|
headlines on your own web pages for free! Click here for details. |
SCUBA News 5~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ SCUBA News (ISSN 1476-8011) Issue 5 - September 2000 www.scubatravel.co.uk ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Thank you for subscribing to the monthly SCUBA News (ISSN 1476-8011). This issue contains: * What's new at the SCUBA Travel web site? * Diving news from around the World * Book review: Dive Sites and Marine Life of the Calf of Man We hope you enjoy it - let us know what you think by e-mailing news@scubatravel.co.uk _________________________________________________________________ What's New at the SCUBA Travel Web Site? ======================================== We are pleased to launch the Isle of Man section with an absorbing account of diving the Booroo in the South of the island. The Booroo and the isolated isle, the 'Calf' are steeped in history and legend and almost exude atmosphere. With its extremely diverse and plentiful marine life, the Booroo offers a truly magnificent dive. In fact, in areas exposed to the fast flow, it is something of a challenge to find a single square centimetre of bare bedrock, so abundant is the life here. We can only agree with the numerous experienced divers, underwater photographers and marine biologists who repeatedly acclaim it to be one of the best in the British Isles. http://www.scubatravel.co.uk/booroo.html Continuing our expansion of the Red Sea chapter: we've added more ships to the wreck diving page, and more descriptions and photos to the Marine Life section. http://www.scubatravel.co.uk/redsea/redsealife.html We want to know about your diving experiences - good or bad - please e-mail webmaster@scubatravel.co.uk or fill in our form at http://www.scubatravel.co.uk/recommend.html _________________________________________________________________ Diving News From Around the World ================================= Sea Turtle Stranding Network Expanded The number of stranded turtles on the Hawaiian island of Maui has been increasing. This is believed to be partly linked to problems associated with marine debris. Turtles apparently become sick from the ingestion of plastic rubbish and sustain serious injury from entanglement with lost fishing gear. The expansion of the Hawaiian Sea Turtle Stranding Network means many more of the endangered and threatened species of turtle can be rescued and returned to the sea. Anyone seeing a beached turtle in Maui is asked to contact the network, and more volunteers for the network are needed. For details see http://www.enn.com/direct/display-release.asp?id=2221 Underwater Vehicles Find Evidence of Noah's Ark Flood Marine archaeologists, led by Dr Robert Ballard, have found the first evidence of a people who perished in a great flood of the Black Sea that has been linked with the story of Noah's ark. Using robot underwater vehicles more than 300ft below the sea's surface, they have begun to map a landscape marked with wattle and daub houses that was flooded more than 7000 years ago. http://www.guardianunlimited.co.uk/Archive/Article/0,4273,4063474,00.html http://www.jasonproject.org http://www.nationalgeographic.com/blacksea/ax _________________________________________________________________ SCUBA News Bookshelf ==================== This month's book of the month is: Dive Sites and Marine Life of the Calf of Man by Bill Sanderson, Bruce McGregor, Andrew Brierley Review: The Isle of Man boasts some excellent diving and this book describes some of the best dive sites in the south of the island. It is written by three marine biologists, based on their extensive personal experience of diving the area. The detailed and enthusiastic descriptions of the local marine life set this book apart from other dive guides, and there are lots of colour photos to help with identification. The book also covers some background history of the Calf of Man islet and local shipwrecks. Diving information includes launch sites and local services. For each dive site entry there is a map, a photograph of the shoreline, a detailed description of the site and information about the marine life to be found. The information given is very clear and dives sites can be easily found. Information on tides and times of slack water are also given, these are essential as currents at some sites are severe and dangerous. The dives described range from scenic sites suitable for beginners to wickedly fast drift dives for the (much) more experienced. A sea cave dive and a wreck dive add variety. A very readable book that is a must for any diver thinking about a trip to the Isle of Man. Review by Dr Janette Gledhill + This book is available from Amazon.co.uk + If you would like to recommend a diving-related book please e-mail news@scubatravel.co.uk _________________________________________________________________ Interview with the Author: Bill Sanderson ========================================= SCUBA Travel asked Bill Sanderson, one of the authors of our book of the month, some questions about himself and his book. For the full interview see http://www.scubatravel.co.uk/isleman/billsanderson.html What prompted you to write the book? When the Calf of Man was proposed as a marine nature reserve, we teamed up with the Calf Marine Trust to promote marine awareness and general ethics in that area. The south-west of the Isle of Man has an incredible variety of habitats in a small area: high current, sheltered current, wave exposed, wave sheltered... It reflects Manx marine life as a whole. Indeed, this small microcosm truly reflects Irish Sea marine biology: including nationally rare and scarce species. Also, the diving offers something for everyone, from very challenging to very safe. What distinguishes your book from other dive guides? As well as diving information, we offer proper biology made easy with bite sized information. This makes it a bit different from normal dive guides. We don't just include identification notes; we cover what drives the behaviour of the marine animals and explain, for example, cross-dressing in fish and the sex life of a ballon wrasse. I'm also very pleased with the photos, especially the rare and unusual ones of basking sharks and herring. Favourite Dive? One of my favourites is the Booroo in the Calf of Man. Colourful and dramatic, I've dived it dozens of times and never tire of it. Another, different type of dive, would be the Darwin Arch in the Galapagos. * Bill is working in Bangor as a marine biologist for the Conservation Agency. He is also a professional photographer: you can buy his photos from the Marine Wildlife Photo Agency. ________________________________________________________________ * Copyright SCUBA Travel - http://www.scubatravel.co.uk/ * Reprinting welcomed with this footer included. We are happy for you to copy and distribute this newsletter, and even use parts of it on your own website, providing the above copyright notice is included, and a link back to our website is in place. Previous editions of SCUBA News (ISSN 1476-8011) are archived at http://www.scubatravel.co.uk/news.html SUBSCRIBING AND UNSUBSCRIBING Visit http://www.scubatravel.co.uk/news.html and add or remove your e-mail address. Subscribe To SCUBA NewsOur newsletter, SCUBA News (ISSN 1476-8011), is absolutely free. It is a monthly publication, delivered by e-mail. To receive your copy fill in your details below. We will never pass your e-mail address to any third parties, or send you unsolicited e-mail. You will receive an e-mail confirming your subscription. If you don't receive this you have probably entered your e-mail address incorrectly - revisit this page and resubscribe. Send us your Press Releases
If you have a SCUBA related press release which you would like considered for inclusion in SCUBA News (ISSN 1476-8011), please fill in the form below.
|
