T HE A T LA M SUBA QUA C LUB E -M A G A Z I N E
NOVEMBER-DECEMBER 2013 2013 Atlam Committee Members :Nader Bassily President nbassily@vol.net.mt Joseph Azzopardi Secretary guzeppi56@gmail.com Denise Baker Treasurer denise.baker63@ymail.com Nicholas Agius Diving Officer agius.nick@gmail.com Simon Ciantar PRO scagn@go.net.mt Anton Debattista Activity Officer andeb@go.net.mt Reuben Borg Activity Officer reuben.borg@vodafone.com.mt
IN THIS ISSUE
page
• Note from the Editor
2
• Back to recreational Diving Depth - Dorian Law 3/4 • “Jellyfish” Bloom Research - Dr Adriana Vella
5/6
• Sharks & Rays of Our Waters - BICREF
7/8
• Species Page Pen Shells - Edward Vella
9
• Dived Overseas - Arabian Pens - Dorian Law 10/11 • Book of The Month - Dorian Law • Raja Ampat - Indonesia - Paolo Marino
11 12/14
• Dive Logs
Atlam Subaqua Club Annual Dive Reunion 22nd December 2014
- Lantern Pt - 03/11/13 - Edward Vella
15
- Fessej Rock -10/11/13 - Tano Rolé
16
- Reqqa Pt -18/10/13 - Pictorial
17
- Dives Location Map - Joe Formosa
18
www.atlam.org info@atlam.org
The Editorial
As is perhaps to be expected at the closure of each year, one starts to recall the events of the year gone by, and then weigh them up. As a club Atlam, after doing this seasonal exercise, must surely remain with a very positive balance – for this has been an historic year – and the club is now enjoying the result of the relentless efforts of its Committee. This is of course, the state of the art Atlam clubhouse at Bahar ic-Caghaq! This has been more than amply mentioned in previous Bubbles Editorials - now, following the activities that have been held since the move from the Valletta premises – the members are realising more and more the potential of having this clubhouse, which apart from the nice views etc., is really an incubator for generating diving and other marine relating activities. Looking back at the Boat Dives, of which this year there were 27, I cannot help remembering the Camma caves dive – with their unforgettable intense blue outside the dim of the caves – especially Ghar ic-Cawla with its double entrances, the very nice reef at Xlendi, the fantastic clear water at Migra l-Ferha, the surreal caves at Ghar id-Dwieb (known at Atlam as Il-Qaws…), and it goes on… the memory banks are so crammed that severe day dreaming and short attention span start to become chronic! Inside this issue of Bubbles are two articles of particular interest. During our diving, we will probably sooner or later come across some species which we have never seen before - remember we had the ‘What is it?’ feature in Bubbles – and which we photographed, but could not identify. This is what happened to me during the safety stop at Xlendi last October. I thought that this very transparent jellyfish was worth recording, then I sent the picture to CIESM, and it turned out that this was the first recorded sighting of this species in Malta. Therefore it would be great if we could start recording and reporting all sightings that may seem to be unusual, and you will be helping in no small way in the gathering of information. This is a bit like a huge jig-saw puzzle, hopefully someday the all the bits will fall into place…. and we can help. I am sure that our readers will realise that Bubbles involves a lot of time and work by the Editorial Sub-Committee! The new presentation and format of this e-Magazine on the Issuu website, (great idea Ivo!) allows us to know how many and where our readers are. It is rewarding for us to note that the October / November issue has been read in many countries: USA, Argentina, Belize, Tunisia, Spain, France, Italy, Greece, Ireland, the UK, Netherlands, Germany, Sweden, Kuwait, the Philippines , Australia and of course all of you Atlam members in dear Malta! I close this Editorial wishing all our readers on behalf of the Editorial Sub Committee, all the Best Wishes for the New Year. Keep Diving.
Edward Vella
evella@onvol.net
The Atlam Bubbles Editorial Team The Atlam Editorial Sub-Committee Edward Vella - Editor & Photographer Joe Formosa - Contributor & Photographer Dr Tano Rolé - Contributor & Photographer Ivo Caruana - Graphic Designer
would like to thank all the contributors for their valuable and interesting articles and photos published in the Atlam Bubbles e-Magazine during 2013. The readership of this e-magazine has increased world wide.
THANK YOU
JOIN ATLAM SUBAQUA CLUB and share the fun & experience Activities for Divers: • Shore Dives • Boat Dives • Night Dive • Diving Excursions Abroad • U/W Photo Competitions • Lectures on various subjects • Nitrox Courses. • Free e-magazine
Activities for the whole family • Weekly Club Nights & Bar • Barbecues • Majjalata • Pasta Nights • Boat Parties • Gozo Diving Breaks • Camping on Comino and other places.
For more info contact the President Nader Bassily on 99499101
Back to recreational diving depths
by Dorian Law
It is now more than two years since I dived deeper than 60meters. It was a boat dive with the club at Xlendi Reef in Gozo on the 19th June 2011. The group I was with dived to 62meters and with a bottom time of 15minutes we surfaced after 74minutes. We dived on air in our twinsets and completed our decompression on Nitrox 60. I think that during those times the deeper I went the more relaxed and calm I felt. I hope it was not narcosis!
