SCUBA News 135

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SCUBA News (ISSN 1476-8011)
Issue 135 - July/August 2011
http://www.scubatravel.co.uk
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Hello and welcome to the summer's SCUBA News. I hope you enjoy this issue, but should you wish to cancel your subscription you can do so at http://www.scubatravel.co.uk/news.html

SCUBA News is published by SCUBA Travel Ltd, the independent guide to diving around the world.

Contents:
- What's new at SCUBA Travel?
- Letters
- Creature of the Month: Finger Coral
- Diving News from Around the World

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What's New at SCUBA Travel?
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Dahab Dive Operators and Dive Sites

Dahab supports over 40 dive centres and they are all listed on the SCUBA Travel site with reviews and ratings. We've also added more dive descriptions for this laid back Red Sea resort.
http://www.scubatravel.co.uk/redsea/dahabdive.html#Dahab-dive
http://www.scubatravel.co.uk/redsea/dahabdive.html

Sardinia Dive Operators

The Italian island of Sardinia offers some lovely diving and we've listed more of its dive operators and dive sites at
http://www.scubatravel.co.uk/italy/sardinia-diving.html
http://www.scubatravel.co.uk/italy/sarddive.html

For regular announcements of what's new at the SCUBA Travel site see the Diving Board at
http://www.scubatravel.co.uk/viewforum.php?f=2

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Letters
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Malta

Can you help me, Do you maybe know where in Malta is located the Chikarma diving center or travel agency.

Thank you
Dajana

Please post replies at http://www.scubatravel.co.uk/.

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Creature of the Month: Finger Coral, Porites porites
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Porites is a common coral especially successful in shallow reef areas. Branched colonies often form large tracts along the reef front in both the Atlantic and the Indo-Pacific.

Porites porites looks like a thicket of stumpy fingers, hence its common name.

Porites capture food with their tentacles which may be extended during the daylight or during the night. These are armed with batteries of stinging cells called nematocysts which both poison and capture. Their most important food is zooplankton.

Although usually brownish in colour, occasionally Porites porites is a lovely bright blue. You find it on most reef environments from 0.5 to 35 m depth but most commonly from 1-15 m.

Porites is more prone to disease than many other corals. According to the IUCN, coral disease has emerged as a serious threat to coral reefs worldwide and is a major cause of reef deterioration. The numbers of diseases and coral species affected, as well as the distribution of diseases have all increased dramatically within the last decade.

Like all corals, Porites is listed on CITES Appendix II. This lists species that are not necessarily now threatened with extinction but that may become so unless trade is closely controlled.

Further Reading:
Corals of the World
Reef Coral Identification: Florida, Caribbean, Bahamas
IUCN Red List

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Diving News From Around the World
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Dolphin has super sensory powers

Fleeing fish beware: The Guiana dolphin has a super Spidey sense. But instead of danger, the dolphin detects faint electrical fields generated by such things as contracting muscles, a beating heart and pumping gills - telltale signs of potential prey. The dolphin is the first true mammal with these super sensory powers, scientists report. It detects electrical fields using organs on its snout that were once considered simple remnants of long-lost whiskers.

Beaked whales enter stealth mode

Blainville's beaked whales go silent in shallow waters. Researchers have discovered that the whales refuse to communicate with each other near the surface. By becoming silent, the whales enter a stealth mode that prevents them being detected by predatory killer whales.

NOAA, Bermuda partner to protect humpback whales in the North Atlantic

NOAA's Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary and the Government of Bermuda have pledged cooperation on scientific and educational programs to better protect the endangered North Atlantic humpback whale population.

Overfishing eats away at genetic diversity of fish

Plenty more fish in the sea? Maybe not for much longer. Overfishing is damaging the genetic diversity of fish to a greater degree than expected, leaving at-risk species vulnerable.

The Atlas of Coasts and Oceans

A unique assessment of the world's coasts and oceans detailing the ecological, environmental and economic importance of each. With global and regional maps, from the Arabian Gulf to the Great Barrier Reef and including the Mediterranean, the Red Sea, the South Pacific and all the other major global waterways, this new atlas considers the impact of climate change, industrial growth, tourism, pollution and over-fishing as well as the steps being taken towards conservation.

Diver Snaps First Photo of Fish Using Tools

While exploring Australia's Great Barrier Reef, professional diver Scott Gardner heard an odd cracking sound and swam over to investigate. What he found was a footlong blackspot tuskfish (Choerodon schoenleinii) holding a clam in its mouth and whacking it against a rock. Soon the shell gave way, and the fish gobbled up the bivalve, spat out the shell fragments, and swam off. Fortunately, Gardner had a camera handy and snapped what seem to be the first photographs of a wild fish using a tool.

Madagascar marine resources plundered by international seafood markets

Fish catches in Madagascar over the last half-century are double the official reports, and much of that fish is being caught by unregulated traditional fishers or accessed cheaply by foreign fishing vessels. Seafood exports from Madagascar often end up in a European recipe, but are a recipe for political unrest at home, where two-thirds of the population face hunger.

Depletion of the body snatchers: bad news for marine environment

A recent study conducted for The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species has determined that 20% of hagfish species are at an elevated risk of extinction. Scientists warn that this figure could be much higher. Hagfish represent an ancient and unique evolutionary lineage; as bottom feeders they play an important role by cleaning the ocean floor and recycling nutrients into the food web which maintains the overall health of the ecosystems they inhabit. Overexploitation and destructive fishing practices are major threats to several hagfish species, including those listed as Endangered. No current conservation measures or legislation exist to protect hagfish populations.

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SCUBA News
The Cliff
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PUBLISHER: SCUBA Travel, 5 Loxford Court, Hulme, Manchester, M15 6AF, UK
EDITOR: Jill Studholme

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