Dive Pacific Issue 169, April/May/June 2019

ISSUE 169 - $9.90 inc GST April / May / June 2019

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Magic at Munda Why do the Silky Sharks of Savusavu keep returning?

www.Dive-Pacific.com

‘We are the only species that can solve problems. Nature doesn’t care’ Jean-Michel Cousteau - INTERVIEW

Why RAINBOW REEF is rated a top world dive destination Finding the good spots for spearfishing Dive News from all over www.dive-pacific.com 1

2 Dive New Zealand | Dive Pacific

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What you see is what you get in Niue. And what you see diving is everything.

With crystal clear waters, surrounding the world’s largest uplifted coral atoll, you can see up to 80m in any direction. A world teeming with healthy marine life.

A world waiting for you to discover.

Start discovering Niue today, www.niueisland.com www.dive-pacific.com 1

contents IN DEPTH

5 EDITORIAL: Shark exploration. Last hapuku? Dumping of toxic filth continues... with Editor at Large Dave Moran

24 29

SOUNDINGS

Local and international news & comment

4 Will you use the new u/w hand signal?

Bob Rosemergy, dive hero - obit.

7 Women’s annual PADI Day scheduled Rolex u/w scholarship awarded Travelling watch to honour Women’s Diving Hall of Fame Women sought for World Spearfish champs

8 Ancient submarine turns up at Middlemarch 9 Matt Watson’s spear tag attracts global interest 10 Freediver Shuebridge swims Cook Strait underwater Diver emulates Jonah

11 Beaked whales get the bends, and suicide 18 Taputeranga NZ's top biodiversity site?

19 F ree diver breaks under ice record Reef check Malaysia reports

23 S hark attacks plummet

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DAN $10,000 scholarship

46 Grave concerns held for Solomon’s Rennell Island 47 All charges dropped against Sea Shepherd’s Paul Watson 48 Wakatobi adds to boat fleet SPECIAL FEATURES

12 A dive on the HMNZS Puriri 20 Project Baseline founder drops in Why is Lake Pupuke dying?

29 NATURE DOESN’T CARE - JEAN-MICHEL COUSTEAU - Interview 36 David Doubilet, Jennifer Hayes headline Underwater Tour

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BUCKET LIST DESTINATIONS

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Tahiti, richest aquarium on earth T he best of Fiji… may be farther out? with Gilbert Peterson on an all too brief trip to Taveuni Island, Fiji S ilky (shark) days! with Tobias Bernhard off Savusavu, Fiji unda, Jewel in Solomon’s crown M with Dave Abbott (The Solomon Islands story Pt III) EXCLUSIVE! FIJI GETAWAY PACKAGE OFFER!

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ISSUE 169 - $9.90 inc GST April / May / June 2019

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Cover Photo Image taken with Panasonic GH4 in Nauticam housing, lit with Inon Z240 strobe & Lume Cube Photo: At Munda, Solomons by Dave Abbott - see p38

Magic at Munda Why do the Silky Sharks of Savusavu keep returning?

‘We are the only species that can solve problems. Nature doesn’t care’ www.Dive-Pacific.com

Do you have a possible cover image?

E: divenz@divenewzealand.co.nz NZ$100 will be paid if used Must be relevant to the marine world

Jean-Michel Cousteau - INTERVIEW

Why RAINBOW REEF is rated a top world dive destination Finding the good spots for spearfishing Dive News from all over www.dive-pacific.com 1

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/w lights - three torches U Hand held shark deterrent a first Pulse SX metal detector top rated for 32 years Mini cam upgraded

OUR EXPERT COLUMNISTS

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inding ‘Good spots’ for spear fishing F SPEARO’S NOTEBOOK! with Jackson Shields J ohn Dory SPECIES FOCUS with Paul Caiger ecompression illness? Or Stroke?

D INCIDENT INSIGHTS with DAN, the Divers Alert Network

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HADES OF COLOUR: More stunning images from our regular S photo competition bout pixels, file size and resolution A Digital Imaging with Hans Weichselbaum ACK TO BASICS Underwater Photography, A Practical Guide B for Beginners Ch 3 Pt II

by Alexey Zaystev. Translated from Russian exclusively for DIVE PACIFIC

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“Boxnet not a satisfactory fishing method“

(From DIVE Underwater Magazine June 1973)

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Check out our website www.divenewzealand.co.nz Dive Pacific magazine is available in the lounges & inflight libraries of these airlines.

www.dive-pacific.com 3

INDEPTH EDITORIAL

New hand signal for divers: P for Plastic Divers use underwater hand signals for squid, turtles and sharks but not yet for the largest polluter in our ocean, plastic, and if nothing changes, by 2050 there will be more plastic than fish in the ocean.

So a group of diving companies and divers, together with the Plastic Soup Foundation, are introducing a new hand signal: P for Plastic. The signal can be used under water to let dive buddies know they see plastic and want to pick it up.

The goal of the hand signal is to spread awareness and take action against the plastic plague our ocean is facing.

Download the image with the hand signal & share it with your diving buddies on social media. Use the hashtag #PforPlastic.

The hand signal was initiated by a group of Dutch diving companies and the Plastic Soup Foundation. www.plasticsoupfoundation.org/divers

Bob Rosemergy, dive hero

concern for the health of the lake and the creation of, along with Pat Swanson and Aaron Dowman, the Great Lake Taupo Catfish Cull, one of the biggest spearfishing events in the world.

(Comments abridged) Jon Rosemergy - It’s clearly obvious my father shared his life with many people. He was gifted in his chosen sports and enjoyed helping many others find their own passion.

Soon after his 80th birthday we went out to his favourite place, Makara, where he said “I’ll show you a cray hole I have here,’ though I had dived it with him many times in the last 35+ years.

He swam into a tight cave and 20 seconds later wriggled back out with two good 2kg+ crays!

Bob also used to spear a lot of butterfish! A LOT! The start of summer in our house was marked by butterfish for dinner! And obviously crayfish too.

Bob led much more by example than words. To stand up for what’s right, even if unpopular, was paramount, and to never drop your own personal standards.

Pat Swanson - Bob Rosemergy to me was a hero first. Spearing huge fish - five hapuku in a morning at White Island! Along with the likes of Eddie Davidson, Dave Shields and co he was a mythical god-like merman.

I met Bob finally in 1987 and he 4 Dive New Zealand | Dive Pacific

We salute Bob’s many achievements and triumphs with fondness and affection.

Bob Rosemergy provided needed wisdom when I first competed in the National Spearfishing Champs in 1989. He became a hero to me again in his leadership of Spearfishing New Zealand. No single person has done so much for spearfishing in this country. His legacy will live on.

Dave Mundell - I first met Bob around 1966 when he was already a well-respected and very skilled diver, always willing to pass on his knowledge. He won the North Island Spearfishing Champs a number of times and the National Spearfishing Champs in 1967. He represented New Zealand at the World Champs in Peru in 1975, and competed successfully at national level well into later life. His love of trout fishing at Turangi led to his

Malcolm Bird - The second National Underwater Hockey Championships in Palmerston North in 1979 was where I first met Bob and his Taita College Team. They got smashed but afterwards Bob said: "Malcolm, I want you to come and play for my team." I said, "Bob, I'm in the New Zealand team and you want me to play with schoolboys?" Bob laughed and said "Well Malcolm, they will get bigger." And with that I agreed.

Fast forward four years. The New Zealand Underwater Hockey Team was in Canberra competing against Australia in a five test series. No team had ever beaten Australia. Bob was team manager with Jeff Jewel our coach. Six of our members were from the Taita club and yes, they had gotten bigger. They were also faster and had developed a great set of skills. We won that first test and after three days we had beaten Australia 5 nil. Bob always believed in us.

INDEPTH EDITORIAL

Shark exploration.

Last photograph of hapuku?

Dumping of toxic filth continues!

I cannot commence writing this editorial without mentioning the incomprehensible massacre that occurred in Christchurch on Friday the 15th March in this beautiful country we call home.

On behalf of the DIVE Pacific magazine team and I’m sure all our readers and advertisers, we sincerely wish peace and a steady loving rebuilding of those families whose lives were ripped apart by this senseless act.

I recently passed through Auckland and Melbourne International airports and was taken aback by a product promotion by Southpole Oceanking, a Melbourne-based company established in 1998.

Products derived from sharks were in full view.

The company is big into selling so-called health and wellbeing products. The product range of what may assist you living a healthier life is impressive. To give you an idea of the broad range of concoctions available there is thistle milk, essence of kangaroo, Antarctic krill oil, plus of course New Zealand’s renowned Manuka honey, even as a toothpaste!

One of the products being highlighted at the airports was Deep Ocean Shark Squalene.

from the most pollution free deep ocean…"

You have to give their marketing guys top marks for the line: “All the sharks to produce this natural and pure squalene are obtained from the most pollution free deep ocean.”

I was sickened by this promotion.

As environmental groups and Governments grapple with the senseless yearly slaughter of millions of sharks for their fins, here in New Zealand, Australia and an ever-expanding Asian market, Southpole Oceanking is contributing to the relentless pressure for shark carcases to manufacture mythical wellbeing products!

Maybe I’m jumping to conclusions.

Let’s hope we hear from Southpole Oceanking re what type of shark and which “pollution-free deep ocean” they are caught in?

Recently I have been communicating with my old friend Wade Doak.

"…Deep Ocean Shark Squalene is derived from Deep Ocean Shark Liver Oil. It has been found to play a key role in maintaining health. All the sharks to produce this natural and pure squalene are obtained

I guess like most divers of our era, we started our diving by spearfishing.

Spearing a fish in the ‘60s was really not that hard due to the number of fish we encountered.

It is very sobering discussing with Wade now how the marine life and the marine ecosystem has been smashed by human greed and activities on land in our short lifetime.

Wade reminisced of the days when hapuku were in abundance in northern New Zealand waters. They are now virtually extinct. Ask any diver today who has been diving for 20 years, how many hapuku has he/ she seen?

Just a wee peek into Wade’s online book, Lament for the Hapuku gives you a glimpse of what it was like in the ‘60s and ‘70s: In late June 1970 a large grotto at the Pinnacles (part of the Poor Knights Marine Reserve) that Kelly Tarlton and I called The Slot, harboured a spawning group of up to 30 hapuku, ranging in size from 10 to 60kg. The biggest would have measured 1.8m.

Renowned conservationist Dr Roger Grace commented in 2018 on Facebook:

I believe the devastating consequences have already been realised. With hapuku down to probably less than 5% of its pre-fished biomass, and now extinct in less than 100 metres of water, populations of this magnificent animal are just a shadow of what they once were. All because of ignorance, greed and poor fisheries management.

Few would admit it.

www.dive-pacific.com 5

SOUNDINGS

LOCAL & INTERNATIONAL

Why haven't I got a nice hapuku photo to post? Because they are now virtually impossible to photograph!

Wade has the best hapuku photo in existence and it is probably about 50 years old.

dumping. It’s NOT rocket science to recognize the impacts that dumped dredging material has on the marine environment. The Hauraki Gulf’s reefs are covered in “dust”.

You only have to brush the reef top to create a cloud of “dust”.

Sadly, it’s the old mentality – out of sight, out of mind. The general public really have no idea what is going on and, if they did, they are most likely too busy with their own personal issues to voice their opinion.

Wade also discussed the impact of water-carried sediment smothering inshore reefs. The dredging of Auckland’s harbour entrance to allow larger cargo and cruise ships and housing developments beside

The survey of a reef using a remote controlled vehicle (ROV) off Great Barrier in May 2002 revealed stunning glass sponges, black coral and Lord Howe coralfish within a

Let’s hope the people on Great Barrier Island win this battle as we and the marine environment all benefit from a healthy biomass.

For further information visit: https://www.change.org/p/dr-alanfreeth-stop-the-dumping-of-toxicdredge-sludge-onto-new-zealandsgreat-barrier-island http://tinyurl.com/y3sp3nfg Voice your opinion on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ groups/682942015150399/ Wow what a summer we have had in New Zealand! Sunny, sunny and reasonable sea conditions. I trust you had time to escape making a dollar to enjoy our amazing sport.

- Dave Moran Editor at Large CORRECTION

pristine reef full spectacular life.

In the last Dive issue, Feb/Mar # 168 Editorial there was a comment re a Rahui in place in Matauri Bay Northland. This should have been Matai Bay.