There are instances where you need to plan for a deep technical dive, especially when the chosen spot attracts your interest or attention such as deep wrecks. Believe me, it is justified and with careful planning, the underwater experience gained makes it worth carrying all the equipment needed. On the other hand, many divers deep dive with the ‘hope of seeing something different’. Many times these dives are done without planning or the depth chosen is dived more as a habit than because the site demands it. Unfortunately the depths being dived these days are used by many Maltese divers to boast and show their status amongst the diving community, leading to diving accidents. Deep dives are for the fit, well trained and prepared divers, not for thrill seekers or any diver who thinks he has to prove himself to be accepted in the group or that he is better than the other divers.
that more than half the dive time is spent as bottom time. Group A spends only one-third of the dive time as bottom time, with 39minutes spent as decompression. With the help of todays’ diving software, a diver who knows his breathing rate at different depths can adjust the planned depth of a certain dive to increase his bottom time whilst still remain in the same parameters of total dive time, dive gas and decompression gas requirements.
The following year I had to go hospital for an operation, then through a period of rest and recovery. This was followed by a period of slowly coming back to diving. During my recovery period I had prepared myself mentally to take it slowly. I planned to dive shallow, well below the recreational diving limits. This gave me the possibility of slowly increasing the depth but still remain within my diving capabilities. Up till now I have done a couple of 50+meter dives but generally I dive within the recreational diving depth limits of less than 45 meters.
Advantages of recreational diving depths.
When you compare the bottom time and decompression requirements of group B with groups C and D one will notice the advantages of diving with Nitrox over air. With the use of a suitable Nitrox mix for decompression, group A can extend the bottom time whilst still complete the dive in the 60minute bracket. This will include the use of another smaller cylinder to be carried during the dive. With normal breathing rates taken into consideration in the planning phase, the three other groups would normally need to carry a single cylinder to complete their dive. The use of single cylinders to complete dives in the recreational depth ranges is another advantage of diving these depth ranges. The advent of Nitrox has further helped divers diving in the 30-40meter range to increase the time spent at the bottom without adding decompression time.
One might argue that if a group of divers are planning to boat-dive on a particular dive site, such as a wreck, where the shallowest part of the site starts at 60meters, there is no place for a diver whose limit is 40meters, and exposing such a diver to these depths will be an unsafe diving practice that could lead to a fatality. On the other hand if the deck or any interesting part of the same wreck is within the diver’s limit of 45meters, then there is no reason why deep and recreational divers cannot dive the same site, even at the same time. Although decompression practices might vary, safe diving practices apply both to the recreational and the technical divers.
Imagine four different groups of divers in the water. They are about to start a wall dive where the bottom slopes slowly deeper after 60meters. The table below shows their ideal square dive profile, with dive times close to 60minutes.
Group.
Decompression Depth / Time Air. Depth. Bottom (O2%) (Mtr) time. 15mtr 12mtr 9mtr 6mtr 3mtr
A
21
60
18
B
21
45
27
C
28
44
30
D
32
40
35
1
Dive time
4
5
9
20
57
2
4
9
22
62
3
7
18
58
6
17
58
Extract from the Buhlmann decompression tables. Group A at 60meters will be the deepest whilst the other three groups will be in the 40meter range. At an ascent rate of 10meters / minute group A will pass the 40meter mark just about 15minutes into the dive, heading towards 15meters for their first decompression stop. This is nearly half the bottom time of the other three groups, with group D leaving the 40 meter range at least 5minutes after the other two groups. Group D has reached the maximum depth permitted for a Nitrox mix of 32% with a partial pressure of 1.6bar. Although group A has explored the depth of 60meters, one can say that, visibility permitting groups B and C might have seen part of the action happening 15meters below them, without missing what was happening in their depth range and above them. Everyone agrees, that for the enjoyment of the dive, the longer the bottomtime the better. In this scenario, group D enjoys 35 minutes at 40 meters. This means
There is a rapid loss of light intensity underwater with only the blue wavelength making it beyond the 40meter mark, then lost below 60meters leaving only the darkness going towards the blacks. Lighting at these depths is much desired. Under water photography at depths beyond 50meters can produce quite dramatic shots, alas lacking colour and
going towards a monochromatic blue or black tint if no artificial lights are used. Although colours are lost with an increase in depth, at recreational diving depths, the underwater photographer might still have at his disposal the natural lights or the sun’s rays penetrating from above, which he uses many times as a background for his ambient-themed photographs. The advantages of diving at recreational diving depths include enjoyable nodecompression diving, less equipment to carry when considering the air mix and volume requirements and lighting, longer bottom times and less harsh ambient effects like temperature and available light. Marine life is more abundant closer to the surface and slowly decreases with the loss of light penetration at depths. The Dive Plan. It is at the planning stage of the dive that the diver has to consider where he will be during the dive. If at the selected dive site there is nothing interesting at recreational depths, a dive plan for deeper depths has to be made. On the other hand, if all the action is happening in or can be watched from the 30-45meter range, it would be better to plan for recreational diving depths, thus increasing the much desired bottom time, maybe enhanced with a suitable choice of a Nitrox mix. Going Deep. There is only one recommendation I would like to pass on to any recreational diver who wishes to explore the deeper parts of our seas; “Take it easy, one step at a time. What lies underwater will still remain there in the next years to come”. This concerns the safety of the individual and I like to compare deep divers with elite athletes, and in fact this is what they are. Every human being starts to crawl on his hands and knees before even getting up
on his feet to walk. This is the beginning of venturing for everyone. The elite athlete, still in his youth will start to run and train to run faster with a better understanding of the technique involved. The deep diver, with the help of good instructors will learn the techniques at shallow depths before diving deep. This needs time. With the word time, I mean years of preparation including getting the body accustomed to the effects of depth and choosing your equipment wisely. Unfortunately many enthusiast divers rush into this sport and in a couple of months they are qualified as deep divers or instructors, with Nitrox and Trimix certificates attached. These divers are pushed by greedy individuals whose aim is surely not diving education but making money out of newcomers to the sport. A deep diver who has not trained to dive deep, feels that he is in the wrong place during deep dives but forces himself just to prove to his group he is ‘no chicken’. He is like that athlete who plays with the elite with the help of illegal aids or substances. At the end this ‘cheap’ wannabe elite athlete will be discovered and disqualified. At the end this ‘unprepared’ deep diver will be seriously hurt or dead. Deep diving is not for everyone but recreational diving can be. You might ask if I miss deep dives! The answer is YES, or at least I miss the company of the group down there. All I can do right now is look down from my recreational diving depth at the other divers down there and pray God so that he gives me the strength and the right state of mind to dive deep again in the future. I would strongly like to recommend all my deep diving friends to ‘Plan the dive and dive the plan’. I wish you all a Merry Christmas full of diving presents and a Happy Deep Diving New Year 2014.
