Another week, another photo of the week in the local rag. This time thanks to Tortuga Divers for the transportation to Julie's Wall where this shot was taken. You should give it a visit next time you're on the North side.
Hairy Frogfish
05:02:00
Admin
Pretty incredible short video of the striated frogfish (or hairy frogfish) by Jose Lachat. An oldie but a goodie.
Antennarius striatus (Striped, Striated, Splitlure, Zebra or Hairy frogfish) is a singulary interesting frogfish, mainly because of its large and well visible worm-like lure which it likes to move a lot. Because of its perfect camouflage it is not that easy to find though.
The pectoral fins are angled, and with the pelvic fins, allow the frogfish to "walk" on the sea bottom and to keep a stable position for ambush.
The striated frogfish is found in the tropical and subtropical waters from the Indian Ocean to the center of the Pacific Ocean, and in the Atlantic Ocean on the western coast of Africa and from the New Jersey coast to the southern Brazilian coast including the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean at depths varying from the surface to 210 m with average occurrence at 40 m deep.
Link: HERE
Antennarius striatus (Striped, Striated, Splitlure, Zebra or Hairy frogfish) is a singulary interesting frogfish, mainly because of its large and well visible worm-like lure which it likes to move a lot. Because of its perfect camouflage it is not that easy to find though.
The pectoral fins are angled, and with the pelvic fins, allow the frogfish to "walk" on the sea bottom and to keep a stable position for ambush.
The striated frogfish is found in the tropical and subtropical waters from the Indian Ocean to the center of the Pacific Ocean, and in the Atlantic Ocean on the western coast of Africa and from the New Jersey coast to the southern Brazilian coast including the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean at depths varying from the surface to 210 m with average occurrence at 40 m deep.
Link: HERE
When Julie comes around
13:23:00
Admin
Well once we got past the road race going on at the bottom of our road, we immediately hit a cycle race that was going on. All the way to the East End. With a police escort. And no overtaking was allowed. Ever driven anywhere at 10 mph for a long time? It's like watching paint dry. Anyway, frustrations aside, we joined our good fiends at Tortuga Divers once again and set sail for high adventures and tales of derring-do. With a 5-6 knots NE wind, it was relatively calm today which gave us a nice excuse to head Northward.
Captain Nige motored us over to Julie's Wall for the first dive which if you haven't done it before is a particularly nice wall dive which backs onto Babylon. If your air management is particularly good, you can easily do Julie's Wall and several laps round the Babylon pinnacle and be back in time for tea.
You've got some really nice cuts and over hangs on the wall at this site if you head East with some great sponge formations and vibrant colours which really "pop" under strobe light. There were also some very large shoals of triggerfish, grunts, fusiliers and sweetlips cruising the top of the wall which made for some nice silhouette shots. We also had our faithful pet snapper follow us as usual as it wouldn't be a dive otherwise.
Unfortunately we had to dive with the lowest common denominator, so by the time we came up from depth and back at the boat we still had half a tank left which was a shame as we could have easily got an extra 30 minutes in, but hey, when paying tourists are on the boat, you got make do. Still a very nice dive though.
If you head West along the wall (away from Babylon) there is supposed to be a very nice overhang wall as described in the brief by Captain Nige, which maybe we'll get around to visiting the next trip out as I'd really like to see what photo opportunities are available there.
After a quick motor back round to the East side, we moored up at Cinderellas Castle with is a nice shallow little site with some nice twisty little swim throughs and pinnacles to get yourself lost in. Be sure to have a good look under some of the shelfs as you may miss some nice stuff like lobsters and turtles. Just be prepared for a tight squeeze to get some of the shots.
Given that the top of the Castle is relatively shallow, be ready to take a beating from the surge and the visibility to drop, however the rewards are worth it if you can up close and personal. Right under the boat there were some fine examples of juvenile tritonia hamnerorum at only a couple of millimetres big, clinging on for dear life.