What a tragedy it would be to smother this marine treasure in toxic silt from the Auckland’s marinas.

Canterbury to host NZU AGM

A healthy reef at the Poor Knights very similar to the reef off the North East cost of Great Barrier Island Photo: Ian Skipworth the coast and waterways has had an immense impact on the reefs within the Hauraki Gulf’s so called “Marine Park”.

Wade brought to my attention the proposed plan to suck up the toxic sludge below Auckland’s marinas and to dump this contaminated material at sea a few kilometres off the east coast of Great Barrier Island. Local residents are challenging this proposed NEW

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April/May/June 2019 Issue 169 Find us on facebook follow the links on our website www.Dive-Pacific.com

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Diver Emergency Number, P A C INew F Zealand I C: 0800 4 DES 11 1800 088 200 (toll free) Australia : +61-8-8212 9242

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Have not the Council/authorities learned anything re the damage the inner gulf has suffered by mismanagement of dredging and land and storm water runoff into the gulf?

Publisher Gilbert Peterson +64 27 494 9629 Dive Publishing P.O. Box 34 687 Birkenhead, Auckland, New Zealand 0746 divenz@divenewzealand.co.nz Editor at Large Dave Moran +64 9 521 0684 davem@divenewzealand.co.nz Advertising Sales Manager Colin Gestro +64 272 568 014 colin@affinityads.com Art Director Mark Grogan +64 9 262 0303 bytemarx@orcon.net.nz

New Zealand Underwater’s Annual General Meeting this year is being held in Christchurch and hosted by the Canterbury Dive Club on June 28th – 30th. Diary the date.

The next issue of Dive, No.170, will be published in August 2019.

Printed by Crucial Colour Ltd Retail distribution NZ: Ovato NZ Ltd All rights reserved. Reprinting in whole or part is expressly forbidden except by written permission of the publisher.

Opinions expressed in the publication are those of the authors and not necessarily the publishers. All material is accepted in good faith and the publisher accepts no responsibility whatsoever.

www.DiveNewZealand.co.nz www.Dive-Pacific.com Registered Publication Dive Pacific ISSN 2624-134X (print) ISSN 2324-3236 (online)

SOUNDINGS

LOCAL & INTERNATIONAL

Women’s annual PADI day scheduled Largest single day of organized diving coming on 20 July On July 20th PADI Dive Centres and Resorts will again host thousands of divers for the fifth time for a celebration of adventure and passion for the ocean at hundreds of events around the world.

PADI launched the first PADI Women’s Dive Day in 2015 and by last year it had grown to more than 1,000 events in 104 countries.

PADI says the positive influence of these events extends beyond

gender since, with conservation and community-mindedness at their core, they are an opportunity to give back above and below the surface. Examples last year included: • In the Bahamas a course on corals was presented with divers learning how to maintain coral trees and plant their own coral with personalized tags so they can monitor them.

• Women in Saudi Arabia drove themselves, for the first time in their lives, to do a night dive.

• Blue Corner Dive in Bali offered two free professionaldevelopment internships to local Indonesian women to take them from PADI Open Water Diver to PADI Divemaster.

Interested in taking part this year? Contact your local PADI Dive Centre or visit padi.com for more.

Rolex underwater scholarship awarded science, sustainability and veterinary science, communication and media.

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he Australasian Our WorldUnderwater Scholarship Society has announced their Rolex Scholar for 2019/20 is Joanna Smart from Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.

Joanna holds a Bachelor’s degree in Marine and Antarctic Science from the University of Tasmania (UTAS) with majors in Marine Biology, Marine and Antarctic Ecology and Seaweed Physiology.

Her key areas of interest are underwater exploration, marine science including ecology, polar

Joanna has over 300 logged dives and a PADI Open Water Scuba Instructor, AAUS Scientific Diver and Part 1 ADAS diver. The Scholarship will provide Joanna with an incredible learning opportunity to help develop a career path in a way that will allow her to make the most significant contribution she can to our oceans.

Joanna says: "Many of the problems the oceans currently face such as overfishing, plastic pollution and intensive aquaculture can have realistic and sustainable

Joanna Smart solutions. I hope to develop the skills and knowledge to contribute to solving these problems.” www.owuscholarship.org

Travelling dive watch to commemorate Women Divers Hall of Fame 20th anniversary

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he Women Divers Hall of Fame is celebrating its 20th Anniversary in a unique collaboration with the Abingdon Watch company which is keen to promote women in adventurous industries.

For the celebration a specially encased Nadia dive watch will travel around the world to dive with many Women Hall of Fame

members each of whom will sign off their dive logged with it.

wearing it," said Bobbie Scholley, Chairman of WDHOF.

Once the dive watch has completed its year-long world journey it will be auctioned off along with its logbook with the proceeds going to Women’s Hall of Fame Scholarship Fund.

First stop for the watch? Fiji.

“This dive watch is truly amazing, just like the women who will be

You can follow the Nadia watch journey on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter - hashtags #2020Nadia, #LadiesItsTimeToDive and #SisterhoodOfTheTravelingWatch. www.TheAbingdonCo.com/Nadia

Women’s team wanted for World Spearfishing Championships in Sardinia next year Spearfishing New Zealand is looking at taking a women’s team to the World Spearfishing Champs

in Sardinia in September 2020.

Ian Warnock says it will be extremely deep diving and a

very high level of competition. If you’re interested contact him at ianwarnock@xtra.co.nz

www.dive-pacific.com 7

SOUNDINGS

LOCAL & INTERNATIONAL

1870s submarine washes up in Middlemarch In the landlocked Otago town of Middlemarch resides a rare French designed 19th century submarine, and now the town is determined to see it, The Platypus, restored.

The 150-year-old submarine is thought to be one of only two of its vintage still in existence, reported John Bisset on Stuff in February.

"In the history of submarines it's quite amazing and would certainly be the only one ever built in New Zealand," Middlemarch’s museum curator Dawn Coburn said.

A second trial was more successful with samples from the seafloor brought to the surface but a lack of investors brought the project to a stand-still and it languished on the wharf in Dunedin for 10 years.

In 1924 it was cut into pieces and sold to a farmer in Barewood near Middlemarch where it remained until donated to the Middlemarch Museum in 1991.

years so there's a possibility it's still lying on an industrial site somewhere.

"For the first stage we're looking at $60,000 to construct a custommade shelter and lift it off the ground onto a specially designed cradle.

"As it sits the submarine will deteriorate over time so it's

The Platypus had its maiden voyage in Otago Harbour just three years after Jules Verne released the underwater science fiction classic 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea in 1870.

It was lowered into the Otago Harbour with seven crew inside, powered by paddle wheels and with ballast tanks allowing it to sink and rise. A hatch on top let the submariners in, and a hatch below provided access to the seabed.

Five hours later it was raised back to the surface after those on board had been pumping furiously for air and trying to keep water from leaking in.

The sub was built in Dunedin by Sparrow, an engineering firm, to dig and sluice for gold underwater on the Clutha River.

Middlemarch’s museum curator Dawn Coburn The small community is now seeking funds to preserve it and also locate a missing piece from the middle of the submarine.

"We've even heard rumours of (the missing piece) being someone's water tank. It was at McLeods Soaps factory in Dunedin for many

important we protect it from the elements."

Once protected the group hopes to split the submarine in the middle allowing visitors to step inside and experience what it would have felt like inside the 10.6m vessel.

Watson to join expert line-up at Hutchwilco Boat Show TV fishing star Matt Watson will be among the line-up of Master Class speakers at this year’s Hutchwilco New Zealand Boat Show. The show will be at the ASB Showgrounds in Greenlane, Auckland on May 16-19. The Master Class free fishing seminars will be held throughout the show.

Matt will be joined in the Master Class seminar series by a wide range of top fishing experts, keen to share their latest tips and techniques on a variety of topics from new techniques for catching snapper and kingfish to kayak, jetski and even drone fishing.

8 Dive New Zealand | Dive Pacific

A full timetable of speakers and topics will be posted on the show’s website www.boatshow.co.nz and also on the show’s Yamaha Information Boards and in the Official Show Guide.

Those attending the show will also be able to win a wide variety of great prizes including the $250,000 Surtees/Yamaha Grand Prize, daily Viking Kayak packages and both domestic and international holiday fishing packages.

Tickets are now available to purchase and print at home from www.boatshow.co.nz All tickets bought on line qualify for a second,

bonus entry into the Surtees/ Yamaha Grand Prize draw, giving two chances to win this incredible quarter of a million dollar prize.

Tickets bought on line also automatically go into the draw to win a Viking Kayaks Powered Reload Package, worth over $8000.

What: Hutchwilco New Zealand Boat Show Where: ASB Showgrounds, Greenlane, Auckland When: May 16-19, 2019.

Open: 10am to 6pm; late night Friday to 9pm.

Admission: Adults: $20; children 16 & under FREE.

SOUNDINGS

LOCAL NEWS

Matt Watson’s spear tag invention gets global interest Spear fishers can now choose whether to kill the fish they shoot for food, or release them with a research tag.

While hook and line fishers have been tagging and releasing fish for decades with millions of fish around the world released with tags, the same option for spear fishers been absent, til now.

Tagging fish allows scientists to understand their growth and migration to apply for conservation measures and set fishery limits.

Tagging free-swimming fish has a greater value to research because the fish has not been hooked and fought. Video footage showing Watson testing the tagger by swimming amongst dozens of marlin and firing tags into them has been viewed by several hundreds of thousands of viewers already.

It works just as well on inshore fish like snapper and kingfish, and this is where Watson sees a more immediate conservation benefit.

“The research value of this is obvious, but more immediately what it means is spear fishers can spend a day in the water hunting and shoot multiple fish, yet only the ones they need for a meal are killed,” he says.

The key to the spear tagger being widely adopted is that it fits all spear guns, uses all tags used around the world, and is inexpensive and easy to use.

“Spearfishing is already a very selective form of harvesting fish, every fish is picked out and then shot. With the tagger, spear fishers can shoot to their hearts content and every fish tagged is another opportunity for science to learn more about that species.”

This is not the first bit of innovative marine conservation project Watson has developed.

In 2008 he devised a new format for fishing competitions where instead of bringing all fish in to be weighed, a photo of a fish on a measuring mat was all that was needed, allowing the angler the freedom to choose to keep or release the fish. Many tournaments have adopted this system resulting in many more fish being released.

Watson says, “It’s also about the story capturing people’s hearts and minds, and this will help the attitude shift, from being entitled to take whatever we want, to being grateful to take what we need”.

manufacture and distribution of the spear tagger, where he wants to see proceeds go towards marine conservation.

“I’m not in the business of selling spear fishing products, I just want to get it out to the world as quickly as possible. I got the patent only so I could stop it getting ripped off and commercialised.

If I can’t get the tagger made and distributed cheaply, I’ll make all the information and design open source online”.

Matt is currently in discussion with a large international spearfishing company about the

The video is at: https://www.ultimatefishing.tv/home/video/459/spear-tagging-revolution https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=402730770467441

You can put it on for tagging and take it off when you want to take a fish for food in seconds

www.dive-pacific.com 9

SOUNDINGS LOCAL NEWS

Freediver champion William Trubridge swims Cook Strait underwater Using a special fin freedive world champion William Trubridge swam 22 kilometres underwater in 930 dives of around 25 metres each from the North to the South Island on February 16th. The goal was to raise awareness of critically endangered Hector's and Ma-ui dolphins.

Speaking with Radio New Zealand, Trubridge said "I really didn't know what to expect because I've never even swum in that stretch of water before, let alone done anything like this, so I was going a bit blind.

"The whole time I was swimming, I was getting pushed different directions, north and south and

then north again, but in the last stretch I was getting pushed sideways and almost missed the headland…I was lucky on so many levels."

Trubridge was hopeful his story would apply William Trubridge swam Cook Strait underwater. pressure on the Photo / Instagram NZ Herald government to returned to New Zealand as they revisit their fishing prepare for the birth to their first regulations and help better protect child. the endangered dolphins.

The 38-year-old and partner Sachiko Fukumoto recently

Trubridge set a new freediving world record of 102m in 2016.

Stopping marine pests Biosecurity New Zealand has put out a discussion document on how to protect the north of New Zealand from marine pests.

councils, with support from Biosecurity New Zealand and boaties from all over have been working together for some years to stop their spread.

