Mad as a Marine Biologist

Showing 41 posts tagged scuba

Diving - Enjoy, Not Destroy

This is my latest article on environmentally responsible scuba diving and the Green Fins work I’m involved in!

We scuba divers are by no means the greatest threat to coral reefs, but we do cause damage, and it can add up. However, we are also the most passionate ambassadors for the reef. Let’s make choices that reflect the respect we have for the  ocean. 

MAAMB x

neaq:

Photomegatron Maps Coral Reefs
Traditionally, marine scientists would gather data on corals by photographing and measuring a one square meter area or quadrat. That method gives consistent data on a coral area over time, but it’s also a very small area … so scientists are trying out new methods like this one. It’s affectionately called the PHOTOMEGATRON. It’s two Nikon SLR’s, mounted in a protective frame with lasers.

A researchers swims it over the reef as the cameras record coral cover. The images are assembled later to create a comprehensive map that includes larger coral formations that would be missed in the quadrat system.

Full description from the researchers using this system right now in the Phoenix Islands.

High-res underwaterpix: Nudibranch in Catalina Island, Southern California Brought to you by Underwater Photography Guide, the best online resource for divers and underwater photographers. Look at his cute little face!! 

underwaterpix:

Nudibranch in Catalina Island, Southern California

Brought to you by Underwater Photography Guide, the best online resource for divers and underwater photographers.

Look at his cute little face!! 

High-res We saw a bunch of White-tip Reef Sharks (Triaenodon obesus) chilling under overhangs. Most of them were huge, at least 1.5m long, and if they were disturbed by our presence, then they have serious poker faces going on. White tip reef sharks are the only members of their Genus, and unlike other members of the Requiem shark family (Carcharhinidae), they are able to pump water over their gills and lie still at the bottom.

We saw a bunch of White-tip Reef Sharks (Triaenodon obesus) chilling under overhangs. Most of them were huge, at least 1.5m long, and if they were disturbed by our presence, then they have serious poker faces going on.

White tip reef sharks are the only members of their Genus, and unlike other members of the Requiem shark family (Carcharhinidae), they are able to pump water over their gills and lie still at the bottom.