There were also some fine examples of rough head blennies scattered all around the coral heads, albeit very tricky to shoot with an ultra macro lens in the conditions, but worth the effort.
Also keep an eye out for some nice shoals of yellow goatfish, cruising barracuda, gliding lionfish and plenty of lazy red hinds, which should be more than enough to keep you entertained for a good 70-80 minutes. If you're really lucky, you'll find some nurse sharks here as well. A lovely little dive site for a second dive that's close to home base.
 |
| Nat's back! |
You've got some really nice cuts and over hangs on the wall at this site if you head East with some great sponge formations and vibrant colours which really "pop" under strobe light. There were also some very large shoals of triggerfish, grunts, fusiliers and sweetlips cruising the top of the wall which made for some nice silhouette shots. We also had our faithful pet snapper follow us as usual as it wouldn't be a dive otherwise.
Unfortunately we had to dive with the lowest common denominator, so by the time we came up from depth and back at the boat we still had half a tank left which was a shame as we could have easily got an extra 30 minutes in, but hey, when paying tourists are on the boat, you got make do. Still a very nice dive though.
If you head West along the wall (away from Babylon) there is supposed to be a very nice overhang wall as described in the brief by Captain Nige, which maybe we'll get around to visiting the next trip out as I'd really like to see what photo opportunities are available there.
After a quick motor back round to the East side, we moored up at Cinderellas Castle with is a nice shallow little site with some nice twisty little swim throughs and pinnacles to get yourself lost in. Be sure to have a good look under some of the shelfs as you may miss some nice stuff like lobsters and turtles. Just be prepared for a tight squeeze to get some of the shots.
 |
| A nice big turtle as relayed to us by Captain Nige. |
There were also some fine examples of rough head blennies scattered all around the coral heads, albeit very tricky to shoot with an ultra macro lens in the conditions, but worth the effort.
Also keep an eye out for some nice shoals of yellow goatfish, cruising barracuda, gliding lionfish and plenty of lazy red hinds, which should be more than enough to keep you entertained for a good 70-80 minutes. If you're really lucky, you'll find some nurse sharks here as well. A lovely little dive site for a second dive that's close to home base.
Watch how I soar......
15:28:00
Admin
Well we've been saying for years, why explore outer space when most of the worlds oceans are still unexplored?
Link: HERE
"Even though they cover two-third's of the planet's surface, we know precious little about how the oceans actually interact with the continents and atmosphere. What's more, our oceanic models are woefully incomplete�only capable of showing large areas with reduced resolution or in high detail over a limited area. But a new fleet of autonomous research submarines are about to rectify that problem."
"These 16 gliders were built as part of Rutgers University's Challenger mission to explore and quantify deep ocean currents and provide researchers a means of testing existing oceanic models for accuracy against the collected data. Each UUV (unmanned underwater vehicle) measures just over seven feet long and utilizes buoyancy changes within the water column to propel it along at speeds of 21 miles per day. That's pretty slow, even by conventional seafaring standards, but over the course of the next two years, these gliders are expected to cover a total of 128,000 square kilometers (nearly 80,000 square miles) throughout five ocean basins�each one covering 6,000 to 8,000 km individually."
Link: HERE
"Even though they cover two-third's of the planet's surface, we know precious little about how the oceans actually interact with the continents and atmosphere. What's more, our oceanic models are woefully incomplete�only capable of showing large areas with reduced resolution or in high detail over a limited area. But a new fleet of autonomous research submarines are about to rectify that problem."
"These 16 gliders were built as part of Rutgers University's Challenger mission to explore and quantify deep ocean currents and provide researchers a means of testing existing oceanic models for accuracy against the collected data. Each UUV (unmanned underwater vehicle) measures just over seven feet long and utilizes buoyancy changes within the water column to propel it along at speeds of 21 miles per day. That's pretty slow, even by conventional seafaring standards, but over the course of the next two years, these gliders are expected to cover a total of 128,000 square kilometers (nearly 80,000 square miles) throughout five ocean basins�each one covering 6,000 to 8,000 km individually."