Northland, Auckland, Bay of Plenty and Waikato regional

The discussion document outlines different options for

getting consistent inter-regional rules in place.

You can give your feedback until Friday 24 May 2019 at www.bionet.nz “Better Ways to stop marine pests? Have your say!”

Diver emulates Jonah A diver narrowly escaped after he was sucked into the mouth of a Bryde’s whale east of Cape Town in South Africa last month.

He told Barcroft TV he had been trying to film a shark going

© Provided by Associated Newspapers Limited

Director of Dive Expert Tours Rainer Schimpf and his team were documenting a sardine run where gannets, seals, dolphins, whales and sharks come together to dine.

They were 25 miles from shore when Mr Schimpf was sucked into the mouth of the whale like the Biblical Jonah. But unlike Jonah, who was reported to have spent three days in its belly, Mr Schimpf was released right away.

10 Dive New Zealand | Dive Pacific

through a bait ball when his surroundings suddenly became dark and he felt the large whale grab hold of his body.

'I could feel the pressure on my hip, there is no time for fear in a situation like that – you have to use your instinct.' He instantly held his breath, fearing the whale was going to dive and spit him out deep below the surface.

“The next moment I felt the whale was turning, and the pressure was released, and I was washed out,” Mr Schimpf said.

Bryde’s whales can weigh up to 20 tonnes. Colleagues said the incident was undoubtedly an accident.

Beaked whales get the bends, bringing on suicide

According to new research, the mammals are driven to suicide by the bends or decompression sickness.

Just like when scuba divers suffer from decompression sickness, nitrogen bubbles form in the whales' bodies.

But instead of this being caused by rising to the surface too quickly, the gas forms due to fear.

"In the presence of sonar the whales are stressed and swim vigorously away from the sound source, changing their diving pattern," said lead author Yara Bernaldo de Quiros, a researcher at the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria in Spain.

Starting in the 1950s, ships began emitting un derwater signals in a range of about five kilohertz - and that's when the mass beaching of beaked whales began "The stress response, in other words, overrides the diving response, which makes the animals accumulate nitrogen," Dr Bernaldo de Quiros added in Proceedings of the Royal Society.

"It's like an adrenaline shot."

Academics are placing the blame on sonar developed in the 1950s to detect submarines, especially sonar buzzing at around five kilohertz as used by the US and NATO allies.

In the 1950s the mass beachings of beaked whales began in the Mediterranean.

According to the researchers, there were 121 mass strandings between

1960 and 2004, at least 40 of which were closely linked to naval activities.

The so-called "atypical" mass strandings didn't feature individuals or old and sick animals, but a handful or more of beaked whales washing ashore within a day and a few kilometres of each other.

With decades of world wide experience in high pressure breathing air compressors, fill stations, and air storage, the Italian designed and manufactured Coltri® compressors are the professional’s choice for durable and reliable breathing air systems.

Air Technology was established in 1982 to meet the needs of many diverse applications, including SCUBA, SCBA, Fire Stations, Police, Military, Rescue Units, Paintball, Shipboard Breathing Air and Industrial and Recreational Breathing Air applications.

During one NATO naval exercise in 2002, 14 whales were stranded over a 36-hour period in the Canary Islands.

"Within a few hours of the sonar being deployed, the animals started showing up on the beach," Dr Bernaldo de Quiros said.

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While these whales showed no outward sign of disease, inside their veins were filled with nitrogen gas bubbles and their brains had suffered severe haemorrhaging.

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A study in 2003 led to the Spanish government prohibiting naval exercises near the Canary Islands in 2004.

"Up until then, the Canaries were a hotspot for this kind of 'atypical' strandings," said Dr de Quiros.

"Since the moratorium, none have occurred."

The new study has called for similar bans to be extended to other areas where whales are known to congregate.

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www.dive-pacific.com 11

Talking tech diving

A dive on the HMNZS Puriri

By Martin Wallis

T

he HMNZS Puriri is one of New Zealand’s very historic wrecks and a number of us were very lucky to be able to dive her over the 4th and 5th of March this year.

The Puriri was originally requisitioned in 1940 and put into service in 1941 to sweep German mines in the Hauraki Gulf of New Zealand.

On the 14th May that year she hit a mine and sank immediately with a loss of five lives. (For more information: https://en.wikipedia. org/wiki/HMNZS_Puriri_(T02) https://tinyurl.com/y3pxz4s3 The wreck sits in exactly 100m of water roughly eight miles north east of Bream head so is a proper technical dive that takes some planning and copious amounts of team effort of which there was no shortage. She lies on an even keel with both port and starboard 12 Dive New Zealand | Dive Pacific

propellers sitting off the sand which make a great navigational reference for divers.

From the stern heading forward over the top, the helm’s wheel is easily distinguishable as you carry

on forward to the bow. There is no penetration diving available on this wreck as it is quite small.

I’d previously dived this wreck a couple of years ago during which I had a full camera flood so I was really looking forward to getting some usable images. The team members were Andrew Simpson of Global Dive, Darryl Lowndes, Guy Bate, Damian Simpson and myself. Yukon Dive Charters were the operators of choice and we were all 100% at ease knowing we were in the capable hands of skipper Glenn Edney.

ascent marked with a green tag indicating that the team of four were all together.

Our surface support team made

(equipment was another story) on both days and happy divers emerged after roughly three hours decompression making for 3 and a half hour dives on both days.

As for those camera issues from a couple of years ago...

I cracked a glass dome port (which was only rated to 80m to be fair). I did manage to fire a few shots off before water started running over the inside of the dome port, but from about 12 minutes into the dive no more images were made. I obviously couldn’t leave the team so swam aimlessly about with them until the 25 minutes was up and we were able to start the ascent.

Amazingly the port didn’t implode and there was no damage to the camera, lens or housing electronics. The other casualty of day one was Andrew’s scooter which flooded fully.

Each day a team of four divers dived the wreck (I did day one and swapped out with Damian on day two). Our basic procedures were to hook a shot line into the wreck marked with three small buoys to use as the descent line, spend 25 minutes on the wreck including the five minute descent, then ascend on a floating decompression line marked with a large buoy. To ensure we made the deco line the team was to shoot an SMB at the beginning of our

up of Dave Pearce and Kirsten Henry (and me on day two) would then attach the 40m floating deco line to the diver’s reel line and drop it down into the water. On top of the open circuit bail out gases that we all carried there were additional cylinders attached to the line. The team then reeled up the thick weighted rope and continued decompression on this line.

The dives were carried out without a hitch to the divers

Being so close to the coast the visibility isn’t what you typically find at the Poor Knights - it’s just about pitch black on the wreck but there is a fair amount of life on her. We saw a number of not very big Golden snapper, some Butterfly perch, one small Hapuka and some tiny black coral.

The wreck is fully covered in old fishing nets which do pose a hazard to divers and probably to the fish life still to this day.

www.dive-pacific.com 13

pearos notebook

S

Finding the Good Spots for spearfishing

with Jackson Shields

A

s the summer holidays wound down at the end of January the best spearfishing started to kick in. The fish heard the camp sites and boats packing up and started to head back home – they realised it was safe to come out of their hiding places. The water temperature stabilised over the 20 degree mark and with that corridors of blue water formed.

This is when I typically like to spend most time in the water.

The months of February, March and April offer the best all round spearfishing experience. And in the upper North Island we can encounter the migration of Boarfish and influxes of school fish.

Locating a Good Spot

Local knowledge can be the key to successful spearfishing and that doesn’t necessarily mean knowing where the Good Spots are. Because there so many variables in finding a Good Spot: the time of year, the weather, the moon phase, tide, water clarity, food … the list goes on and on.

I dive many places that are productive some days and empty others.

I don’t put this down to luck. I analyse all the variables noted above and work out what their correlations are. The location of a Good Spot can change…

What works

Each spot can have a different recipe as to what works, and once you work out what the recipe is, you can translate it to almost anywhere in New Zealand to find success in unfamiliar areas.

The best way to learn about what makes a Good Spot is to go out and swim there. Cover lots of seafloor in an attempt to learn about them.

First-hand experience is always better than hearing from someone

14 Dive New Zealand | Dive Pacific

Finding the right bait - these big Koheru are every predators favourite else second hand about a spot they told you about. Fish behaviour is a never ending education; and sometimes it is unexplainable, which makes it even more of a challenge.

Tide and current

For instance tidal movement is one of the most obvious and important variables to finding fish. Most fish we target like tide and current, and often the stronger the better. Fish like swimming into current, so you do the same. Dive the up current side of a rock, not the down current side.

Tidal flow relates to moon phase; typically the bigger the moon the bigger the tide and the stronger the flow. But the moon phase can also relate to feeding habits by fish. A big moon means more light to feed at night. A strong tidal flow and a big moon can then relate to a bigger upwelling of food for small fish, which then results in the bigger fish becoming more active.

Time of year

One of the biggest factors to try and align with these variables is the time of year, and this can only be found through trial and error. Different times of year result in different species, and all the species have different relationships with their environments.

One bait fish is more important than another bait fish if you are looking for a specific species.

Bait fish in the water?

Often I can predict the productivity of a spot as soon as I see the bait in the area. Though not always fool proof, it proves more successful than not. Fish feed on different fish differently at different times of year, which can be important to know.

Now when it comes to finding these Good Spots I am about to ruin a myth for a lot of people.

Heading farther out does not necessarily result in more fish and better spearfishing. All the

Dan Roger with outer Gulf big kingfish late summer in inky bluewater

islands around New Zealand have become accessible to anyone with the technology available on boats these days. Far out islands are not so untouched anymore. Besides that, fish aggregate and occupy inshore and offshore places at different times of year.

Inshore early summer snapper in clear water

Inshore better?

Sometimes the inshore coastline can be better than outer islands for small and big fish. In the Hauraki Gulf for example, the coastline and inner islands tend to be more productive in early summer which is most likely due to fish moving in close to spawn.

You will also find bluewater touching Kawau and Tiri before places like the Mokahinaus and Great Barrier Island in early summer. Then, in late summer to autumn is when the outer islands become their most productive when fish there tend to spawn later, and an influx of warm blue currents flood the outer gulf.

Analysing your dives through the year can result in good successes and minimise the need for ‘luck’.

Hopefully everyone can get out there and find their own Good Spot.

www.dive-pacific.com 15

Photo: Philippe Bacchet

Tahiti, richest aquarium on earth

P

Marine environment

roudly displayed on the bodies of Tahitians, you’ll find manta ray, shark, whale and sea turtle tattoos that tell the story of a people defined by the sea.

The crystal-clear waters of The Islands of Tahiti are home to more than 1,000 species of fish with an unmatched variety of colour, size and shape. The smallest fish are often the most colourful and prefer the coral gardens and shallow depths of lagoons, while larger species enjoy the bustle of life in the inlets and reef complexes and beyond, out in the open sea.

Divers come from around the world to experience these sacred sea creatures, which, in The Islands of Tahiti hold a place of reverence among the gods.

It’s only natural that the sea around these islands is both figuratively and literally a clear blue heaven on earth. The warm waters that surround The Islands of Tahiti teem with life from flirty clown fish to ever-present sharks, to awe-inspiring humpback whales which arrive between July and November.

The combination of canyons, caverns and coral beds provides a multitude of nooks and crannies for marine life.

When you’re ready to do some diving and snorkelling, the heavens await.

Because of its exceptional biodiversity, scientists consider the French Polynesian sea zone to be the “richest aquarium on earth”.

A 4 million km² natural aquarium

There are dozens of unique dive sites around each island and atoll and expert certified dive operators will take care of all the details.

In 2000 the entire region was classified as an Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), a wildlife sanctuary where, among other things, drift fishing is prohibited, earning French Polynesia top honours from the WWF (World Wildlife Fund).

Dives and other activities can be arranged in advance by your Preferred Travel Professional or through your resort or cruise ship.

The jade and turquoise waters of the lagoons of the Tuamotu and the Society Islands archipelagos, where slender, multi-coloured fish species have evolved, attract nearly a third of all dolphin species from every ocean. Schools of damselfish, mullet and soldierfish frolic in the coral lacework as striped convict surgeonfish and frowning Picasso triggerfish pass by.

Photo: Bruno David

Manta rays gliding across the shimmering sea bottom can suddenly leap skyward and re-enter the water right next to placid sharks basking in the lagoons.

