As day turned to night, two Australian icons— Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Opera House— were silhouetted on the skyline. In the fading light, we prepared our equipment for another excursion into Australia’s temperate seas to discover and prove the existence of fluorescing marine life forms in environments other than tropical oceans.
Swirling unicorn fish surround me and seem to have accepted me as one of their own. I can no longer see the surface nor anything else, save for a wall of fish. Only four minutes into the dive and it’s already evident that this site is living up to its reputation, literally boiling with fish. Moments like this remind me why I dive.
Lionfish, which have spines that contain venom, are a well-known problem in Atlantic coral reefs. These invaders from the tropical parts of the Pacific and Indian oceans have no natural predators in the Atlantic Ocean. They are eradicating many fish populations in the shallow reefs that they have overtaken. Recently, the overwhelming problem has proven worse than originally thought.
Sharks have a very different set of senses than we do, yet the eyesight of the free swimming species is good, so when they look at you, they are seeing you. But you may have the impression that they are using senses other than their eyes most often, and indeed, apart from our shared good eyesight, it is impossible for us to imagine how sharks experience their liquid realm.
Between 2009 and 2011, the team of scientists from tested nasal swabs from more than 900 marine mammals from 10 different species off the Pacific Coast from Alaska to California.
They detected H1N1 infection in two northern elephant seals and antibodies to the virus in an additional 28 elephant seals, indicating more widespread exposure. None of the infected seal showed any clinical signs of illness
A team of researchers, led by the University of St Andrews, has discovered that a new feeding technique has quickly spread to 40 per cent of a humpback whale population. Humpbacks around the world herd shoals of prey by blowing bubbles underwater to produce 'bubble nets'.
The feeding innovation, called 'lobtail feeding', involves hitting the water with the tail before diving to produce the bubble nets. Lobtail feeding was first observed in 1980, after the stocks of herring, previously the main food for the whales, became depleted.
Dive pioneer Peter Hughes sat down with X-RAY MAG to give insight into his 40-plus years in the dive industry, what has inspired him and his thoughts on the future.
In a new study, scientists have revealed the diving behaviour of sharks appears to be influenced by the moon, water temperature and time of day. The study was conducted with grey reef sharks, a species commonly found on coral reefs in northern Australia and the Indo-Pacific. Tagged near Palau, about 40 grey reef sharks consisting mostly of adults of females were followed by scientists from UWA and the Australian Institute of Marine Science, who recorded their movement and diving patterns over a two-year period.
The reasons for shark attacks and the question of when and where they might occur has always been the subject of intense scientific interest in the effort to make seaside recreation as safe as possible.
Born on the Caribbean island of St. Lucia, self-taught artist Daniel Jean-Baptiste captures on sumptuous silk the brilliant, vivid colors of the vibrant marine life that thrives in the sea around his native homeland.
Beautifully adapted to an ambush predator existence, wobbegongs rely on their exquisitely cryptic coloration to avoid detection and catch their prey by surprise.
… just as soon as you get OW certified!?
Do you remember your first reaction to being able to breathe underwater? What was the first thing you wanted to do when you caught sight of a coral head liberally seasoned with tiny, multi-colored bait fish? When your instructor handed you your very first c-card, did you get a strong urge to swap places with them?