The Swarm
16:37:00
Admin
A great read if you ever wanted to know why fish and birds swarm together.
"Being based on land, we have a hard time understanding the behavior of those species that live in the air or underwater. For instance, countless generations have looked up and wondered at the so-called flying V, the tendency of many migratory birds to fly in a wedge-shaped formation. Eventually, scientists figured out that the reason the birds assumed that formation was efficiency; the incredibly complex math of chaos and waves leads a V shape that reduces drag. It�s similar in logic to the drafting performed by race cars, though far more specialized and complex."
Link: HERE
"Researchers now have plenty of explanations for the why of this behavior. First and foremost: there�s safety in numbers. Even if you can�t fight back as a group, you can still use numbers to confuse an enemy with sheer visual noise. In a large group, any one member is infinitely safe than if they were caught out alone � though also far easier to track down."
"The rules are more complex than we currently understand, though. For instance, some species wheel about in incredible patterns and vortexes that are designed to confuse attackers and create unhelpful turbulence in the water or air."
"Being based on land, we have a hard time understanding the behavior of those species that live in the air or underwater. For instance, countless generations have looked up and wondered at the so-called flying V, the tendency of many migratory birds to fly in a wedge-shaped formation. Eventually, scientists figured out that the reason the birds assumed that formation was efficiency; the incredibly complex math of chaos and waves leads a V shape that reduces drag. It�s similar in logic to the drafting performed by race cars, though far more specialized and complex."
Link: HERE
"Researchers now have plenty of explanations for the why of this behavior. First and foremost: there�s safety in numbers. Even if you can�t fight back as a group, you can still use numbers to confuse an enemy with sheer visual noise. In a large group, any one member is infinitely safe than if they were caught out alone � though also far easier to track down."
"The rules are more complex than we currently understand, though. For instance, some species wheel about in incredible patterns and vortexes that are designed to confuse attackers and create unhelpful turbulence in the water or air."
The Exosuit
17:00:00
Admin
We're getting one step closer to longer, deeper, safer dives as individuals. How long will it be before we see something lighter, thinner and cheaper than this used in everyday diving? 10 Years maybe? or will we still all be on traditional open circuit like we are now? Who knows what tomorrow may bring?
Link: HERE
"The only diving suit that lets a human reach 1,000 feet underwater was put on display at the American Museum of Natural History on Thursday. Dubbed the "Exosuit," the system lets humans dive to regions where bioluminescent fish lurk in the darkness, with the goal of studying the fish and their environments more closely, as well as leveraging their biology for medical research."
"Not only will the suit allow divers to see and potentially capture fish more safely, they will also get to image them with cameras in their natural habitat. The deep ocean is naturally hostile to humans, and therefore scientists know relatively little about it. Sparks noted that the suit will also let researchers gather more information about how creatures at those depths speciate and diversify, a process that's not currently well-known."
Link: HERE
"The only diving suit that lets a human reach 1,000 feet underwater was put on display at the American Museum of Natural History on Thursday. Dubbed the "Exosuit," the system lets humans dive to regions where bioluminescent fish lurk in the darkness, with the goal of studying the fish and their environments more closely, as well as leveraging their biology for medical research."
"Not only will the suit allow divers to see and potentially capture fish more safely, they will also get to image them with cameras in their natural habitat. The deep ocean is naturally hostile to humans, and therefore scientists know relatively little about it. Sparks noted that the suit will also let researchers gather more information about how creatures at those depths speciate and diversify, a process that's not currently well-known."
Tower of power
15:42:00
Admin
Well as good as our word, we set off at the crack of dawn over to the East End to jump off a perfectly acceptable boat operated by our good friends at Tortuga divers. Once again they show other dive operators on the island how dive centre should be run. It's been a couple of months since we were last out with them what with work getting in the way but it's good to be back.
Unsurprisingly, the first place we jumped in was Babylon. I think outside of St Abbs, I know this dive site more than any other place on the island! But as the old saying goes, never a bad dive at Babylon. And today proved no exception despite the water being a bit cloudy we had great overhead lighting and an explosion of colours down below.