16 Dive New Zealand | Dive Pacific

Sea turtles bury their eggs in the warm sands of deserted beaches as whales mate and calve in the undisturbed bays of our archipelagos: the Austral Islands, the Gambier Islands, the Tuamotu and the Society Islands.

© Gilles Diraimondo/AMV Voyages

BIG

© Grégoire Le Bacon

S MA L L

There are many sides to The Islands of Tahiti. Yet they are all connected by Mana. Mana is a life force and spirit that surrounds us.

You can see it. Touch it. Taste it. Feel it. And from the moment you arrive, you will understand why we say our Islands are

To discover Mana for yourself, visit Tahiti -Tourisme.co.nz www.divenewzealand.com 73 www.dive-pacific.com 17

SOUNDINGS LOCAL NEWS

Taputeranga Marine Reserve New Zealand’s top marine biodiversity hotspot?

M

ore marine species have now been recorded by citizens at Wellington’s South Coast marine reser ve than in New Zealand’s most internationally famous dive destination, the Poor Knights Marine Reser ve.

Nearly 2000 obser vations have been reported by citizen scientists in the 10 year old Taputeranga Marine Reser ve, as part of an online project hosted by iNaturalistNZ. The project curated by Department of Conser vation marine scientists has clocked up nearly 350 recorded species in Taputeranga, compared to about

Goniobranchus aureomarginatus Photo: Sarah Milicich there are just more nature geeks in Wellington!” he said, and it probably ref lects Taputeranga’s urban location, including proximity to Victoria University, NIWA and several dive shops.

Some of the unusual finds include a rare deep-water

Half Naked Hatchet Fish

Sea anemone Photo: Karin Stillberg

Clinton Duffy of DOC’s Marine Ecosystems team says it’s unclear why there is such a difference between obser vations at the Wellington site and those in eight other marine reser ves, including the Poor Knights.

“One credible theor y is that

18 Dive New Zealand | Dive Pacific

Colin Ryder, Chair of Friends of Taputeranga Marine Reser ve, says there is still much more to find as coverage of the deepest parts of the reser ve is almost non-existent. Species usually har vested for food, such as paua, rock crayfish, blue moki, tarakihi and blue cod appear to be thriving. Large schools of trevally are also being photographed. www.inaturalist.org /projects/ taputeranga-marine-reser ve http://tinyurl.com/y2mnfa63

200 for the Poor Knights.

Marine scientists estimate perhaps as much as 80% of New Zealand's indigenous biodiversity is found in the sea and while many of our marine fish are found in other countries' seas, many of our benthic ( bottom dwelling) marine species are found only in New Zealand.

species called a half-naked hatchetfish, (Arg yropelecus hemig ymnus), and the hula skirt siphonophore (Physophora hydrostatica), a relative of jellyfish and corals.

Conger eel Photo: Sean Geange

SOUNDINGS

LOCAL NEWS

Free diver breaks under ice record New Zealand-born free diver Ant Williams has broken the world record for the deepest dive under ice in Norway.

He swam to 70m to beat the previous world record by 5m, a feat overseen by Guinness World Records. The next day he went one better swimming another 5m deeper.

The 47-year-old now resides in Australia and trained for months beforehand, including trips to Finland and Lake Taupo.

His team dug through two metres of snow before sawing a hole in the frozen surface of a Norwegian fjord. Then with a torch he swam into the blackness.

Williams said he was ecstatic

to enter the record books. "It feels fantastic to have finally achieved this radical goal," he said on his Facebook page.

"It was a super challenging dive.

The brutal cold and the darkness were far beyond anything I have experienced.

It was a relief to be back at the surface.

Ant Williams breaks the world record for the deepest dive under ice

"I felt relaxed on the way down, but the swim up was tough going. I think I was over-weighted and when my dive response kicked in at depth my legs felt like lead. It took me nearly 30 seconds longer than

normal to swim up.”

Williams has been free diving for nearly 20 years and can hold his breath underwater for eight minutes.

Reef Check Malaysia recommends local reef management Reef Check Malaysia latest report on the health of coral reefs around Malaysia finds them generally in fair condition though ‘averages’ mask variations in different reef areas.

Across 212 sites sur veyed the live coral cover is relatively high at an average of 42%, similar to 2017. However low numbers of high-value species of fish (such as grouper) and shellfish (such as lobster) were recorded, and some coral reefs are showing increasing algae, an indicator of possible pollution.

Reef Check was established in the USA in 1996 to raise awareness on the importance of, and threats to, coral reefs.

Reef Check Malaysia (RCM), was registered in 2007 as a non-profit company to engage with local stakeholders to protect, restore and revive coral reefs in Malaysia.

Its sur veys have highlighted various problems including

overfishing, pollution and sedimentation from land-based development.

Julian Hyde, General Manager of Reef Check Malaysia, said this is the 12th year we have been conducting sur veys so we have a pretty good idea of what is happening to coral reefs in our sur vey areas.

He said: “Coral reefs are important ecosystems, providing food as well as jobs in tourism for many island communities. But they face growing global threats such as bleaching and ocean acidification associated with climate change.

We need to focus on building the resilience, or health, of coral reefs through more effective management of local threats such as pollution and overfishing.”

Saving Our Reefs research, education & conservation RCM is advocating for co-man-

agement committees to be established in each marine park to localise some decision making and get greater commitment to reef conser vation from local stakeholders.

“Giving local stakeholders a voice helps involve them more in management which in turn creates greater buy-in to conser vation activities because they understand how this will impact their livelihoods and their futures”, says Alvin Chelliah, Programme Manager for RCM’s Cintai Tioman programme.

RCM also conducts education and awareness programmes for schools, organisations and local communities. It also runs coral reef rehabilitation programmes to foster the scientific understanding of coral reef ecolog y.

Reef Check is active in 82 countries and territories throughout the world. www.reefcheck.org.my

www.dive-pacific.com 19

SOUNDINGS

LOCAL & INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Project Baseline founder Todd Kincaid stops by

the measures by which future change can be scientifically monitored and verified.

reefs are at risk – we know this from the impacts on the Great Barrier Reef. So why is nothing happening to prevent it? The issue needs to be kept in the public eye.

But the aim mainly is to harness volunteer divers and others in a citizen science effort to collect the data whereby baselines are established.

“So far we have 450 divers engaged, and need at least 10 times that.

The underwater world needs this and if not divers, then who?

Dr Todd Kincaid

T

he crystal clear springs I knew in Florida growing up are now basically gone, Dr Todd Kincaid told 50 or so divers in Auckland on April 1st. The springs represent my personal baseline, he said, and they were killed by algae and bacteria as their waters became de-oxygenated through nutrient and pollutant run off, a process generically called eutrophication.

Todd who is head of Science and Conservation for Global Underwater Explorers (GUE) and Director of Project Baseline stopped off on his way back to the US from the recent Oztek in Australia.

The life supporting oxygen in the springs’ water was stripped out only over the past 20 years or so and “when algae blooms everything dies except the algae and bacteria,” he said.

He said he realized the springs were dying but worse, perhaps we were all losing the political will to do anything about it. Hence Project Baseline. The goal now is to make the organization independent and self-supporting. www.projectbaseline.org The organization has collaborated with several research organisations to help establish baselines, 20 Dive New Zealand | Dive Pacific

…100 new species were discovered during 28 dives over 32 mission days, with many at 60-90 metres technical depth…

An example locally is the data being collected on Lake Pupuke on Auckland’s North Shore (see below).

The major problems for lakes and springs are usually waste water outfalls, but in the oceans, warming seas and sedimentary deposits are causes of eutrophication.

As Dr Brian Lapointe of the Fau Harbour Oceanographic Institute said by video, “Corals evolved over thousands of years to live in clean water…”

Todd said all

Project Baseline does not aim to supplant any other organisation but complement and support them.

“The oceans are changing rapidly so its important to get the baseline information,” Todd said.

SOUNDINGS

LOCAL & INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Why is Lake Pupuke dying?

A

Project Baseline in Auckland’s North Shore seeks answers Lake Pupuke on Auckland’s North Shore is unique on many ways and it is dying.

Eutrophication is sapping oxygen from its water preventing the lake’s ability to sustain plant growth. Ebi Hussain is making it his business to find out why The lake made up of two craters formed 150,000 years ago is 60 m deep and surrounded by urban development. It has no direct inflows or outflows yet is heavily used for recreation.

In 2014 an algae bloom occurred and no one knows the reasons.

Ebi Hussain’s citizen science initiative, Project Baseline Lake Pupuke has joined forces with the Auckland Council and the Cawthron Institute, a research

A range of sensors have been placed in the lake and are being monitored by volunteer divers organisation to study what interventions might best manage the lake’s health.

To do that they first need to understand what is driving the lake’s processes. And to do that Ebi has installed a range of sensors in the lake, taken samples and otherwise researching it with the help of a small army of volunteer divers.

He has found areas in the lake unable to support life any more, and other areas at risk. Any water with less than 5% oxygen dissolved in it means plant life will struggle, he says, only algae and bacteria will thrive.

The collecting of the lake’s Project Baseline data is ongoing. www.projectbaseline.org/project-baseline-lake-pupuke-monitoring-lake-and-building-collaborations

Major Missions in Bermuda, Fiji A major mission in 2016 in Bermuda used several vessels including a research ship and submersibles to collect data to compile more for this index of oceanography. 100 new species were discovered during 28 dives over 32 mission days, with many at 60-90 metres technical depth and with some dives lasting 6 hours.

In Fiji on 2017 a group of New

Zealand divers gathered baseline data at the Great Astrolabe reef at Kadavu in a Project Baseline assignment during 14 days with 12 days of diving.

They found while the reefs there are healthy they are not undamaged. Though there was no evidence of bleaching there was evidence of some disease and harm from over fishing.

“Project Baseline is seeking your support,” Todd said.

“For each project the scientists set the goals that dictate the skills that are in demand for them.

“We need to get as many people involved as possible.”

www.dive-pacific.com 21

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SOUNDINGS

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Shark attacks plummet The number of unprovoked shark attacks on humans was far below average in 2018, according to an annual report by the University of Florida International Shark Attack File.

Florida Museum of Natural Histor y’s shark research programme said “statistically, this is an anomaly. It (also) begs the question of whether we’re seeing fewer bites because there

Worldwide there were 66 unprovoked attacks, four of which were fatal. Over the previous five years there were on average 84 incidents. In 2018 another 34 attacks were confirmed as being provoked by humans.

The United States again saw the most unprovoked attacks last year (32), followed again

by Australia (20). Half of the US attacks occurred in Florida.

The report didn’t specifically state why the statistics on shark attacks dropped away so sharply last year but did mention that shark-attack fatalities have been trending downward for decades due to improvements in ocean rescue, medical care and increased awareness about sharks.

Gavin Naylor, director of the

are fewer sharks. Or it could be that the general public is heeding the advice of beach safety officials. My hope is that the lower numbers are a consequence of people becoming more aware and accepting of the fact that they’re sharing the ocean with these animals.”

Most attacks happened to people who were surfing or

doing board sports (53%).

Snorkelers and freedivers accounted for 6% of attacks, and scuba divers 5%.

In all, there were five shark-attack fatalities in 2018 which was consistent with yearly averages. Shark attacks may receive a lot of media attention but researchers point out that sharks pose a ver y low threat to humans with billions of people engaged in ocean activities each year. And while sharks kill an average of six people in unprovoked attacks worldwide “fisheries kill about 100 million sharks and rays annually,” according to the International Shark Attack File report.

“An increase in sharks is a symptom of restoring healthy oceans,” Naylor said. “What the public needs to do is become informed about these animals, understand their behaviour patterns and listen to the guidelines issued by beach safety patrols.”

DAN announces $10,000 research grant

DAN established the research grant in honour of Dr Hamilton who died in 2011 aged 81. Dr

Hamilton researched dive physiolog y, authored numerous papers, reports and workshop proceedings, and was perhaps best known for co-developing the Diving Computational Analysis Program (DCAP) which analyzes decompression procedures for a wide variety of exposures to pressure.

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What to do when a shark shows up? www.Dive-Pacific.com

NEW

The wrecks & reefs of Gizo

NIWA’s underwater photo magician The seas are warming...

