Ban on 'barbaric' shark finning

A complete ban on the "barbaric" practice of shark fin removal is to come into force in Scotland within weeks, it has been announced.

The Cove - Powerful Real World Thriller

t's not a big budget Hollywood movie... it's a documentary about dolphins trapped and brutally killed in a cove near the Japanese fishing village of Taiji, and the heroes who risk everything to tell the story and save them.

European Shark Week

Sign this petition and help conserving the sharks!

Palau pioneers 'shark sanctuary'

Palau is to create the world's first "shark sanctuary", banning all commercial shark fishing in its waters.

Remove Shark Nets Home - Supporting the Removal of Shark Nets in Australia

Why are Sharks Important?

Corals under serious threat from humans

Thailand's splendid diving spots could become a thing of the past as coral reefs, especially in the Gulf of Thailand, have been severely damaged by human activity.

Proposed ban on bluefin tuna trade

EU leaders back a proposed international ban on the trade in bluefin tuna, one of the world’s most over-harvested fish.

EC president to step in as row escalates over bluefin tuna

Climate targets 'will kill coral'

Current climate targets are not enough to save the world's coral reefs - and policymakers urgently need to consider the economic benefits they bring.

New Eyeless Crustacean Found in Underwater Cave

Diving in the Philippines

Aaaaahhhh... Sweet Philippines! The Philippines is an archipelago with 7.107 islands.Visiting all the great divesites the Philippines have to offer is a mission impossible when you only have 3 weeks.The travelling is not always easy and it often takes some time to get around. Starting off with my own experience of my diving holiday last year. I chose taking a flight to Cebu instead of Manila. From there it was straight on a ferry to Tagbilaran City, Bohol and a short taxi-ride to Panglao Island. Most of the dive centers on Panglao are situated around Alona Beach. The best dive trips are the ones to Balicasag Island and Cabilao Island. Balicasag has 3 awesome divesites with 2 wall dives ( Rudy's Rock and Rico's wall) where you have sheer walls dropping down to 40 mtr plus. The variety off both hard and soft coral is incredible. If you are lucky enough on one of these dives your guide will show you Pygmy seahorses, well disguised, clinging on to soft coral! There's plenty other stuff to see besisides that: Tuna, Jacks, Bumphead Wrass, Barracuda, Grouper, all kinds of Triggerfish, Turtles and the list goes on and on... "Black Forest" is a reef slope that drops down to about 40 mtr and normally is a great driftdive. They named it "Black Forest" because the slope seems like a forest of black coral. Cabilao Island is another great spot for the advanced diver with a double drop-off and strong currents. Around februari their are sightings of Hammerheads! You can often see both Black, and Whitetips cruising around " Shark View Point".

Next stop was Apo Island, which is located 30 km off the southeastern tip of Negros Island. The best way to get there is to make a reservation at Liberty's Community Lodge who can than agree to pick you up at different places in southern Negros. As we approached the island we were welcomed by a school of dolphins jumping out of the water. The lost PARADISE! For those wanting a bit of nightlife after the dives, Apo Island is probably not the best place to go as there are no bars and only electricity available between 6-9pm. But for the more adventureous, it's defenitely worth it! The waters around Apo are all protected fish sanctuaries since 1982. Therefore the diving and snorkelling is superb. There are several dive spots around the island just a stone-cast away from the island itself. As you can imagine the variety of fish and coral is absolutely amazing!



The highlight of the trip was Malapascua, an hour boat-ride from the northeastern point of Cebu Island. The reason for going there is the reputation of "Monad Shoal". Famous for it's rare Thresher Sharks, and Manta's. The divesite itself is a platform/reeftop at a 20 mtr depth. My advice would be to do both the morning- and the afternoon dive. These are probably the best dives I've done in my life! In the morning the chance of seeing a Thresher Shark is at almost 100%! It didn't take more than 5 mins before we spotted the first one circling around the reeftop. As it gracefully circled around us for several mins it was time to go to the next check-point. On the way we were lucky enough to spot another graceful creature... YES, a Manta Ray! Normally not spotted on the morning dives. While we waited for some other sharks to appear we enjoyed watching Barracuda's and Batfish around us. And bumped into a Scorpionfish and a couple of nudibranchs relaxing on the reeftop. The afternoon dives are known for its Manta sightings. It didn't take more than a minute before we spotted the first one! Still on the buoyline there was already one circling below us. When we reached the first check-point the second one appeared. This one was especially playful and even swam right over us. It stayed with us for about 10 mins which gave everyone with a camera the opportunity for that special "Kodak-Moment". At the end of the dive a third one appeared to wish us a happy and safe journey back to the boat.
Next dives: Gato Island. A 1hr boat trip away from Malapascua. Gato offers 4 excellent divespots. "Whitetip Alley" gives you the chance to see Whitetips sleeping under rocks and bolders. Sometimes seen circling around as well. I can't even remember how many I saw on just one dive! Then there's plenty of other stuff to see: Cuttlefish, Seahorses (if you're lucky), Scorpionfish, Banded Boxer Shrimp etc etc etc...
"The Guardhouse" offers you the chance of seeing pygmy seahorses, normally pink, but also seen here in yellow. Also starring Lionfish, Frogfish and Spanish Dancers. "The Cave" is another brilliant divespot. It's actually a sort of a tunnel, about 50 mtr long, that goes from one side of the island to the other side. Sometimes you have Whitetips hiding in the tunnel. Normally you'll see all kinds of lobsters and crabs.
For the perfect nightdive you have "Lighthouse". Where you can see the rare Mandarinfish with all its splendid colours. At sunset they come out to do their mating ritual. There's a lot of other stuff to see as well: Seahorses, Banded Pipefish, Nudibranchs, Squid and Octopus.
Then there are 5 wrecks in the area as well: "Lighthouse Wreck"," Dona Marilyn Wreck" , "Tapilon Wreck", "MV Asia Wreck" and "Pioneer Wreck". Most of them are reasonably shallow (between 5-32 mtr), except for the "Pioneer Wreck" that is between 42-54 mtr.