As always you should be keeping one eye on your computer because it's just far too easy to spend time down in the deep with all the fantastic sea fans and sponge formations on offer for the photographers out there.
And without fail, we were followed around on the dive by our faithful pet snappers and angelfish. It happens every dive, I think they just want to get close to the camera.......
It never hurts to keep an eye out in the blue now and again as it's not uncommon for the bigger stuff to cruising by but today was a bit uneventful in that regards but that didn't detract from the stunning scenery on offer.
Start deep and spiral your way up the pinnacle until you get bored (as if!). Like us, if you still find you have bags of air left, follow the wall Easterly to catch some phenomenal overhangs and colours that looks as though an explosion in a paint factory just happened.
When your ready to head home just cruise along the top of the wall to knock out your safety stop as the mooring pin and boat are sitting right there to ready for your trip to the next dive site.
In this case, our next site was Delwyn's Delight which was a nice little mini wall with some great coral fingers to mooch around in and look for the small stuff.
Doug also was kind enough to point us in the direction of a nurse shark hiding under a shelf. Now ultra macro lenses aren't necessarily the best weapon of choice to take shark pics but I gave it my best shot.
There was also a great selection of gobies and blennies on offer to waste a good portion of the dive on, which was absolutely fine by me.
If you looked carefully, you would also see several cleaning stations dotted around on the wall which gave some excellent photo opportunities but unfortunately I just missed the Pederson shrimps working on the Coney Grouper in the phono below. Damn you!
Still there were plenty of hamlets, grunts, drumfish and basslets to keep me occupied until I found one of my most favourite things in the world. Nudis!! A couple of lettuce leaf slugs crawling along the top of the wall were just the thing to add the icing to the cake on today's diving, despite their lack of enthusiasm towards the camera. Maybe I caught them without their make-up on or something........
Still despite getting the brush off, it was a great end to a great days diving and guaranteed we'll be jumping off a perfectly seaworthy boat again in a couple of weeks time over on the East End. Safe diving everyone!
 |
| Big boat, not too many passengers and a crack team of boat crew. This is how you do it. |
 |
| Getting dirty down at 30 (m) |
And without fail, we were followed around on the dive by our faithful pet snappers and angelfish. It happens every dive, I think they just want to get close to the camera.......
It never hurts to keep an eye out in the blue now and again as it's not uncommon for the bigger stuff to cruising by but today was a bit uneventful in that regards but that didn't detract from the stunning scenery on offer.
Start deep and spiral your way up the pinnacle until you get bored (as if!). Like us, if you still find you have bags of air left, follow the wall Easterly to catch some phenomenal overhangs and colours that looks as though an explosion in a paint factory just happened.
When your ready to head home just cruise along the top of the wall to knock out your safety stop as the mooring pin and boat are sitting right there to ready for your trip to the next dive site.
In this case, our next site was Delwyn's Delight which was a nice little mini wall with some great coral fingers to mooch around in and look for the small stuff.
 |
| Peek-a-boo, I see you. |
There was also a great selection of gobies and blennies on offer to waste a good portion of the dive on, which was absolutely fine by me.
If you looked carefully, you would also see several cleaning stations dotted around on the wall which gave some excellent photo opportunities but unfortunately I just missed the Pederson shrimps working on the Coney Grouper in the phono below. Damn you!
Still there were plenty of hamlets, grunts, drumfish and basslets to keep me occupied until I found one of my most favourite things in the world. Nudis!! A couple of lettuce leaf slugs crawling along the top of the wall were just the thing to add the icing to the cake on today's diving, despite their lack of enthusiasm towards the camera. Maybe I caught them without their make-up on or something........
Still despite getting the brush off, it was a great end to a great days diving and guaranteed we'll be jumping off a perfectly seaworthy boat again in a couple of weeks time over on the East End. Safe diving everyone!
 |
| Home again, home again, jiggity-jig |