Contributing to the International CIESM “Jellyfish” Blooms Research While jellyfish and jelly-like invertebrate species are a natural feature of the Mediterranean Sea, “jelly blooms” were rare episodes until the last 15 years, when massive swarms of gelatinous organisms became a frequent sight in coastal waters. Such events represent a nuisance for swimmers, and in the case of certain species may become a real health hazard. They are considered a pest by fishermen, as they clog nets, keep away fish and consume fish larvae. In recent years, a number of industrial marine cooling systems had to be put temporarily out of order as jellies clogged the underwater pipes. The resulting socio-economic impacts – both direct (tourism) and indirect (coastal development, fisheries) – are thus tangible. From an ecosystem perspective, the apparent increase and synchrony of jellyfish outbreaks in both western and eastern Mediterranean basins are sending warning signals of a potential phase shift from a fish to a “gelatinous sea”. Although overfishing, coastal habitat degradation and climate warming are amongst the most probable drivers, the specific causes and mechanisms are not well identified, and the lack of reference data makes any further investigation difficult. The CIESM Jelly Watch Programme, a concept developed and coordinated by CIESM, is led by Frederic Briand and Annelyse Gastaldi to gather baseline data on the frequency and extent of jellyfish outbreaks across the Mediterranean Sea coasts and in the open sea.
After a successful pilot test phase that focused on general records of jellyfish involving the public in various ways, a common, standardized protocol including systematic recording of presence/absence data has been adopted for both coastal and open sea sightings of jellyfish swarms in the whole Basin. This enables the unbiased assessment of the geographic and temporal scale of these mass events so as to allow in time trend analysis and short term forecasting of jellyfish bloom transport. The CIESM JellyWatch Phase II is being implemented in coastal sectors in various Mediterranean waters including ours. Dr. Adriana Vella, PhD, conservation biologist at the University of Malta, is the focal point for the Maltese Islands for this international jellyfish research programme. She has been involved in assisting jellyfish research in the Mediterranean for a number of years now. Scientific works on the jellyfish Pelagia noctiluca across European seas by Katja Stopara et. al. 2010 was also possible through Dr. Vella’s ongoing collaboration. Dr. Vella has also been involved in local awareness of jellyfish blooms and their impacts on marine biodiversity through features in the press, interviews on TV and in organising public seminars on biodiversity, including jellyfish, through The Biological Conservation Research Foundation’s voluntary work. In November 2013, CIESM Congress in Marseille organised a meeting of all National contact persons to discuss the outputs and further research work ahead.
Pelagia noctiluca
Geryonia proboscidalis
Cotylorhiza tuberculata
Photo: Adriana Vella.
Photo: Edward Vella.
Photo: Adrian Buttigieg, BICREF
collaborated with this conservation research group and SCUBA centres are one such important category of contributors. Various new species have been recorded for the first time in Malta by CBRG which include anything from whales up to jellyfish species. An example of the latter is the hydroid species, Geryonia proboscidalis, found in Maltese waters which was also confirmed by Mr. Edward Vella, a SCUBA diver assisting in CIESM’s reporting.
contribute information to our focal point, Dr. Vella, who in turn is contributing to the Mediterranean-wide research coordinated by the Mediterranean Science Commission (CIESM). CIESM was created early in the last century to promote international research in the Mediterranean Sea and the Black Sea. CIESM acts as a focus for the exchange of ideas, the communication of scientific information and the development of scientific standards across the Basin. Gained knowledge may allow Mediterranean countries deal with current conditions and problems. Our marine biodiversity needs to be conserved through detailed observations and studies that allow us to consider the various changes affecting such biodiversity.
Adriana represented Malta and could contribute in this Mediterranean-wide effort together with scientists from all around the Mediterranean. For further info:http://www.ciesm.org/marine/ programs/jellywatch.htm. Apart from contributing to this important initiative, Dr. Adriana Vella and members of her research group were involved in seven other scientific presentations of marine research projects undertaken in Malta. The Conservation Biology Research Group is therefore very active on marine biodiversity research and was the entity that launched the first Biodiversity Research Platform in Malta in 2004 through a European-wide effort to promote biodiversity research. Various local entities have increasingly
Local sea-users, fishermen, divers, swimmers, tourists, local councils through assistance of the association for local councils and NGOs, such as, The Biological Conservation Research Foundation, and the AFM, have also been encouraged to
Anyone wishing to receive a JellyWatch Poster and wishing to take active part in this program by making available sighting records of jellyfish blooms when out at sea or around Maltese coasts may do so by emailing: JellyWatchMalta@gmail.com or contacting: Dr. Adriana Vella, Conservation Biology Research Group, Department of Biology, University of Malta, Msida, MSD 2080. Mob. 9942 9592
Intriguing sharks and rays of our waters – challenging research for their conservation Reports that this part of the Mediterranean should be a hotspot for shark species may have increased fears of shark attacks, but as with all stories, there is nothing worse than living in fiction and not facing the facts and scientific research results that tell a different story.