On the next post I'll write about more perfect spots to go to in the Philippines.

Fish to eat and fish to avoid

Here's a list of fish to eat and fish to avoid.

You can adopt a shark for $49

BanSharkFinSoup - epetition response

“We the undersigned petition the Prime Minister to impose a ban on the selling of Shark Fin Soup within the United Kingdom along with other such related products.”

Robot sub reaches the world's deepest abyss - environment - 02 June 2009 - New Scientist

Robot sub reaches the world's deepest abyss - environment - 02 June 2009 - New Scientist

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Killer whales visit 'social clubs'

Killer whales create and visit social clubs just like people do, scientists have discovered.

SHARKWATER, a must see documentary

For filmmaker Rob Stewart, exploring sharks began as an underwater adventure. What it turned into was a beautiful and dangerous life journey into the balance of life on earth.

Tell Supervalu to STOP SELLING SHARKS!

Greenpeace granite shield protects unique marine life

Ocean Conservancy:

Ocean Conservancy: End Finning, Save the Sharks!

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Diving on the westcoast of Thailand

This time I'll tell you about the great opportunities of diving on the westcoast! Their are several good spots and places to go to. Whether you want to stay close to shore or take a liveaboard to the Similan Islands. Some of the spots and islands that are nice to visit are Khao Lak, Koh Phi Phi,Phuket, Koh Lanta and Krabi. Now let me start off with telling you that diving in the Andaman Sea is more challenging than diving in the gulf of Thailand. Most of the time anyways... So this generally means you have to take into account that most dives can be a bit more tiring because of stronger currents. But let me tell you, it's worth it! Although the variety of tropical fish and corals in the Gulf of Thailand is more than impressive, the variety is even more amazing in the Andaman Sea (personal opinion). Especially for the trained eye and the more experienced diver I would say a trip to the Similan Islands is a MUST!!! With the possibilties of seeing macro-stuff like all types of nudi-branchs, Ornate Ghost Pipefish, Seahorses, Harlequin Shrimps to the big stuff like Leopard Sharks, different types of Turtles, Whalesharks and of course the most graceous creature found u/w, the Manta Ray. And if you're a fan of Lionfish... they're everywhere!

About the divesites near the coast. The renowned divesites of "Hin Daeng" and "Hin Muang" situated in the Mu Koh Lanta National Park are great. The pinnacles are covered with pink, purple and red soft corals and house an incredible variety of marine life. These sites attract numbers of pelagics like barracuda, tuna, jacks and schools of grey reef sharks. Also starring sometimes... the famous whalesharks!
Diving at "Hin Bida" also called "Phi Phi Shark Point" almost gives you the certainty of seeing the beautiful leopard sharks swimming around or sleeping peacefully on the sand around the reef.
The King Cruiser Wreck is probably the best wreck dive there is in Thai waters, although some tec-divers might disagree... Sorry guys! The King Cruiser used to be a ferry that sunk in Mai 1997. Fortunately no lives were lost. The King Cruiser wreck is 85 metres long by 25 metres wide, and has 4 decks with large passages and window holes. The wreck is resting in an upright position on 32 metres, with the captain's cabin the shallowest area at 12 metres. This depth, together with the frequent strong currents and low season rough seas, makes the diving here UNSUITABLE for beginners.
Also the "Boonsung Wreck" is a great divesite, situated not too far of Khao Lak. The wreck lies in flat sand on about 18-20 mtr depth. It is 10 mtr wide and 30 mtr long. The site itself is small but the marine life is incredible. Lots and lots of good stuff to see.

