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SCUBA News 89~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Welcome September's SCUBA News. I hope you enjoy the newsletter, but should you wish to cancel your subscription you may do so at http://www.scubatravel.co.uk/news.html Contents: __________________________________________________________ What's New at SCUBA Travel?
New page on the dives, dive operators and accommodation of the Turks and Caicos islands. "Sheer walls drop to 7000 feet, extensive soft corals, sponges, gorgonia. Large life including groupers, reef sharks, rays and barracuda. Excellent visibility, and pristine reef" is one diver's comment. Another thinks the Red Sea is better. Read the page and you decide.
Thanks to your recommendations the SCUBA Travel site now lists more Thai dive centres. Find which get the 5 fish rating and which to avoid.
New page on the diving around Sharm El-Sheikh. Add your experiences and read the recommendations of other divers.
__________________________________________________________ Your Letters Republic of the Marshall Islands, Micronesia Once you get to the Marshall Islands there's nothing to do BUT dive. Regardless, it is the best diving I have ever experienced, even better than Palau. Reason being that you could go to 4 different atolls have 4 completely different yet equally as amazing dive experiences in each. Jaw dropping coral in Arno, eery WWII wreck dives in Bikini Wotje, massive eagle rays in Rongelap, sea turtles sharks in Ailinglaplap, etc. etc. etc. I lived there for a year, and so got to experience more than the average vacationer. However, despite the cost and time it takes to get there, the RMI is more than worth it. I personally was blown away. __________________________________________________________ Bookshelf: Wreck of the Colossus, The find of a lifetime 
Wreck of the Colossus, The find of a lifetime Todd Stevens is a keen, amateur, wreck diver. So keen he moved to the remote Isles of Scilly - the most South Westerly point of the British Isles - purely because of the many undiscovered wrecks there. This book tells how he found the remains of one of Nelson's ships, and the machinations involved when his find became public. The book starts 200 years ago with a history of the Colossus, followed by the human story of the shipwreck. It continues with details of the author's life story before progressing to the dives on the Colossus, the hostile involvement of salvage operators and the author's growing frustrations. A cautionary tale for any would-be wreck discoverers. Part of the Colossus had been discovered and excavated in the seventies by Roland Morris. However, Todd Stevens found extensive wreckage and historically important artefacts, including quarterdeck guns, well away from the recorded site. The book is well illustrated with over 100 black and white photos and maps. Although the author writes well, and his passion is obvious, the book would have been much improved by a good editor. Steven's at times gives far too much detail and some of his paragraphs go on for pages. Simple things like starting each chapter on a right-hand page, having bigger margins and generally more white space would have made it much easier to read. His language and style are let down by the presentation. In spite of this, if you are planning to dive from the Scilly Islands or fancy discovering lost wrecks then I recommend you buy the book before you start. You can purchase Wreck of the Colossus by sending a cheque for £17 (including p&p) made out to Colossus Publications to Colossus, Pilot's Retreat, St Mary's, Isles of Scilly, TR21 0NA. Alternatively visit the web site at http://www.hmscolossus.co.uk/. About the Author: For more book reviews and interviews with authors see __________________________________________________________ Creature of the Month: Giant Mussel, Pinna nobilis 
The rare giant mussel, Pinna nobilis, is found only in the Mediterranean Sea. It is one of the largest bivalves in the world, growing to 120 cm long. The mussels can live for as long as 20 years. It sticks up out of the sea bed so is easily seen when diving, once you know what to look for. Pinna nobilis has been assessed by the European Union as being in need of special protection (EC Habitats Directive). This means that it is illegal to kill or disturb the species. However, a recent Greek study found many individuals were killed by fishing. The mussels were poached exclusively by free-divers and fishing mortality was practically zero at depths below 9 m, where the visibility was very bad. Because of this large individuals were restricted to deeper areas. In another study, this time off Italy, divers found that the giant mussels were managing to hold their own, in spite of all the difficulties of a degraded and heavily polluted environment and the damages of illegal fishing. Depending on area, the mussels live between about depths of 3 and 60 m. In the Italian study divers didn't find any below 16 m. In the Adriatic Sea, they are found down to 30 m. They live singly, not in large groups like the mussels we are used to. At best the Italian study found only one every 1.4 hectares (3.5 acres). The giant bivalve lives on soft bottoms: sand, seagrass meadows and mud. If you find what looks like a small specimen growing on a rock it is probably not P. nobilis but the more common P. rudis. References: __________________________________________________________ Diving News From Around the World If you would like to read the diving news as it happens, without waiting for this newsletter, then grab the SCUBA News feed from http://www.scubatravel.co.uk/scuba.xml It's free and automatically updates you with the latest SCUBA news via your web site, e-mail or any news feed reader. 