What are sharks and how did they evolve? Sharks, rays and skates are all organisms that fall within the group known as elasmobranchs (Chondrichthyes), that are fish that have a cartilaginous skeleton rather than of bone. There are over 1200 species of elasmobranchs, including around 456 species of sharks, while the rest are rays and skates. Most of these species are small ones such as the Small-spotted Cat-shark (Scyliorhinus canicula) and Blackmouth Cat-shark (Galeus melanostomus), that grow to less than one meter. Others inhabit areas that are rarely or never accessed by people, such as the Gulper Shark (Centrophorus granulosus) that lives off shore in very deep waters.
In several cases elasmobranchs play the role of top predators in several marine ecosystems. Their diet varies a lot depending on the habitat they live in, but most of them feed on small prey, such as molluscs and small fish as is in the case of the Thornback Rays (Raja clavata) and Smoothhounds (Mustelus mustelus). Others such as the Shortfin Mako (Isurus oxyrinchus) live on larger fish, but none of the elasmobranchs live on humans, or have humans as part of their diet. Sharks are one of evolution’s most enduring success stories. Although they have few hard parts that can survive through geologic time, sharks have left a long and rich fossil record. Some 2,000 to 3,000 species of fossil shark have been described. The ancestry of sharks dates back more than 200 million years before the earliest known dinosaur. Very few elasmobranchs do offer a threat to humans, but most of them are being threatened by humans. In the last few decades human activities have imposed increasing pressures on a number of natural systems causing a decline in several species, with elasmobranchs being no exception. The main cause for this decline has been overfishing, that is catching much more than what can be replenished naturally.
Photo: J. Vella, The Biological Conservation Research Foundation.
Smooth-hound (Mustelus mustelus) (top) and Starry smoothhound (Mustelus asterias) (bottom). The Smooth-Hound is found in shallow waters (up 50 meters) and the Starry SH on or near the bottom at depths from the intertidal down to at least 100m. The latter prefers sandy and gravel bottoms. Both species feed on crustaceans and are commonly caught using bottom trawl.
Elasmobranchs sometimes are caught both as a target species, such as the Longnose Spurdog (Squalus blainville) on long lines, or else as by-catch such as Shortfin Mako, Blue Shark (Prionace glauca) and Thresher Shark (Alopias vulpinus) that are by-catch of tuna and swordfish long lines. Other practices, such as trawling, that are not selective on the fish species caught in the net are also a threat. Locally, all the landed elasmobranchs are sold at the fish markets for their meat to be consumed; thus the organisms are not wasted. But other fisheries, such as those catering for certain Oriental markets, just take the fins, in a process known as finning, and in most cases the finless sharks are thrown back in the sea still alive.
Apart from threats of extensive catches there is also environmental disturbances and habitat alteration such as changes in the nursery sites and foraging sites. For example in the first local scientific study focusing on Sharks and Rays (CBRG-UoM, 2004), numerous interesting data and information were obtained. Amongst these, it was found that most of the elasmobranchs that live close to the coast are sand dwellers, that is, they live and forage on sandy bottoms, such as Common Stingray (Dasyatis pastinaca). Thus environmental modifications due to certain practices such as construction would cause a reduction in the habitat availability for these species. Apart from finding more vital data on species caught and new species of sharks landed locally, the Conservation Biology Research Group of the University of Malta (CBRGUoM) also study the conservation genetics of shark and ray species to add increasing detail to our local and regional information on these interesting but poorly known species. Both The Biological Conservation Research Foundation and the CBRG-UoM believe that knowledge must be the base for effective conservation management. Are they a danger or endangered? The IUCN (World Conservation Union), through the SSC (Species Survival Commission), publishes the Red Lists which is a set of criteria used to determine the relative risk of extinction of a particular species. The purpose of this publication is to catalogue and highlight those groups and species that are facing a higher risk of global extinction. Organisms are rated as Critically Endangered, Endangered or Vulnerable status. The most shocking thing apart from the high number of elasmobranchs that fall within these lists is the declining trend in the status for certain species. The plight of the Angel Shark (Squatina squatina) and Common Skate (Dipturus batis), once familiar sights in European fish-markets, illustrates dramatically the rapid deterioration of many sharks and rays. The Common Skate, has lost rank from Endangered to Critically Endangered and is now very scarce in the Irish and Southern North Seas, while the Angel Shark went down from Vulnerable to Critically Endangered in just few years and has been declared extinct in the North Sea. The same applies to the
Giant Devil ray (Mobula mobular) classified as Endangered. As fisheries extend into ever deeper waters, the deep bottom-dwelling gulper shark (Centrophorus granulosus) is listed as Vulnerable with local population declines of up to 95%. This fishing pressure, for its meat and rich liver oil, is well beyond their reproductive capacity and sustainable fishing. This drastic reduction in certain elasmobranch species has been due to lack of sustainable fishing. If the resources available are used in a sustainable way, the sea would yield good catches both today and in the future thus ensuring a sustainable supply of the fish even for future generations. The desperate situation of many sharks and rays is just the tip of the iceberg and it is critical that urgent action to fully protect endangered species and greatly improve management practices and consequently implement conservation measures, such as agreed non-fishing areas, enforced mesh-size regulations and international catch limits, is taken before it is too late. The Maltese laws protect few species of sharks & Rays: The Great White Shark (Carcharodon carcharias); Basking Shark (Cetorhinus maximus) and Devil Ray (Mobula mobular) are among local legally protected species. There are also another fourteen species that fall within its schedule VI. These are species of national importance and of importance to agreement states whose taking from the wild and exploitation may be subject to management measures. This category includes species such as the Thresher Shark (Alopias vulpinus); the Sand Tiger Shark (Carcharias taurus); the Bluntnose Sixgill Shark (Hexanchus griseus); the Shortfin Mako (Isurus oxyrinchus); the Porbeagle Shark (Lamna nasus); the Blue Shark (Prionace glauca); the Angel Shark (Squatina squatina), and the Maltese Brown Ray (Raja melitensis). But the problem is not that easy as the open sea and migratory species gives rise to the requirement for collective collaboration between countries in order to come up with effective management plans.