Leopard seal applies for residency Three dive pioneers pass on

www.dive-pacific.com 1

DIVE NZ D168.indd 1 29/01/19 10:40 AM

www.dive-pacific.com 23

The best of Fiji…

…can be farther out

By Gilbert Peterson, Managing editor, Dive Pacific (I travelled to Fiji in mid-March courtesy of Tourism Fiji for a week long fiesta of highly memorable diving and meeting up with dive operators. Our international group stayed at four resorts each uniformly excellent while catering to different markets and budgets.)

congregation singing. Fine French architecture. No pews. Everyone cross legged on the floor. A mahogany ceiling. Stained glass reflecting across the bay to distant neighbor islands.

T

Then there’s Bauma Falls in the Tavora National Park, three of them, ranked in the top 100 falls around the world, a rating bestowed I imagine for the sheer

aveuni and Vanua Levu islands in Fiji – yes they’re very much about the superb diving, but there are so many other things to see and do too.

On Sunday I attend a church service at 7 am at the Wairiki mission church. The acoustics of this historic 128 year old church echo the pleasure of the 300 voice

Just the flight getting to Taveuni and/or Vanua Levu from Nadi is an adventure, at gawping height, only just above the mountains of Viti Levu, across the emerald straits.

The 20 seater Twin Otters are new as well.

There’s the natural water slide up a track over the road from Garden Island Resort at Waitavala.

I thought I’d see how others took this on before giving it a go. I wanted to see how banged up and bruised they got. What a super adrenalin trigger that was! The stream rushes you down in a tearing hurry, on a turning rock surface as smooth as moss. No body parts bashed at all. Just a flush of water up the nose.

24 Dive New Zealand | Dive Pacific

Australians Dirk and Claudia Werner-Lutrop, me, our dive guides and Jackie, a travel editor from China, heading out to the Great White Wall.

Blue Ribbon Eel at Jerry's Jelly

Aptly named Rainbow Reef

©adamwalters.com

presence of the drop, and the setting. The walk up to the first one was very easy and very pretty, a contrast to the bouncing ride along the last bit of the road getting there. Past a pineapple plantation, and an offshore island, Laucala, owned by the Austrian billionaire Dietrich Mateschitz, co-owner of Red Bull. Taveuni is unimaginably fertile. Children spend the end of the day leaping off a bridge, swimming… its an idyllic spot.

And on the island there’s other falls and day walks, hiking up higher, bird watching, plenty of snorkeling spots and lots of other things to see and do.

Cabbage Patch

www.dive-pacific.com 25

Rainbow Reef magic

Now we’re into two dives on Day One. Hosted by the very capable team at Garden Island Resort (www.gardenislandresort.com), Nuku Reef and the Cabbage Patch are just two of the 25 or so dive sites of the Rainbow Reef, a 28 km wonder stretching between Taveuni and Vanua Levu islands.

(Fiji’s second and third biggest).

Rainbow Reef simply lives up to its name, a must do magnet for divers of all capabilities. Here, there’s also work afoot to protect more of the reef which it demands due to its sheer diversity and value otherwise. (See Panel p.21)

Great White Wall

By virtue of its location in the strait with tidal currents ‘cleaning’ them out every day, the reef is host to wildly diverse soft and hard healthy corals side by side.

Look in any direction for more colour. While Cyclone Winstone in 2016 is still fresh in locals’ minds, damage was limited to corals within a metre or two of the surface, and recovery of those is rapidly underway. Not so fortunate was Garden Island Resort. A two year old jetty was swept away and waves pounded in the windows of first floor apartments. The resort is pristine again now, reasonably priced, and generous with both hospitality and providing festivities such as lovo dining (meals cooked on hot stones) and cultural performances.

Prehistoric

Cabbage Patch features - you guessed it - an area of large green, vegetable like corals hosting clouds of fusiliers and many other multi coloured fish. The light or something down here makes the atmosphere redolent of pre-historic times when these corals were first alive, when dinosaurs inhabited the planet. It’s not so much spooky as meditative. Without consciously thinking about it we swim with respect above and around them.

From Taveuni Dive Resort, which would have to be one of Fiji’s most

26 Dive New Zealand | Dive Pacific

Cataloguing coral Marine scientist Helen Sykes says the corals in Fiji are the healthiest in the world.

“Fiji is an oasis for resilient corals,” she says. From an event like Cyclone Winstone which hit in 2016, she says, the corals are recovering really fast, within five years.

She adds if climate change happened to reverse in future, Fiji could act as a nursery for the world to restock reefs elsewhere.

Lately Helen has been working in the Rainbow Reef area cataloguing the soft and hard corals that abound here. The aim is to underscore how ecologically valuable the Somosomo Strait area is in general, and the Rainbow Reef in particular, both for the health of Fijian oceans and for dive tourism. A goal is to raise the protection of important reef sites.

Map not to scale

While the traditional Qoliqolis owners whereby local villages’ have fishing rights in the seas related to their lands, the sea bed below high tide is vested in the government. This can lead to complex conservation and management issues. In the

Somosomo strait area there are over 20 Qoliqolis.

One of them may agree to a tabu on fishing an area but it often takes government involvement to enforce protection from those outside the community. If the villages and dive operators agree which sites are to be protected they can put a powerful case to the government.

In Fiji there have been five main ways used to create Marine Conservation Areas (MCAs): 1) Informal, where subsistence fishing is mainly done by the land owning unit 2) V erbal or documented Tabu where the heads of fishing rigths owning clans ( matagai) can declare and are ‘no- take’ or tabu.

3) E xclusion from Commercial Fishing.

Traditional tabu areas may become part of the Fiji Locally Managed Marine Areas (FLMMA) network to aid community based management.

Some of the Rainbow Reef's critters

4) Foreshore lease or licence whereby the ownership of the foreshore is vested in the government and can be developed eg for aquaculture.

5) Statutory ‘Gazetted’ Reserves for which the Minister of Fisheries may declare areas protected reserves either for a species, or entirely, and which applies to both traditional fishing resources and any others including commercial fishers.

At present MCAs rely heavily on traditional verbal or documented tabu areas and therefore on traditional ownership rights and management of fisheries.

Tourism operators including dive operators are currently evenly split with 51% content with their current MCA arrangements and 49% wanting more formal agreements. www.marineecologyfiji.com/news

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organized, professional and conscientious resorts for divers, (www. taveunidiveresort.com) we head out next day to the Great White Wall. For me this was the dive of the trip. The guides tell us this is the one place where Fiji Time does not apply! Diving the Wall is totally time and tide dependent. If the currents are not right you see a great brown wall; if they’re too fierce you don’t get to dive. (Check Taveuni Dive’s website for when dives will be possible).

Frisson

We were lucky. The weather was great, scarcely a breeze. To start we went down to about 12 metres.

A white tip headed away. We entered a swim through ‘cave’

going down to 22 metres. A frisson of excitement. Another few metres and here is the wall. A vertical rock face blanketed with soft white coral blooming, down as far as the eye can see.

We drift along the white face. Time disappears. One minute I have 100 bar of air, next minute just 50. Its time to head up. But the currents here are deceptive, and strong.

They force us to stay low, swim hard, using up air much faster. We work around some rock mounds, under a ledge, then with a touch of relief, up to five metres for the safety stop. At the surface for the first time my gauge reads zero.

28 Dive New Zealand | Dive Pacific

Jerry’s Jelly Then we get a bonus at Jerry’s Jelly where the reef’s biodiversity comes into its own, two pinnacles and a ledge, with soft white corals underneath, though hard corals tend to predominate. Here we met a patch of shy garden eels and nearby, the scorching bright blue ribbon eel, plus lots of schooling fish including snapper, sweetlips, pipefish and fusiliers, all at no more than 18 metres depth.

Bauma Falls

The natural water slide at Waitavala

We make the journey to Vanua Levu from Taveuni by fast dive boat across Somosomo Strait’s glassy seas - so easy - to meet up with others of our party coming from the opposite direction.

By coach for an hour and a half we travel to Savusavu for a night’s stay at the Koro Sun Resort & Rainforest Spa (https://korosunresort. com) before heading to the Jean-Michel Cousteau Resort (www. fijiresort.com) where we enjoy a final dive and a last night. But what happened on this part of the journey will have to wait til the next issue.

Info Tips Getting there: Fiji Airways operates twice daily flights to Taveuni Island and more to Vanua Levu, either to Savusavu, or Labasa which can be at less cost and an hour and half by road from Savusavu.

Garden Island Resort, Taveuni Dive and Paradise Taveuni (www. paradiseinfiji.com) are well-equipped to cater for divers and snorkelers as well as plenty of other excursion options. Talk to them.

Dive interview:

Jean-Michel Cousteau On the recent trip to Fiji Dive magazine was quick to take an opportunity to interview the legendary Jean-Michel Cousteau, founder of Ocean Futures Society. He has been diving for 73 years. Jean- Michel has just been made an ambassador for Fiji Airways and was at the Dive Fiji Expo in March to give the key address. Gilbert Peterson started the conversation and he was off.

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plankton which oysters and clams eat, and we eat them.

iji is nature’s paradise. He began. I’ve been coming here for 29 years and I’m an ocean guy and to me Fiji is the top underwater destination and it’s the same with the people. I like the culture. It’s a treasure.

When we drink water we’re drinking from the ocean. It’s the same for the snow on the mountains. There’s only one water system. So we have to stop using the sea as a sewer. Every human being is connected in this way,

Fijians are the nicest people I’ve met anywhere in the world.

They’re the nicest human beings.

…There’s only one water system. So we have to stop using the sea as a sewer. Every human being is connected in this way, through the oceans…

I accepted becoming ambassador to Fiji Air because they bring people together, and we’re all connected to the ocean in one way or another. Fiji is the best destination in the world, in my opinion, probably because no one else has impacted Fijian culture until recently.

through the oceans. The ocean is our life support system.

Out of about 27 countries in the Pacific, maybe 10 of them are going to go, those countries below five metres. A lot needs to be done.

In the middle of the north Pacific on an island in Hawaii we found birds with 8 to 12 pieces of plastic in them.

And there’s the micro plastics which are like zoo

We need to sit down with fishing people who need to make a living.

We don’t want them to lose their jobs but there must be limitations

on how much they catch. Today there are huge opportunities to farm herbivores. Their poop can grow the plants they feed on, a closed system. It can be the same for fish farms. The farms can be near where the human population are. But farming carnivores is a big mistake.

There are hundreds of thousands of species still to be discovered but how can we protect what we don’t understand? Education is the

On March 20th the Fiji Fiesta Dive Group celebrated World Happiness Day. The occasion coincided with the launch in Fiji of Bulanaires.com. Bulanaires are people rich in happiness and as Fijians always say "BULA". www.dive-pacific.com 29

exciting feature of the EXOSUIT is that for the first time we can dive to 1000 feet in 5 short minutes, walk on the ocean floor, swim like a fish, be moved through the water with propellers, stay down for up to 10 hours and be back at the surface in 5 minutes.” ) But a person alone in the sea is in bad company so they had to make two of them, he said.

Jean-Michel speaking at the Dive Expo solution for people to learn every human is connected.

And we have the technology. We can film up close in slow motion and in 3D and I have made a film using this called “Wonders of the Sea.”

(ADS) maintains a cabin pressure of the surface and still allows the suit to bend due to a unique rotary joint invented by Dr Phil Nuytten.

Developed and built in North Vancouver by Nuytco Research Ltd, the hard metal dive suit allows divers to operate safely down to a

…We are the only species with the capacity to solve problems. Nature doesn’t care…

The Exosuit has been invented and I was invited to go down using it. ( The technology of the

EXOSUIT atmospheric diving system

Tourism Fiji's James Pridgeon

30 Dive New Zealand | Dive Pacific

depth of 1000 feet and yet still have exceptional dexterity and flexibility to perform delicate work. EXOSUIT please visit nuytco.com. As Jean – Michel said elsewhere: “The most

Things are changing. We’re going to stop abusing women. We’re going to stabilize the world population. We are the only species with the capacity to solve problems.

Nature doesn’t care.

My father co-invented the regulator and tested it in Paris.

When I was seven he put a tank on my back and every weekend we went diving. It’s never stopped. My aim is to scuba dive for 100 years!

Now I’m often asked, ‘what is your favourite dive?’ and I say, ’the next one’ because you always see something new and I’m always looking forward.

(In a side note asked about New Zealand, Jean-Michel made special mention of New Zealand’s Orca expert Ingrid Visser. “She’s unbelievable,” he said.)

Silky days Tobias Bernhard took the photos and tells the story about freediving with Silky Sharks offshore from Savusavu in Fiji.