The Mary Rose trust is organising a 25th anniversary reunion for divers who took part in raising the historic warship. The Mary Rose is the only 16th century warship on display anywhere in the world. Built between 1509 and 1511, she was one of the first ships able to fire a broadside. She sank accidentally during an engagement with the French fleet in 1545. New Scale Developed to Diagnose Decompression Sickness Researchers at the Hyperbaric Medicine Department, San Diego, have developed a three-point scale to diagnose decompression sickness. Once the entrance criterion has been met, points are awarded based upon the diver's symptoms and their time of onset.
Sub-titled "The Complete Guide to Safe and Exciting Scuba Diving", this new publication by John Bantin aims to be a comprehensive reference for divers of all levels. Among the topics are choosing an instructor, the science of SCUBA, deep diving, raising heavy objects, equipment failure, boat handling and exploring wrecks.
Starving whales point to depleted oceans Starvation may be impeding the recovery of the Pacific Grey whale population, say researchers.
The Grey whale population was thought to have recovered from commercial whaling, but now a new genetic study suggests the marine mammals once numbered between three and five times the 22,000 population estimated today.
If true, the findings could imply that the world's oceans are no longer able to support the same number of whales that they once could. Giant squid caught off Italian coast The first giant squid ever captured intact in Italian waters has researchers buzzing about finally being able to learn more about the rare marine animal. The squid, which was caught in a deep sea net by fisherman off the island of Elba, is one and a half meters long and weighs almost 40 pounds. Mexico arrests 6 caught with more than 52000 sea turtle eggs Police arrested six people suspected of trying to illegally sell more than 52000 sea turtle eggs in southern Mexico. The five men and one woman were caught transporting the eggs in dozens of plastic bags. Mexico is a major nesting area for several species of sea turtles, which are endangered and protected by law. Harvesting or selling their eggs is punishable by up to nine years in prison and fines. Iceland ends whaling due to lack of demand Iceland has stopped commercial whaling after whalers discovered they cannot find domestic markets for the meat they have caught. Iceland's fisheries minister Einar K. Guofinnsson said that it made no sense to issue new quotas if the market for whale meat was not strong enough. Iceland announced last year it would allow up to 30 minke whales and 9 fin whales to be hunted, controversially ending a ban in place internationally since 1986. But Iceland's whalers have killed just seven minke whales and seven fin whales because of slack demand for whale meat and products. A new study has identified three coldwater coral "hotspots" off Newfoundland and Labrador. The study provides the scientific basis for Canadian and European governments to protect sensitive coral habitat in the Northwest Atlantic. Coldwater corals are long-lived animals that live along continental slopes, seamounts, and mid-ocean ridges. Damaged coldwater corals may take centuries to grow back, if at all. Mediterranean Sea most at risk from climate change Climate change is affecting Europe faster than the rest of the world and rising temperatures could transform the Mediterranean into a salty and stagnant sea, experts said. Temperature rises could wipe out "up to 50 percent of the species," the study said. The decline in the algae population measured last winter also reduced by 30 percent the sea's ability to absorb carbon dioxide, one of the gases blamed by scientists for heating the atmosphere like a greenhouse. As the number of marine species assessments increases, so does the number of species in danger. The 2007 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species shows that excessive and destructive fishing activities play a primary role in oceans biodiversity loss.
Corals have been assessed and added to the IUCN Red List for the very first time. Ten Galapagos species have entered the list. In just a year, both Spingy Angelsharks and Smoothback Angelsharks have moved from the Endangered to the Critically Endangered category. The two species used to be a common and important deep-water predator over large areas in the Mediterranean Sea and the Eastern Atlantic. Fish will vanish from British waters in 20 years, says author Ninety per cent of fish in the waters around Britain will have disappeared within 20 years unless they are given protection, according to a leading marine researcher. Professor Callum Roberts claims that "the endgame" was being played out with the remaining fish in the seas and that they are doomed without radical measures to save them. The number of fish in seas and oceans around the world was a fraction of what it had been 50 years ago, and numbers were still plummeting. Tuvalu about to disappear into the ocean The tiny Pacific island state of Tuvalu is urging the rest of the world to do more to combat global warming before it sinks beneath the ocean. The group of atolls and reefs, home to some 10,000 people, is barely two meters on average above sea-level and one study predicted at the current rate the ocean is rising could disappear in the next 30 to 50 years. __________________________________________________________ * 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 web site, providing the above copyright notice is included and a link back to our web site is in place. Previous editions of SCUBA News 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. CONTACTING THE EDITOR Please send your letters or press releases to: The Editor SCUBA News The Cliff Upper Mayfield DE6 2HR UK ADVERTISING Should you wish to advertise in SCUBA News, please fill in the form at http://www.scubatravel.co.uk/newsad.html PUBLISHER SCUBA Travel Ltd, 5 Loxford Court, Hulme, Manchester, M15 6AF, UK 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 re-subscribe. Send us your Press Releases
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