Acknowledgements: Thanks go to Maltese researchers: Dr. Adriana Vella, Noel Vella and Jesmond Dalli for providing assistance in various parts of this research on elasmobranchs. This feature also acknowledges the work of various conservation originations worldwide, such as IUCN, FAO, and Deep Seas Conservation Coalition.
The Biological Co n s e r v a t i o n Research Fo u n d a t i o n The Biological Conservation Research Foundation is also a member of the
Deep Sea Conservation Coalition, an international alliance of over 50 organizations, representing millions of people in the countries around the world, which is calling for a moratorium on high seas bottom trawling. For further information about this coalition visit:
www.savethehighseas.org Should you be interested in further information or would like to join The Biological Conservation Research Foundation, email: bicref@gmail.com or write to:
The Biological Conservation Research Foundation PO Box 30, Hamrun, MALTA.
Species Page Research by: Edward Vella
Pen Shell
Nakkra tal-Harira
(Pinna Nobilis)
An article on this species must start by stating that this mollusc with its triangular shaped shell, is the largest bivalve (can grow up to 1.2 m) to be found in the Mediterranean - and it is found nowhere else. Pinna nobilis is endemic to this sea. Unfortunately, its large size makes it show up easily and so attractive to shell collectors, to the extent that it had legislation passed upon it, and it is now included in the list of protected species both locally and within the European Council Habitats Directive, which makes the capture or killing of pen shells or as also known - fan mussels - prohibited by law. I am sure that many of these shells did not make it out of the sea and into the collections, because their shells are very thin walled and fragile.
Furthermore, they are found half immersed in sand, and to extract them one has to get a good grip on the shell and then pull – this is when the shell breaks up! In the past this shell was also collected, but for a different reason – in order to make silk! Correct silk – more precisely sea silk. This sea shell anchors itself by means of long filaments, called a byssus. A fabric was woven out of the byssus of many shells – a very rare and precious material – and only large enough to produce small items of clothing such as handkerchiefs and gloves – and these went to the elite! The external surface of the shell is covered with small blunt spines which in practice aid marine growth, and perhaps improve its camouflage?
Pinna nobilis are mostly found in sedimentary sea beds, and therefore share their habitat with other sea grasses, mostly Posidonia oceanica – Maltese: alka. While preparing this article, I came across an article about the conservation measures taken at the Isola del Giglio, which as you surely know, was the island against which the Costa Concordia ran aground. Before the salvage operation started, the Pinna nobilis specimens found in the area were catalogued, then expertly removed to a safe sandy area. They will now be placed back in their original location once the wreck is removed. The picture of the temporary home of these pen shells strongly reminded me of the head stones in a military cemetery! http://www.theparbucklingproject. com/page.php?page=elementi_chiave_ tutela_ambientale#
Refugee pen shells at l’Isola del Giglio.
Pinna rudis
Photo by Edward Vella
There is also a close relative of this mollusc which I have often seen – this is the Pinna rudis, commonly known as Rough Pen Shell, which is smaller – grows up to 40 cm, and as its name implies, the shell’s external surface looks warped. Again, the shell is roughly triangular in shape but thicker walled. Pinna rudis is not exclusive to the Mediterranean.
Jan-Feb - Nudibranchs Pinna Nobilis
Photo by Edward Vella
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“Dived verseas Where"!!! Article compiled by Dorian Law
Saudi Arabia. Red Sea shoreline. Arabian Peninsula.
Destination: The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is the largest country of the Arabian Peninsula. It has the longest coastline on the Red Sea. From the Jordanian border on the northern Gulf of Aqaba to the Yemeni border in the far south, Saudi Arabia covers 80 percent of the peninsula’s eastern shoreline on the Red Sea. There are probably as many reefs in Saudi waters as the rest of the Red Sea providing a wealth of diving possibilities so intriguing, that unlike the other shores, they are almost entirely unexplored. Saudi Arabia is often described like the Egyptian side of the Red Sea of 30 years ago, and with few live aboard boats along the 1600km of coast on the Red Sea, there are very few chances you will dive with divers from other boats. Getting there: The flight plan varies depending on the dates of travel. The shortest travelling time is a same-day 12hour 2stop journey via
no such thing as a tourist visa. The visa application has to be made at the Saudi Embassy in Rome, Italy which serves also as the Embassy for Malta. The diving tour operator will supply the required paperwork. Malta’s Embassy in Saudi Arabia is in Riyadh – Olaya District, from where further information on travel restrictions and Saudi laws should be obtained prior to travel. Facilities: There are many hotels and the number of dive shops has increased but is not overwhelming. Bed only prices start at €60 daily and a 10day stay 18dive package including Nitrox costs around €1000. Full equipment rental is €15 and Nitrox fills cost €2. Diving facilities cater for snorkelers and beginners. Few shops cater for technical divers. Around €30 is expected to be spent daily for food. Local currency is the SAR equivalent to €0.25 and the major credit cards are accepted everywhere. The best rated diving operators include Blue Reef Divers, Desert Sea Divers, Saudi Divers, Red Sea Divers and Yanabu Divers. The best liveaboard boats are the Dream Voyager, Dream Islands and Dream Master operated by Dream Divers. A 6day all inclusive 18+dive package costs €900.