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hile you might be chilling through a balmy summer, to us in the tropics this is “cyclone season� meaning sweltering heat, suffocating humidity with towering, cloud formations pregnant with flood rains, three showers and as many fresh t-shirts in a day.

But I love the cyclone season in Fiji. It is full of drama, adventure and passion, decay and renewal of life. If you stand still long enough you grow mould.

Underwater there is all the annual spawning and breeding going on; coral, palolo worm and fish. Every summer I spot another juvenile critter I have never seen before. After two days of this weather forecasting becomes as trustworthy as a crystal ball.

There are the storms of course, but an undying optimist would say even they wipe the slate clean and let nature erupt with renewed vigor. www.dive-pacific.com 31

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hat I love most about the cyclone season though are the intermittent halcyon days and on such dreamy days we like to steer a course until the land is a distant memory. Then, just when it feels far enough we cut the engine and drift. I am content to be here in the moment – nothing else.

For freedivers this is, incidentally, the state of mind that makes our special brand of pre-dive relaxation easy. De-clutter your surroundings and the mind seems to follow. The need to breath becomes insignificant.

I like to drop the safety line just about to the edge of visibility, around 30-40 metres, even if I do not intend to dive that deep, but just because I can.

…Seemingly out of nowhere and for no reason I can discern, a few sleek shapes glide under the boat… as if the boat had a magnetic quality to it…

Sea gift And on these special days, when you really don’t need anything more, the sea may offer a special gift.

Seemingly out of nowhere and for no reason I can discern, a few sleek shapes glide under the boat. And as if the boat had a magnetic quality to it, more and more of these gleaming, coppery creatures appear. Silky sharks (Carcharhinus falsiformis), the most aptly named shark I have ever seen.

They are supposedly the most prolific pelagic shark in the tropics before the oceanic white tip and blue shark. Though no shark can rightly be called prolific these days with populations down to less than 10% of what they were 50 years ago. Ever more reason to appreciate encounters like these.

Sniffing you out Silky sharks reputedly have a highly developed sense of hearing, and one of my more cynical theories why they appeared around our boat

32 Dive New Zealand | Dive Pacific

Nexus in calm lagoon sunset

within minutes of stopping in the middle of nowhere, is that the engine noise signature of our low revving diesel is similar to those of the long liners that frequent the Koro Sea. The sharks might follow us in the hope of snatching bait or a tuna off a hook. This definitely does happen, because a few of the sharks we see have long line hooks in their mouths and steel traces trailing behind them. The ones that got away…

…a few of the sharks we see have long line hooks in their mouths and steel traces trailing behind them. The ones that got away…

In my New Zealand shark watching days I used to wait hours and spend a small fortune on bait before I would see a blue or a mako. Here this is too easy. I almost have to pinch myself.

When you slip into the water with these open ocean dwellers there is a ritual, a curious sniffing out goes on. The sharks are not shy; they genuinely interact with us, bumping us gently to check us out. This phase doesn’t last long and you might think after they have satisfied their curiosity they would leave. They don’t. They keep cruising around us sedately and at a slightly more respectful distance for hours. We commence our relaxation breath-up

on the down-line to prepare for a dive.

Their interest gets peaked again when one of us dives straight down. They follow us down the line and circle us at the turn-around (the tennis ball before the bottom weight), then scatter. As freedivers we turn inside ourselves during a dive and I like to believe this attitude is something the sharks’ sense and regard as non-threatening.

Or is it is more the absence of any attitude that makes them behave like this? I have observed the same with other sea creatures when you keep your eyes closed falling down the line, to open them for the turn just to see a big old turtle staring at you in apparent wonder. It only seems to apply when we dive on the line with proper relaxation technique. If you swim down after them you get to see mostly shark tail.

www.dive-pacific.com 33

…A curious sniffing out goes on. The sharks are not shy; they genuinely interact with us, bumping us gently to check us out…

Chance?

What I love so much about these encounters is that they seem to be simply by chance, but the animals choose to stay with us. Very different from a shark feed or a whale watch

encounter. A wild animal, unhabituated, not running away from you and letting you be amongst them for hours … I don’t know about you, but it gives me a feeling of euphoria and happiness.

…What I love about these encounters is they seem to be simply by chance, but the animals choose to stay with us. Very different from a shark feed or a whale watch encounter…

34 Dive New Zealand | Dive Pacific

I never tire of it and it’s usually the breeze announcing one of those classic, dark, cyclone season squalls that can turn serenity in an instant into wet mayhem that ends it. Or sometimes it’s the cold. Three hours

Info tips The Silky Shark encounters take place frequently in the Koro Sea between Koro island, Namena marine reserve and Vanua Levu from the beginning of December to the end of March. in 30 degrees of water does that, even in a 3mm steamer. I’ve definitely been in the tropics too long.

Liquidstate Freediving www. liqudstatefreediving.com is the only operator that facilitates these encounters out of the small town of Savusavu on Vanua Levu, Fiji’s big Northern Island. Savusavu is well connected by local carriers from Nadi international.

Pilot whales, Spinner Dolphins, Minki Whales…

Silky Sharks are not the only transients in this vast habitat.

Sometimes the blue desert comes to life with a pod of pilot whales accompanied by spinner dolphins, or a boil up of bait fish and skip jack. On rarer occasions, Minki whales.

Much as I love these encounters,

they are comparatively fleeting and involve a good deal of stealthy approach if you want to see the animals underwater. In my experience our love for cetaceans is not really reciprocated much. Which is why I love the Silky days.

Liquidstate prefer to take certified (PADI freediver/ AIDA1/ SSI1 or similar) freedivers. They also offer freediving courses from beginner to advanced, year round.

Excursions take the whole day and are weather dependent. For those interested check with Liquidstate freediving by email in advance, or keep an eye on their Facebook page for recent encounters.

www.dive-pacific.com 35

David Doubilet and Jennifer Hayes headline Underwater Tour in Australia

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stellar international line-up of underwater photographers headline this year’s nationwide Underwater Tour speaker event being held in Australia’s five biggest cities in May.

David Doubilet on assignment Scientific Photography.

Hayes’ photography and journalism is underpinned by her marine science background and focus on science communication and conservation of endangered species. Her current work includes documenting UNESCO World Heritage Site coral reef ecosystems

Doubilet and Hayes are National Geographic legends, and amongst the world’s most recognisable and inspirational ambassadors of the oceans. They have logged 26,000 and 11,000 hours beneath the surface respectively.

Sharpear Enope squid larva Doubilet’s 75 plus feature publications with National Geographic document the diversity of marine environments - from equatorial coral reefs to life beneath the polar ice. He is feature presenter of National Geographic Live, a columnist, contributing editor and author of 12 books, and recipient of international awards including The Academy of Achievement Award, The Explorers Club Lowell Thomas Award, and The Lennart Nilsson Award in 36 Dive New Zealand | Dive Pacific

at risk of climate change, exploring the science and solutions to restore North American sturgeon populations and documenting harp seals as their birth ice disintegrates beneath them. She is the recipient of the Presidents Medal for natural history, a trustee of the Shark Research Institute and Explorer Club National Fellow.

Photo: William Tan

David Doubilet, Jennifer Hayes and William Tan will share their extraordinary images and stories of discovery. (A sample of their images are on these pages)

Doubilet on assignment

William Tan is the Master of 'blackro'. He captures images of such things as the phototaxic movement of plankton, and bizarre marine critters in their nightly vertical migration from the deep. He is also a violinist with the Singapore Symphony Orchestra.

Moulting crab larva

Underwater Tour 2019 event dates: • Brisbane 9 May • Sydney 11 May • Melbourne 12 May • Adelaide 13 May NEW • Perth 14 May Tickets are from $75.

Go to www.underwatertour.com.au

Photo: William Tan

Photo: William Tan

Immortal jellyfish

www.dive-pacific.com 37

Munda: Jewel in the

Solomons crown

Part 3 of Dave Abbott’s journey

Story and images by Dave Abbott Munda in the Western Province of the Solomon Islands is a wild and largely untouched destination for divers, with pristine reefs, deep walls, and high biodiversity...

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Clear water and healthy hard corals

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he small village of Munda lies on the edge of beautiful Roviana lagoon, a huge body of water dotted with small islands that offer a wealth of spectacular diving.

I arrived into Munda for the last leg of my Solomons trip by boat, and after settling into the very comfortable Agnes Gateway hotel, caught up with Belinda Botha at Dive Munda to talk about the coming week’s diving.

Currently Dive Munda employ 12 local dive guides, all of whom they have trained from scratch… including the first two local female

dive instructors in the history of the Solomon Islands. Managing the dive operation when Belinda is away are South African couple

…Beautifully patterned clams, cheeky anemone fish and Blue spotted rays shelter in the sandy guts under the coral heads. Turtles frequently glide overhead…

Dive Munda's friendly crew

Dive Munda has won numerous awards for dive tourism and is highly regarded around the world. No surprise when you meet Belinda, who has a passion and enthusiasm for diving that is inspiring! Not only is she regularly exploring and adding new dive sites and products, she is also committed to helping the local community develop and grow in a sustainable way by training and employing local people, encouraging local eco-tourism ventures, sponsoring annual fish counts and promoting sustainable fishing practices.

www.dive-pacific.com 39

Solomon Airlines begin direct weekly flights from Brisbane to Munda starting April 2018

Magical Munda - Dive the unexplored

www.divemunda.com

Dive Munda is a multi award winning SSI Instructor Training Centre in the Western province of Solomon Islands committed to sustainable dive eco-tourism. Scuba dive unexplored reefs, WWII history, Kastom culture, hard and soft coral, cuts and caverns along with pelagic life and shark action, all in one of the last wild frontiers left on planet ocean.

Experience Magical Munda at Agnes Gateway Hotel Award winning service and pristine diving SSI Instructor Training Centre WWII wrecks, caves and reefs – untouched and unspoilt

Winner divemunda@dive-solomon.com Find us on Twitter, Facebook & Instagram 40 Dive New Zealand | Dive Pacific

A burly cocoanut crab roams the forest floor

Chevone and Jos, who have a friendly yet professional style that will appeal to Kiwi divers.

NB Dive Munda is also part of Solomon Islands Dive Expeditions (SIDE) and offers fantastic liveaboard expeditions on board MV Taka in one of the last wild frontiers of the South Pacific.

…A minute later a large croc surfaced, his head pointed toward our hiding place on shore! Saltwater crocodiles are far more of a risk than sharks in the Solomons though you are unlikely to see one while diving…

Munda’s diving My overriding impression of the diving around Munda was of breathtaking colour, crystal clear water, and incredible diversity.

Sea fans are synonymous with the Solomons, and on almost every wall dive you will see layer upon layer of huge colourful fans interspersed with red whip corals and massive barrel sponges. A vast array of intricately patterned reef fish populate this 3-dimensional world, while schools of Barracuda,

Batfish and Bumphead wrasse cruise the clear waters above the reef.

30+ dive sites

Dive Munda has identified 30+ dive sites spanning a diverse range of habitats and terrain. Some truly spectacular dives to enjoy out of Munda include Bilikiki, Shark Point, Langarana, and ‘Cave of the Kastom Shark’ to name a few, but my favourite was Bella Bella –

truly stunning with its layers of huge fans, and dappled sunlight casting surreal shadows on the reef wall.

As well as beautiful soft corals, the reefs around Munda have exceptionally healthy hard corals, great to see when so many reefs through the Pacific are suffering from coralbleaching. Beautifully patterned clams, cheeky anemone fish and Blue spotted rays shelter in the sandy guts under the coral heads.

Turtles frequently glide overhead.

There are some awesome wrecks dives around Munda too, and I enjoyed diving two of the WWII planes nearby; the Airacobra, an American P-39 fighter lying on

The beautiful patterned mantle of a giant clam

www.dive-pacific.com 41

A small blue-spotted ray not quite blending in!

eco lodge with no power and only basic amenities, compensated for by the friendly caretakers and fantastic local food.

the sand at around 27m, and the Douglas SBD-4 Dauntless dive bomber in Rendova Harbour, both covered in colourful encrusting life and home to interesting fish and invertebrate life.

Tetepare

After a few days diving some of Munda’s best sites, we headed out for a special overnight trip to remote and uninhabited Tetapare Island three hours by boat.

