Reef, Pt. Loma
Date: Saturday, April 12 2008/Two Dives
Time: 11:49 AM/2:50 PM
Surface conditions: warm, sunny and flat.
Location: Matt’s Reef Point Loma and at far South end of Point Loma
The water temperature: an ass-freezing 46-48° F depending on whose computer you believe
Visibility: 5 - 8 feet in the top 20, due to a greenish dynoflagellate layer [Green Tide], and about 20-25 ft. below 30 feet—not too bad!
Max depth: 100 feet/98 feet
Critters seen: blacksmith fish, senioritas, rockfish, juvenile and adult, tree fish, black surf perch, Spanish shawls, San Diego Dorids, Cucumaria piperata [a type of sea cucumber—see notes below], warty sea cucumbers, California Sea cucumbers, bat stars, red volcano sponges, cobalt sponges, orange puff balls, red Gorgonians, Spanish Shawls, blood stars, ochre stars, fragile stars, leather stars, rainbow stars.
Dive buddies: Merrianne and the Scooter Twins: NOAA Jim and Charlie.
Remarks:
We motored out under sunny blue skies and a flat open ocean, with the Scuba-Do humming along at 25 knots, until we reached Matt’s reef, at the far end of point Loma.
Upon arrival it was decided that the Scooter Twins would splash in first to test the conditions and report back, followed by me and Merrianne.
About 50 minutes later, they returned, reporting unusually cold but clear conditions, with a green-ish layer of dynoflagellates between 20 feet and the surface, but excellent visibility down below.
They emphasized the fact that both their dive computers had shown 48°, so Merrianne and I’d took that as fair warning that it would be butt-freezing cold down there and we jumped in.
For the first dive, we decided to head south along the reef structure that resembles four fingers facing southward, ending at the sandy bottom at around 100 feet, which I assume continues all the way out to the Coronado Islands.
Sure enough, as we dropped we passed through the thick layer of green-ish murk, before visibility opened up rather nicely below 50 feet.
Dropping down onto the reef, we followed one ‘finger’ the South, as it dropped down to towards 100 feet, with the biting cold surrounding us like a giant vice, causing an instant ‘ice cream headache.’
The rocky finger was teaming with marine life: blacksmith fish, senioritas, rockfish, juvenile and adult, tree fish, black surf perch, Spanish shawls, San Diego Dorids, Cucumaria piperata [a type of sea cucumber—see notes below], warty sea cucumbers, California Sea cucumbers, bat stars, red volcano sponges, cobalt sponges, orange puff balls, red Gorgonians, blood stars, ochre stars, fragile stars, leather stars, rainbow stars, you name it.
Oddly, due to the thick green tide above us, it was pretty dark and monochrome [green] down below, until we shown our lights on to something, and then our visual field exploded in a riot of color, now restored in our light beams. Volcano, Cobalt, and orange and yellow sponges provided most of the Technicolor, along with the occasional Spanish Shawl pulsing with neon brilliance.
Upon arrival at the sandy bottom of 100 feet, we knew it was time to turn around and head back, back up the steep rocky structures at around 70 feet, where things didn’t seem any warmer than they had a 100 feet. My hands were on fire with the cold despite 5 mm gloves and my gauge showed 48° F: little did I know that only a few feet away, Marianne’s gauge was reading 46° F, and her hands were cold too, even in dry gloves.
We passed over a huge old anchor that must’ve been there for decades completely encrusted with barnacles and growth, providing a home for tiny marine life.
30 minutes in 48° water was about all we could take, so when I gave the signal to go up, there was definitely no disagreement from Merrianne.
Dive #2:
After a leisurely lunch and waiting for the Scooter Twins to complete their second dive, Merrianne and I jumped in once again and this time decided to head East, in the direction of the thicker kelp beds.
Here, the terrain was very different from the fingers further south, with giant pinnacles extending 10 to 15 feet upwards, topped by a giant fronds of Macrocystis, and large overhangs that resemble small caves going back 5 to 8 feet, providing shelter for dozens of varieties of fish such as Blacksmith fish, Surf Perch and Sheephead, as well as many varieties of rockfish both juvenile and adult.
It was here under one of the large overhangs, that we saw a strange creature I had never noticed before, looking like a cross the between the tube-dwelling anemone and an odd-looking hydroid, reaching out with its arms to grasp food and bring it back into its mouth and the center.
After the dive, I racked my brain trying to figure out what this odd-looking creature could’ve been.
Finally, at my wits’ end, I drew a rough approximation on a piece of paper and sent it to our invertebrates expert Kevin Lee, who just happened to be in Korea at the time, and he kindly replied with one of his superb macro photos of it, which are then sent to our marine biology instructor, who was able to identify it for us.
It was a Cucumaria piperata, an unusual variety of Sea Cucumber which has arms or bucolic tentacles with which it feeds.
Phylum: Echinodermata; class Holothuroidea; order Dendrochiratida; family Cucumariidae
See here for Kevin’s superb photo of it, next to my poorly drawn rendition:
http://picasaweb.google.com/scubapro.bear/CucumariaPiperata [click to enlarge]
Thanks, Kevin [and Bert Kobayashi, our marine biology professor]—now, I’ll know a Holothuroid when I see one!
It’s so great to have access to such tremendously talented marine resources on this list…….we’re really fortunate.
So, we spent the remainder of our dive exploring the beautiful and colorful overhangs and pinnacles, until I realized that I was on 21% and not Nitrox, and glancing down at my dive computer, I realized I was about to go into deco and we still had to get back to the boat.
Since the bottom dropped away from us to toward 100 feet as we swam towards the boat, and I was out of bottom time, I realized we would have to do a blue water swim, so I pointed my compass on a 180 course from the direction we had come and we began slowly swimming and ascending along a gradual path towards the surface, except that , due to the green tide, it was a green water swim rather than a blue water swim.
We popped to the surface not far from the boat, and congratulated ourselves on a not too bad job of navigation, as well as having completed an extremely successful day in a stunningly beautiful dive site, despite the green tide on the surface and bone-numbingly cold water.
Dive safe everyone……. Get out there while the conditions are good: tides, green or red, may soon be upon us.
Mikey
Note: this dive report was dictated into voice recognition software.