Rome and Cairo and a round trip ticket costs €750. The most economic way to travel to Jeddah is via Cairo with Egyptair, the only airline covering the direct route Malta-Cairo, three days per week. Although the Cairo to Jeddah route is more frequent, the travel date selection has to be planned so these two flights combine and thus minimize a long layover or a possible overnight stay in Cairo. The cost for this round trip, excluding any overnight stay is €300. You have to obtain a visitor’s visa (approx. €95), such as an approved organised diving tour, as there is
Package cost: A 10 day package with flight, accommodation, 18 shore dives and excursions costs around €2000 depending on the choice of accommodation. The same package with a 6day live aboard instead of the shore dives costs €1600. Due to the political instability causing disruption of tourism in Egypt, dive operators in Saudi Arabia are requesting that contact be made by mail to provide the best prices and deals.
Dives: The following are the most dived sites but most of the area still has to be discovered. The Boiler wreck lies in 18meters depth. Divers drop down to 45meters on a plateau visited by sharks, manta and other big pelagic fish before reaching the coal-fired ship in the middle of the dive. The latter part of the dive is as dramatic, as this continues through a series of coral encrusted caves. Ala’s Reef is 14meters below the surface and in open water this 200meter long sea mound is the best place to see large fish. The best soft coral wall of the waters off Saudi Arabia is the 150 m section of the Redmah Wall. It also offers the most diverse underwater marine life in the Red Sea. The broken wreck of the Ann Ann at 30meters is constantly battered and moving by wave action. The Staphonos Wreck, better known as the cable wreck due to its cargo, is 100meters long and is the most intact wreck in the area known as KLM Reef. Dives in this area vary from 15 to 60meters in depth. The Farasan Banks, the Miss Mara wreck off the Port of Jeddah and the numerous shore dives along the coastline are not to be missed. Snorkelling with whales or false orcas is possible during encounters in the migratory season. Difficulty level: Low – High. Depth: 6 to 50+ meters. Visibility: 10 to 40 meters. Wrecks: Average. Caves: Caverns and swim-through caves. Walls: Many. Marine life diversity: High for fish and corals.
Snorkelling: Average number of possibilities increasing inshore or on whale encounters. Big fish: High. Water temperature: 24 – 28 °C. Best time of the year: All year round. January – March for whale sharks.
Farasan Banks
Book of the Month Name of Book: Archeology Underwater. An atlas of the World’s submerged sites. Author: Keith Muckelroy (General editor). Publisher: McGraw Hill Book Company (UK) Limited. Berkshire. England. ISBN Number: 0 – 07 – 043951 – 6. Book in short: Following a very interesting prologue about the evolution of underwater discovery, the book is divided in 6 chapters. With the use of diagrams and photographs these chapter build up useful data and provide information to the underwater researcher. The subjects contained in the chapters include, but are not limited to the following: 1. Techniques and approaches: Finding a site, surveying, e x c a v a t i o n , a r c h e o l o g y, formation and interpretation of a wreck site and ship’s remains. 2. Mediterranean wreck sites and classical seafaring: Pioneering excavation off Turkey, Byzantine merchantman, a roman and a medieval wreck, the wine trade, shipload of marble and a graveyard off Sicily. 3. European shipwrecks over 3000 years: Early cross-channel shipping, Viking ships at Skuldelven, medieval ships in Kalmar, the Spanish armada, a Venetian merchantman off the Irish coast and a standard 17th century warship. 4. Shipwrecks in the wake of Columbus: Spanish ships and wrecks after 1600, the 1715 treasure fleet, a Bahamian treasure wreck, the San Esteban discoveries and the archeology of East Indiamen. 5. Structures underwater: Changing levels of land and sea, drowned sites in North America, the sunken city of Port Royal, man-made islands in Scottish Lochs, cities under the Mediterranean, gigantic harbors in the Levant and Apollonia the model harbor.
Article by Dorian Law
6. Preservation: Past, present and future: The survival of archaeological evidence, conserving findings, storing and displaying artifacts, presentation information and protecting sites. Each page of the book has a photograph, a diagram or a map to provide the reader with a visual reference to further enhance the written information or description of the site or the event being described in writing. The following quote from front flap of the book’s cover, gives pride to the invention of scuba diving equipment, that has made underwater archaeology possible and books on this subject to be written, and makes this, the book of the month: “A g e n e rat i o n a g o t h e production of this atlas would have been unthinkable, for the 1940s there was no way ordinary people could freely explore the under water world for evidence of our past. But the wartime invention of the AquaLung, a device used today by millions of skindiving enthusiasts, changed all that. Here at last was the key to unlock the vast treasure-store of information lying, sometimes almost intact, on the sea bed. And within a decade or so it had brought about an amazing leap forward in underwater archaeology, the subject of this fascinating book ”. Availability: (Removed) Item R 930.102804. Malta Public Library. Floriana. PS: This book belonged in the reference section of the Malta Public Library. I bought this book when it was removed from this section and was available for sale at a reduced price during the exercise being undertaken by the library staff to remove old or rarely used books. The money collected goes towards buying new books.