Thanks to local legends of evil

spirits, Tetepare has not been inhabited for over 200 years. It is one of the last undisturbed lowland rainforests in the Western Province and home to several endemic species of bird, bats and fish, as well as being a Marine Protected Area with some awesome diving!

After a couple of spectacular wall dives off the end of the island we went ashore to set ourselves up in the small eco lodge and meet the local rangers. This is an authentic

Releasing a turtle back into the water after measuring and tagging

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After our dives one of the rangers took us further up the island by boat to Crocodile lake, small and picturesque, with a mirror-like green surface that looked empty until the ranger gave a bark like a dog (a croc’s favourite food)! A minute later a large croc surfaced, his head pointed toward our hiding place on shore! Saltwater crocodiles are far more of a risk than sharks in the Solomons though you are unlikely to see one while diving.

Turtle tagging Later that night we went out looking for the massive Coconut crabs found here, and the following

Splashes of colour adorn this Airocobra sitting at 28M The Airacobra sits on the sand at 28M

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Saltwater crocodile - more dangerous than any shark!

morning accompanied the rangers on a turtle-tagging mission in the lagoon. It was fascinating to see their ‘rodeo-style’ capture technique... diving off the bow to grab the turtle and wrestle it up onto the boat! The captured turtles (Green’s) were then taken back to the beach, measured, weighed, tagged and released.

Since the program began rangers have tagged over1500 turtles around Tetepare.

Nusa Kunda

My final experience with Dive Munda was a trip across to Nusa Kunda or ‘Skull Island’ on Vonavona Lagoon. This tiny island definitely emanates an eerie

Spectacular sea fans 44 Dive New Zealand | Dive Pacific

atmosphere being the resting place for the skulls of Rendovan chiefs and their vanquished enemies.

Dating from the 1920’s when the practice of head-hunting was coming to an end, the skulls rest in wooden alcoves on top of a waisthigh burial mound, a reminder of the Solomons fascinating history.

I was sorry to leave Munda. I had experienced some spectacular diving, made lasting friendships,

had a taste of the Solomons rich and vibrant culture, and been entranced by its beautiful scenery.

I am going to miss Munda’s spectacular golden sunsets, friendly locals, delicious local food and amazing marine life, but it definitely wont be my last visit.

If you haven’t been already, make sure not to miss the beautiful, wild and exciting dive destination that is the Solomon Islands.

Solomon Is. Diving TAKE THE PLUNGE

visitsolomons.com.sb

www.dive-pacific.com 45

SOUNDINGS

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Grave concerns held over Rennell Island environmental disaster

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ourism Solomons CEO, Josefa ‘Jo’ Tuamoto expressed grave concern for the impact from the oil spillage that f lowed from a grounded bulk carrier, the Hong Kong f lagged Solomon Trader, on pristine Rennell Island.

Rennell Island is nearly 250km from the nearest main dive location – the Florida and

Russell Islands. Other main dive sites on Guadalcanal and in Munda and Gizo in the Western Province are similarly unaffected.

At least 75 tonnes of oil spillage took place in Februar y. Rennell Island was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1998 and is the largest raised coral atoll in the world. Home to 1200 people, the oil leak poses a major threat to the island which is located in the southernmost tip of the 992- island archipelago and home to many unique marine species.

“We are beyond grateful at the quick action of our Australian and New Zealand friends to try and minimise what has the potential to become a major ecological disaster,” Mr Tuamoto said.

“With tourism, and particularly dive tourism growing in importance as a key economical driver for the Solomon Islands, this situation obviously holds great concern for us. International divers make up a large percentage of the 28,000 international

46 Dive New Zealand | Dive Pacific

visitors we host every year.

“The best thing our international visitors can do to help the people of Rennell Island, and by extension the people of the Solomon Islands who are so dependent on tourism, is to keep their travel plans on track.

Meanwhile the operation to salvage the Solomon Trader was boosted by UK and US oil spill containment specialists who joined a team of Australian and New Zealand experts.

Containment booms were put in place and actions taken to extract the remaining oil on board the ship.

SOUNDINGS

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Costa Rica drops all charges against Sea Shepherd Captain Paul Watson Closure after 17 years of legal dispute he Criminal Appeals Court of the Second Judicial Circuit of San José has ruled in favour of Captain Paul Watson, founder of the Sea Shepherd Conser vation Society, and dropped all charges against him, bringing an end to a 17 year legal dispute and 13 year-old international arrest warrant.

The legal dispute began on April 20, 2002, when the vessel Ocean Warrior, under the command of Captain Watson, was heading to Costa Rica at the invitation of their government. Sea Shepherd had been invited to sign a collaboration agreement for the protection of the world-renowned marine sanctuar y, Cocos Island.

The year prior, Sea Shepherd provided the Cocos Island National Park Rangers with equipment and a ship to arrest and confiscate an Ecuadorianf lagged vessel, the San Jose, for illegally fishing in the protected area of the island.

In 2002, the Ocean Warrior ran into the Costa Rican vessel Varadero 1, whose crew, they discovered, were illegally finning sharks in Guatemalan territorial waters. After the Varadero 1 ignored several requests to cease the practice,

Varadero I

Captain Watson received authorization from the Guatemalan naval authorities to escort the vessel to the nearest port for arrest.

The crew of the Varadero 1 then filed several baseless accusations against Captain Watson which created the legal battle earning great notoriety and world attention, and generating a series of criticisms against Costa Rica for the legal action taken against one of the most world’s most respected environmental activists. The entire incident was featured in the film Sharkwater by late Canadian director Rob Stewart.

Captain Watson released the following statement praising the work of his team, his attorney and the government and people of Costa Rica: “Thanks to the determination and insistence of our legal defense team, this difficulty is now in the past. I want to thank the people of Costa Rica for their solidarity, the equanimity of their current government, and especially the understanding and support of the Minister of the Environment, Carlos Manuel Rodríguez Echandi. Now it is time to look ahead and resume the conservation efforts that our organization and thousands of people make every day around the world to defend the environment.

During all of these years, my sincere desire has always been to protect, together with Costa Rican people, the beautiful natural sanctuary that is the Isla del Coco, and other endangered areas linked to the Marine Corridor of the Eastern Tropical Pacific like the Golfo Dulce

Images Credit: Sea Shepherd

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and the Osa Peninsula. I hope that, now, with this dismissal of these charges against me, we can make it a reality.”

This case had earlier resulted in the arrest of Captain Paul Watson in Germany in May of 2012 due to a Costa Rican extradition request to Germany.

Upon Watson’s arrest, Japan also put in an extradition request. Germany made the decision to extradite Captain Watson to Japan. Captain Watson escaped from Germany and went to Antarctica to oppose the Japanese whalers for a final year.

A month after the escape, Germany requested Interpol to put a Red List notice on Watson for both Costa Rica and Japan. The whole ordeal caused worldwide outrage and further strengthened support for Sea Shepherd’s anti-whaling campaigns in Antarctica.

Sea Shepherd’s inter ventions against the Japanese whaling f leet were featured in the Emmy award-winning TV series “Whale Wars”.

Established in 1977, Sea Shepherd Conservation Society (SSCS) is an international non-profit, marine wildlife conservation organization whose mission is to end the destruction of habitat and slaughter of wildlife in the world’s oceans to protect ecosystems and species.

Visit www.seashepherd.org

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SOUNDINGS

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Wakatobi adds to boat fleet G

uests of Wakatobi Resort can now experience the ultimate in personalized diving and snorkeling aboard a new 70-foot boat custom-built boat for private charters and excursions. Wakatobi VII is the latest addition to the resort's f leet of custom-built dive launches.

The Wakatobi VII follows the style of traditional Indonesian boat designs and built locally to Wakatobi's specifications.

Rather than the full-length bench seating found on the resort's other boats, the spacious covered deck of the new boat is configured for the comfort of a small group, with a dining area, forward sun lounges, kitchen station and a changing room with full bathroom and shower.

A special feature is an upper deck, which can be used for sightseeing, sunning or enjoying dinner under the stars.

The centre portion of the boat is devoted to dive support, with gear stations, a rinse tank and side doors that allow for easy water entries and exits.

Wakatobi VII

Guests of the resort can charter Wakatobi VII for full day excursions that include meals and crew, an option that allows divers and snorkelers to visit their sites of choice and stay out as long as they wish, whether lingering at sites furthest from the resort–such as Blade– or staying on nearby favorites such as Lorenzo’s Delight, Dunia Baru, Magnifica or Roma. Charters can also include a dusk or night dive.

The private boat option is ideal for couples, families and photographers wanting to follow a specific imaging agenda.

The Wakatobi VII currently charters for USD $495, and daily use of a private boat is included in the Ultimate 2-plus pool villa package.

Wakatobi Resort goes solar In another development Wakatobi Resort is to tie into a solar power network to supply a substantial portion of the property's electrical power needs.

Wakatobi's efforts to bring solar power to the region date back more than a dozen years. At that time, resort founder Lorenz Mäder convinced the Indonesian government to establish the region's first solar power plant on the adjacent island of Tomia (where the resort’s private airstrip is situated).

This 75-kilowatt photovoltaic installation though small, was a start. Some years later a second solar installation was added at Lamanggau on Onemobaa, the island on which Wakatobi Resort resides.

Lorenz sponsored the f lights that brought engineers from the American foundation that evaluated, financed and installed the facility.

Thanks in part to Lorenz's ongoing work on bringing solar power to the Wakatobi region, Tomia is currently the only island in Eastern Indonesia entirely powered by solar power on a sunny day, with photovoltaic plants that collectively produce a megawatt of electricity, about a third of the island's total 24-hours power requirements.

This month Wakatobi Resort expects to connect to these solar power stations allowing it to take advantage of clean solar energ y during the day while drawing power from a central generation facility during the night, and maintaining the ability to operate autonomously at full power should the grid experience a temporar y blackout.

For more visit www.wakatobi.com or Wakatobi Flow Follow Wakatobi on Facebook and Instagram.

48 Dive New Zealand | Dive Pacific

An experience without equal “The diving and snorkelling at Wakatobi is outstanding, that’s well known. But also important is the excellent customer service of every staff member. Wakatobi can teach customer service to any industry or organization. You feel at home the first day, and it just gets better every day after that.” ~Steve and Cindy Moore

www.wakatobi.com www.dive-pacific.com 49

i-Torch Black Star BS30 LED Video Light

Z-330

The Black Star BS30 MonoLED I-Torch video diving light is a powerful 3000 lumen multi-purpose light with its white light and exceptional 110° beam underwater.

It is also equipped with a red light function, a UV light and blue for diving fluorescence.

Very compact, it accompanies the diver traveling without weighing down the luggage with its 350grams!

RRP $399.50 • CRI (Colour rendering index): 90 • 50 minutes at maximum power (8 hours in flash mode) • Depth: 100 metres • 2 x rechargeable 18650 Li-ion batteries • Modes: 3 modes in white light photo video (100%, 50% / 25%), 2 modes in red light (100% and 40%), 1 mode UV-blue, 1 mode S.O.S • Remote control possible by remote control and fibre optic link • YS fitting

Fantasea Radiant 2500 Light – 6045

D-2000

S-2000

seatech.co.nz

Featuring an ergonomic design and durable construction, the Radiant 2500 Video Light can be comfortably integrated into any underwater photo system, such as with action cams, amphibious cameras, compact digital housings and more. It uses 6 powerful LEDs, which provide an ultra bright, even and wide output. Featuring a wide beam angle of 120° as well as 3-level adjustable power output – control the intensity of the light for various compositions and diving conditions, as well as extending the burn time of the light.

• Colour temperature: 5,300~5,600K RRP $385.00 • Burn time: 50* minutes at 100% power • Depth: 100 metres • 2 x rechargeable 18650 Li-ion batteries • Modes: 100% / 50% / 25% power / flashing • Included in package: Instruction manual, hand lanyard, Y-S connector, 4x 18650 batteries, dual battery charger, 2x replacement O-rings, silicone grease and rubber sleeve

Bigblue VTL3500P Dual Beam LED Video & Tech Light The VTL3500P offers BOTH a flood beam at 120° AND a narrow beam at 10°!

The light is controlled by a reliable push-button on/off switching system with 4 levels of brightness for the wide beam, 1 level for the narrow beam, and 1 for the red beam. The light comes with a sturdy Goodman-style glove for hands-free operation!