Similan Islands. The best thing to do if you want to dive there is to take either a day-trip or one of the many liveaboards. The diving around the Similand Islands is in one word, AMAZING! The best diving I've done in Thailand. There is so much to see, even after a 4 day liveaboard, you still have the feeling that you haven't seen enough. One of the famous divesites is "Koh Bon". This is THE place to spot Manta Rays. Keep your eyes open and be patient. "Koh Tachai" is another one. There are several swim-throughs and channels all over the place. Featuring here are the big fish. Baracuda, leopard sharks, eagle rays etc. Then there is "Richelieu Rock". If there is one place where the possibilty of spotting a whale shark is quite big, it's Richelieu Rock!
So much good stuff to see, words fail to express the beauty of this national park.
Quick shout out to the peeps of "Wicked Diving" in Khao Lak. Best diving ever, great staff, amazing liveaboard! Special thanks go out to Marcel, Filip, Ricky, Church, Dan, Robyn and Tuk!

Making a case for saving the shark

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/08/03/earlyshow/series/main5207866.shtml

Sail Rock Dive Site

http://www.bigbluetech.net/big-blue-tech-news/2009/08/03/sail-rock-dive-site-big-blue-style/

Setting fish catch numbers should be scrapped

http://news.scotsman.com/latestnews/Experts-say-methods-of-setting.5514597.jp

Imagine this the only place left to see fish...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u7deCln

Sea Notes

http://montereybayaquarium.typepad.com/sea_notes/2009/07/csi-overfishing.html

Preview for "must see movie"!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bedirwk95Oc

Diving holidays in Thailand

This post will be about diving and travelling in Thailand. Once you've landed in Bangkok or on one of the other airports on either the westcoast or on Koh Samui, it's fairly easy to get to your final destination. The buses, trains and minibuses are reliable to get you there. If you are staying somewhere near Kao San Rd in Bangkok the easiest way is to go to the "Hua Lamphong Railway Station", officially known as the "Bangkok Railway Station". It's about a 5 min drive with a taxi or about 15 mins walking from Kao San Rd. There you have the option of taking either the train, a bus or a minibus.

Now getting to the interesting part, the diving itself! In Thailand the options are vast. For people that want to start diving or are not that experienced yet, the best choice would be to go to one of the islands in the Gulf of Thailand. I would personally recommend going to either Koh Tao or Koh Chang.

First of all Koh Chang. It's a beautiful island near the Cambodian border. It takes about 6 hrs to get there from Bangkok. 75% of the island is covered in rainforest, hills and waterfalls. The westcoast of the island is the most populated, with White Sand Beach as it's main tourist attraction (very busy during high-season. There are several dive operators offering fundives (for the certified) and dive courses from different dive organizations. For tec-divers there is one operator offering interesting wreck dives as well ( Scuba Evolution). If diving on Koh Chang an absolute must is "Hin Luk Bath". This is one of the prime dive sites around Koh Chang. Hin Luk Bath is a pinnacle that offers refuge to plenty of shoaling fish. There are moray eels, stingrays, parrotfish, snappers, fusiliers, big groupers, butterfly fish, banner fish, barracuda, angelfish, and many more. On the way to the dive site you can sometimes see dolphins. The pinnacle is surrounded by huge uw boulders that offer some great swim throughs…. Great for night diving. Some of the dive sites at the Koh Rang National Park are nice too. Try to avoid going to the spots where all the snorkel boats are moored. No fun, diving with hundreds of snorkelers above your head! The best time to go to Koh Chang is between october and april. No use going there between may and the end of september as the monsoon "rains" the island.

Further south in the gulf you have a couple of islands worth visiting. Koh Phangang and Koh Tao. Try to avoid Koh Samui if you don't like mass-tourism. On Koh Phangang you have a couple of dive operators. But the island is mostly known for it's full- and half-moon-parties. Than there is Koh Tao. Known for being the nr. 1 dive destination in the gulf. On Koh Tao they offer the cheapest diving in Thailand, probably in the world, which is great for young backpackers! On the other hand you could end up diving at a divesite with many other divers around you. So the cheapest offer is often not the best quality! Try to find one that avoids the "traffic", especially in the morning. Some of the best dive sites in the gulf are in the surrounding waters of Koh Tao. An absolute must for the more experienced divers (read: advanced+) are "Chumpon Pinnacle". Regular spottings of whalesharks, have seen a couple of them there myself, different types of reefsharks and the bigger pelagics like barracuda's, mackerels and potato groupers. "Southwest Pinnacle", the tops of the pinnacles are covered with a carpet of anemones in brilliant greens, pinks and blues, filled with pink anemone fish. Whale sharks are occasional visitors to the site here too, which is home as well to large schools of snapper, yellowtail barracuda, and one mean titan triggerfish. Be aware, haha! "Sail Rock", which is like swimmimg in a fish bowl. Different big shoals of fuseliers, barracuda's, batfish and other large pelagics. Also featured on this pinnacle is a giant mooray eel, and a lot of scorpionfish and nudi-branchs for "the trained eye".

On the next post I will discuss the diving on the westcoast...

diving around the world

For those interested in diving this will be an useful blog helping you out where to go for the greatest divespots around the world. Useful links about conserving the eco-system under water will be featured too.