Raja Ampat - Indonesia Article & Photos by Paolo Marino
Raja Ampat is the name of the archipelago that lies off the northwest tip of the Indonesian province of Papua. This is the easternmost province of Indonesia. Raja Ampat is the latest diving frontier to be developed and although a sizeable number of liveaboards cruise the area, it is still a vastly unexplored underwater wonder. That I’m aware off, there are only three resorts in the area; all located on the small island of Kri, so the best way to dive these islands is naturally by a liveaboard cruise. All boats leave from the port of Sorong, on the northwest coast of mainland Papua and reachable by air. You normally fly into Indonesia by Jakarta and then you need a two-leg flight to reach Sorong. I was onboard the S/Y Indo Siren of the Siren fleet: a 40 m Indonesian phinisi.
(http://www.sirenfleet.com/liveaboards/indonesia.html). This boat is very spacious particularly on the dive deck, where every diver has his/ her own station with a couple of drawers to store all accessories. Every guest has also a living area and a small drawer inside the main cabin to keep electronics, camera and any non-waterproof item. Electric charging stations and a wide camera table is also provided inside; so if you are a video/photographer you can really spread out without too many problems.
Max number of divers is 16. All diving is done from two RIBs. The first day is spent on the south shore of Batanta island. These dive are for macro enthusiast with scores of gobies, blennies, dragonets, sea anemones, nudibranchs, cuttlefish and crustaceans to be discovered on a sandy bottom with small patches or rocks and seaweed.
During the night the boat sails south towards Misool island. In the scattering of small islands (Boo, Wayil Batan, Kalig‌) southeast of Misool we are going to spend the next three days. This is the most colourful area of the archipelago. The main feature are the huge gorgonian fans that appear everywhere along the walls and at the reef edges. The variety and size of these fans is really incredible. Quite a few are 3 metres across! Current is often present during these dives; this is why of course the gorgonias grows to such huge sizes. The nutrients in the water sometimes cause the visibility to drop, but we never had anything less than 10 m with averages of 15.
The reef themselves are very lively; the hard coral is in perfect conditions (so far‌.) and full of life. Macro subjects are everywhere including several pigmy seahorses. Wobblegong (carpet) sharks are often found sleeping in cracks or under the coral. Lionsfish, lobster, cuttlefish and various reef fish are easy to see. With luck you can come across a seasnake or a green turtle. This is not the place for big fish; I personally saw only three reef sharks during the whole cruise, but sometimes you can come across to shoals of middle sized barracudas and jacks. A couple of times dogtooth tunas passed by in the blue. We then headed north towards Waigeo island diving Keruo and Yanggefo islands. And now we come to the second highlight of the trip: the manta cleaning stations at Manta sandy by Arborek island. Between 10 and 15 m on a sandy bottom, there are several boulders that are home to groups of cleaning wrasses.
During the two dive we performed we saw a dozen manta each time. Normally these beautiful animals circle in groups of 2/3 on each boulder and staying there for several minutes they give opportunity for great shots. A line of stones has been set up by the authorities to avoid bothering the mantas; divers are asked by the guides to lay low on the sand beyond such line. When the mantas come and go from the station they tend to pass on top of the line of the waiting divers and if you stay still you can have a really close encounter. One thing to mention is that here you can see quite a few totally black manta rays. This is a rare subspecies that is only seen regularly in the area. The last two days of the trip where spent diving the islands of Kri, Yambeser and Mioskon. These are all shallow reef full of colours and life. Hard and soft corals, clouds of reef fish and macro subjects abound. We were also able to spot few white and black tip reef sharks, small groups of barracudas and jacks and one eagle ray.
The undisputed star of these dives was the wobblegong shark. In almost every reef we found at least one, laying in funny positions under or across hard corals or lazily swimming around: impossible not have some good shots even for the less “energetic” photographers….. Finally after ten days of fun and relax we headed back to Sorong. As farewell gift the boat unfurled her majestic sails for the first time and we were all treated to a sightseeing tour of her under sails from the RIBs. Then unfortunately was time to wash, dry the equipment and start packing…and dream of next adventure.
Lantern Point
Photo by: Joe Formosa
Lantern Point must be the closest to home (Marfa Jetty) dive site that there is. Perhaps it is because of this reason, that it is not often that we dive this site? I checked in my dive logs and found that I had not dived there since May 2011 – which is a real pity, because this site must be on the favourite list of many divers – including myself! The trip to the dive site takes about 15 minutes – how is that for another plus for this site eh? – so that meant that the divers had to kit up as soon as they boarded the Atlantis II. Once on the site, the anchor was dropped about 100m away from the Point, which is not too far away from the first highlight of this dive – the cave with the vertical shaft and tunnel. It had rained on the previous day, so we half expected the visibility to be murky, but it was clear up on the reef – due no doubt
- Comino 03.11.13
Photo by: Joe Formosa
to a noticeable current going East, which made us work to get to the cave. As it was, when we got to the cave mouth – which is a hole in the reef floor – and looked inside, I could only see a mass of multi-coloured fins flapping about – half the dive boat must have been inside at the same time! One look at my buddies, and we agreed to give it a miss, and catch it on the way back…. So over the reef we went, over to where the cave exits at a depth of about 18 – 19 metres. Here one finds a conglomeration of large boulders sitting on a shoulder on the reef and forming small canyon pathways between them. We headed to where we knew that there is a swim through under one of the boulders, which then leads to a drop off in the reef. Here unfortunately a distraction photographing a large moray
Article by Edward Vella
Photo by: Edward Vella
eel caused the original group to split, since a couple kept on going through the swim through oblivious of the fact that the rest of us then took a different route. This really highlighted the need for a better plan next time of what we should have done as soon as we realised what had happened. We proceeded along the South facing reef and then followed it around as it slowly turns West. The topography remains very much the same – very large boulders on a gentle slope with tufts and moderately large areas covered with posedonia in between. This gentle slope however becomes quite steep the more to the West one goes, until at last it meets the sand at a depth of about 38 metres. This time however, we remained on the upper slope. Indeed this was a shallow dive – our max depth was 25m.
Photo by: Joe Formosa
On our way back we entered the cave. This cave has a slightly curved narrow corridor. On entering the only light is that entering from behind, but after about 10m, and rounded the curve sunlight can be seen from the other side. The corridor leads into a vertical chimney, about 10 metres high, and with a diameter of close to 2metres. The chimney presents a very nice play of light, which gives the impression of a peaceful garden… And so out of the chimney and back onto the reef top. This time, the current swept us effortlessly back to the anchor, and a few minutes later we landed back at Marfa. Forgot to mention another advantage – less complaints about arriving late for the Sunday lunch! Base photo by: Joe Formosa
Fessej Rock I am not a great fan of Fessej rock as a dive site but, I must admit, that I enjoyed myself on this dive. The original plan was to dive at Reqqa point and I had already decided to dive the deeper cave – popularly known as the Cumnija but the weather had other plans and our choice became somewhat restricted. A freshening north-westerly wind meant that the northern Gozo dive sites were no longer feasible and we ended up at Fessej rock – just outside Mgarr ixXini. We were not the only ones to change our plans. It seemed like all other Sunday morning divers had also decided to dive at Fessej and we ended up having three boatloads of divers on the one site! The dive plan at Fessej is always quite simple and this time was no exception. We dived down to our maximum depth at the beginning of the dive and then started the slow spiral ascent turning clockwise around the rock. At 46 metres we managed to catch a quick look at a large (about 90cm in length) Cawlun which promptly sought refuge amongst the boulders at the base of Fessej. There was also a smaller grouper which followed it. Other divers claim that they saw some barracuda at this point but I have to admit that I never saw them. This is hardly surprising since I had just remembered that my underwater camera is only rated to 40 metres and I was at 47 at that stage! Therefore I was rather busy ascending to a more acceptable depth. I came across four octopuses during this dive and it seems that, with all of the divers in the water, they were rather reluctant to leave their cubby hole. They all refrained from displaying any warning behaviour
- Gozo 10.11.13
Article & photos by Tano Rolé
and retreated further inside when I stopped to take their picture. Octopuses must be one of the best decorators of the marine environment; they adorn their lairs with shells, pebbles, and any human-made artefacts that they find. I remember seeing several octopuses living just off the firing ranges at Pembroke which had collected a whole pile of spent bullets around their nest! An interesting observation during this dive was the extensive growth of the alga Caulerpa racemosa. This is a bright green alga that looks like a series of mini bunches of grapes inverted upwards. In fact, these “grapes”are upright branches growing from a horizontal stolon. The upright branches have several side-branches which end in spherical structures giving the impression of elongated grapes. This alga has only appeared in Maltese waters during the last decade and is considered to be an invasive species. Most Mediterranean herbivores do not graze on it readily so the plant often smothers native algae or sea grasses.
One of the highlights of the dive was my getting quite a few photos of a nice Dorid nudibranch which Joe Formosa had spotted. Joe seems to have an uncanny knack for finding nudibranchs. Unfortunately the same could not be said for seahorses. We had spent the previous Saturday afternoon combing the area around the Maori wreck for the critters but we failed to see any. To add insult to injury, a couple of other divers, who were diving next to us, claimed to have seen two of them! We promise to try harder next time – or at least not speak to any other divers. This is truly a case of ignorance is bliss – if you want to avoid heartache! Joe and I ended up running into 14 minutes of decompression on this dive so we had to kill time by going around the rock for yet another time at a shallower depth. It was at this stage that we came across a colourful chasm in the rock on the northern side of Fessej.
Caulerpa racemosa
Lithophillium lichenoides
This was chock block full of the purple calcareous alga (Lithophyllum lichenoides). Most of these algae were on the western side of the chasm while bryozoan colonies (mostly Myriapora truncata) abounded on the opposite wall (see photo). I spent some minutes observing this striking pattern of distribution and concluded that this reflected the penetration of sunlight inside the chasm. The result was quite captivating and it helped while away the tedious decompression time. I guess that the moral of the story is that one should find something interesting to do during decompression or carry a deco tank to shorten it. Somehow the former alternative seems more attractive to me.
Reqqa Point
- Gozo 18.11.13 Pictorial
Inside the deep Bottleneck Cave – walls swarming with Narval Shrimps! (Plesionika narval) Photo s : Joe Formosa
Watching the surge
Colourful Cardinal Fish (Apogon imberbis) Photo : Edward Vella
Photo : Edward Vella
A couple of Violet Starfish (Ophidiaster ophidianus) on the reef.
Tube dwelling anemone (Cerianthus membranaceus) inside Ghar il-Kbir.
Photo : Edward Vella
Photo : Edward Vella