• Colour Temperature: 6500K • Burn Time: 1.5 hrs (Level IV), 3 hrs (Level III), 6 hrs (Level II), 15 hrs (Level I) • Modes: 350 Lm (Level I), 875 Lm (Level II), 1750 Lm (Level III), 3500 Lm (Level IV) • Video Filters: Removable Yellow Filter • 1x rechargeable 32650 Li-ion battery • Depth: 100 metres RRP $689.50

Distributed by

Sea Tech Ltd

09 521 0684 info@seatech.co.nz www.seatech.co.nz Available from your professional dive store. Trade enquiries welcome

50 Dive New Zealand | Dive Pacific

To find these products visit www.seatech.co.nz/collections/as-seen-in-dive-pacific-magazine Prices current untill 31st June 2019

Trade enquiries welcome. Ph:09 521 0684 Email: info@seatech.co.nz

www.seatech.co.nz

All products come with full manufacturer’s warranties & New Zealand back-up service

GEARBAG

Hand held shark deterrent a first The Ocean Guardian eSPEAR is claiming to be the world’s first handheld electrical shark deterrent designed for diving, snorkelling, spearfishing and similar activities.

expedite the eSpear’s development while helping remove inhumane shark nets and drumlines.

The lightweight, easy to carry device is said to be backed by 20 years of research. It features a trigger activated extendable baton with which the user is able to create an electrical field up to a metre wide and 2.5 metres long.

Amanda Elizabeth, a shark scientist said “the reason this excites me is the fact that their devices do not harm the sharks or other marine life.”

The eSPEAR was launched recently via an Indiegogo crowdfunding campaign to help raise funds to

The eSPEAR comes in five colours at a recommended retail price $AU299.

Pulse 8X metal detector top tool for 32 years From missing handguns tossed into a lake or stream to searching a 19th century wreck the tool widely used by law enforcement, public safety dive teams, treasure hunters, commercial divers, and hobbyists is JW Fishers Pulse 8X underwater metal detector.

The Pulse 8X has been used by professional divers for the past 32 years. The unit comes equipped with a land handle and telescopic extension, an underwater handle, two chargers (AC/DC), a land headset, an underwater “bone” phone, and a diver’s belt to hipmount the unit if desired.

Low cost underwater video mini cam Protectors selected for top sailing world events The second generation of the popular MC-1 mini camera system is now available from JW Fisher with filament bulbs replaced with 1500 lumen LED’s.

The mini cam can easily be mounted to a diver's helmet or lowered into a pipe for internal inspections or lowered on a pole to perform shallow water inspections from the surface.

The camera produces sharp video sent topside for viewing on a video monitor or digital recording.

www.dive-pacific.com 51

BACK IN THE DAY Some of the following comments by Wade Doak could describe some of New Zealand’s stores today, 56 years later!

DIVE Underwater Magazine

June 1973

Vol 12. No 3

Box net not satisfactory fishing method

by Wade Doak, Editor

A

NZ Herald Staff Reporter, Hamilton, wrote:

"Alarmed at the growing concern over the placing of the joint venture box net by Japan- New Zealand Development Ltd (JND Ltd), the Mercury Club asked permission of the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries to employ a professional diver…and the services of Mr Wade Doak were obtained."

(Wade Doak’s abbreviated report follows) For me the Whitianga box net survey was a very unpleasant job, the most horrible dive of my life.

After years of photography and studying fish behaviour I had to swim over large expanses of dead fishes like an undersea Belsen horror camp. I saw trevally with their scalps laid back in a big fleshy flap, penguins lying on the bottom amidst a shambles of fish bodies, a great 30 pound snapper, rotting bodies of once magnificent kahawai and mackerel, kingfish being devoured by armies of hermit crabs.

The throat of the (teiche or box) net consists of four inch mesh and continues along the box for some distance before reducing to a final three inch mesh section where the actual catches are made. This final section is the part which is raised. The four inch mesh section forms twin walls 80 feet in height and is not raised. Here the mesh is not knotted and can expand to mesh fish larger than intended, a serious fault in the net design.

(At one stage I myself became enmeshed in billows of net. I felt empathy for the fish.)

After five consecutive days of

52 Dive New Zealand | Dive Pacific

observations at Sandy Bay, the situation was as follows: prior to my arrival, the newly placed teiche net had had very large catches of kingfish, snapper, trevally and English mackerel (but) dead fish are not acceptable to the fishing company, it appears (and) more than four tons of unwanted fish were dumped from the net and settled on the sea bed surrounding it.

My wife, Jan, describes her first look at the Whitianga box net: 18th December: "I snorkelled to the section of the net where the nine inch mesh meets the small. Then I saw my first hammerhead. I swam the whole distance (1100 yards) of the fence part and saw six hammerheads and two bronze whalers. All this was in the top 20 feet as I was snorkelling and visibility was only about 20 feet.

One of the hammerheads was still alive and kicking.

I made my second dive with Peter Spurdle. We descended to 80 feet.

After doing two transects I swam about 30 yards from the corner both ways and counted 59 kingies, 23 trevally and 29 other species meshed in the net. Nearby Wade counted 142 dead fish in a 20 foot radius circle."

***************** A third aspect of the box net fish mortality is the large 9" mesh, standing sections. This part of the box net catches many species of sharks and large kingfish and large snapper. A 100 foot length contained 12 hammerheads, five bronze whalers, one mako, 1 school shark and a 30 lb snapper.

This part of the net is never raised and is hard to monitor. On an earlier dive Dr Roger Grace found a dead common dolphin in the net.

The best indicator of the fish mortality of the teiche net is the stench in the vicinity. Entering the water there is most unpleasant as there is a layer of rotten fish oil on the surface and the water itself reeks of decaying fish. ln defending the wastage of fish at the box net, analogy with commercial trawling is often made. This is a red herring argument. Trawl nets may have a high percentage of wastage, around 50%, a serious criticism of this fishing method. However, no trawl net works in the same place 365 days of the year. Nor does it deposit its fish wastes in the same area of sea bed causing a vile stench and fouling the marine environment.

For me the only happy moment spent around the teiche net was watching, early one morning, three flying fish soar over the water within the box net confines, skim the surface, then rise and just manage to clear the mesh and gain their freedom.

Today consciousness is shifting.

Man has entered the sea, and looked at the Earth from the moon. I foresee the time approaching when certain fishes will be protected, because of their beauty and low reproduction capabilities. When we take fish from the sea for food this will have to be species whose biology we fully understand, just as we do that of cows and sheep. Otherwise we will upset the equilibrium and destroy the life of the oceans without which life for us on dry land will no longer be possible.

JND Company were eventually fined $50 for wastage of food fishes.

SPECIESFOCUS

John Dory ~Zeus faber

By Paul Caiger

There is no mistaking the cosmopolitan John Dory. This striking looking fish goes by many other names, among them St. Peter’s fish. The alternative name comes from the legend that St. Peter picked this fish up in the Sea of Galilee but instead of keeping it, returned it to the sea with the black mark on the side of the fish said to be his thumbprint. The name John Dory itself is possibly derived from the French ‘jaune doré’, or golden yellow.

In New Zealand this fish has a storied history too. It has been treasured in Maori for centuries as a food source whereby it is known as kuparu. When Captain Cook first reached these shores, Maori gave some to him. Accounts have it that several casks of them were pickled for the long journeys ahead.

Despite the unusual appearance of the John Dory it’s morphology is highly functional. The aforementioned “thumbprint” serves as a false eye-spot, ro confuse would be predators. Furthermore, the extremely compressed body combined with its long fin spines and membranes, golden colour and behaviour, help the fish blend in with its surroundings. When

oriented head-on, the fish is paper-thin and hard to spot, and it can even mimic the kelp it drifts amongst.

These factors aid in predator avoidance while also helping it sneak up on prey. Slowly approaching prey head-on, the John Dory possesses a highly protractible jaw, and utilizes a prime example of what is known as suction feeding. The swift expansion of its mouth creates a rapid pressure difference, resulting in water and any prey within range being literally sucked into the mouth.

The species is targeted by commercial fisheries around the world, and in New Zealand mostly in the North Island. They are targeted chiefly by undesirable bottom trawling methods but also caught as bycatch in seine nets. There is also a recreational interest in John Dory for both line and spear fishing. Notable to fishermen is the loud barking vocalisations John Dory produce when caught.

Underwater, this is thought to be used as a territorial display against other fishes.

~Zeus faber called St. Peter’s fish with a reference to 1 Otheften“thumbprint”.

alse eye-spot used as a defense mechanism to 5 Fconfuse predators.

ound in New Zealand but also temperate to 2 Fsubtropical coastal waters around the world.

redated upon by seals, sharks and other large 6 Pfishes..

3 Known as kuparu in Maori. amouflages itself by facing head-on to appear 4 Cvery slim, and even mimic kelp.

7 A prime example of suction feeding in a fish.

8 Barks loudly when disturbed or caught.

www.dive-pacific.com 53

INCIDENTINSIGHTS WITH THE DIVERS ALERT NETWORK (DANAP]

By DAN World

Decompression sickness?

Stroke?

A diving holiday to the Philippines turns into a life-threatening health scare as a diver experiences severe dizziness and vomiting an hour after his dive.

apparent issues. However, one hour later, while resting in his bed at the hotel, he started to feel as though the room was spinning.

This was followed by an episode of vomiting. A few minutes later

…On surfacing the diver had no apparent issues. However, one hour later he started to feel as though the room was spinning… followed by an episode of vomiting…

The diver: A 60-year-old male in

he also developed a tingling sensation in both of his hands.

The Diver’s experience:

He informed the dive resort of his symptoms and was put on oxygen for 20 minutes via nasal canula with no relief so was taken to a nearby hospital by road. Requiring further treatment, the diver was transferred to another hospital (also by road and approximately 90 minutes in duration) for higher level care including further evaluation and management.

(Note: A nasal canula provides insufficient oxygen for managing a diving accident. At a flowrate of only 1-6 litres per minute the percentage of oxygen inspired is quite low at 24-44%).

good general health.

Advanced Open Water Certified.

The trip: Liveaboard diving

holiday to Coron, Philippines.

The trip: Dive holiday in Anilao, Philippines.

The dives: On the day of the

incident the diver had completed three dives on air. He went into deco on his final dive so performed a 6 minutes deco stop at 3 metres. Along with his divemaster, he descended to 5 metres to complete a 15 minutes safety stop.

The dive profiles: ay 1: D • Max depth - 15m; Total Dive Time (TDT) - 40 minutes Day 2: • Dive 1: 25.3m for 59 minutes.

Surface Interval of 1 hour.

• Dive 2: 19.7m for 1 hour and 11 minutes. Surface interval of 1hour 15 minutes.

• Dive 3: 17.4m for 1 hour and 11 minutes.

ONSET OF SYMPTOMS On surfacing the diver had no

54 Dive New Zealand | Dive Pacific

He underwent a US Navy Table 6 Treatment. After this treatment the diver could stand but staggered when trying to walk, falling to one side, and he was still dizzy.

The decision was made for the diver to undergo a second Table 6 Treatment. When reassessed after this treatment it was found that, while there was improvement, he still had trouble with his balance.

The diver underwent a third and final recompression treatment (Table 9).

DIAGNOSIS Decompression Sickness Type II

RECOVERY The diver was discharged the day after his final recompression treatment. While his balance had not fully recovered, he was in much better condition, and the dizziness had nearly fully resolved.

The treating doctor provided

…this diver also had the symptom of tongue deviation, another possible indicator that he had experienced a stroke…

TREATMENT

these recommendations:

On admission to the hospital the diver was given oxygen. While he was in the emergency department a Cerebrovascular Accident was considered by the doctor, and as a result he was referred to a neurologist and a Cranial CT-scan was undertaken. A Cerebrovascular Accident was ruled out and the diver was managed for DCS Type II. It was found that while he could sit up on his own he could not stand due to severe dizziness.

It was also found that his tongue was deviated to the left.

• No diving for 30 days or 4 weeks after the last chamber treatment.

• No airline travel or driving through mountains or high altitude for a minimum of 96 hours after the last chamber treatment.

• Avoid doing strenuous activities • Follow-up with a Diving Medical Officer in two weeks.

COSTS • Hospital: USD 3,441.28 • Chamber: USD 6,100.00 Total USD$9541.28 Fully Covered by DAN AP

KEEPING DIVERS SAFE

AROUND THE WORLD

ANALYSIS Brain injury can result from external trauma (blunt injury, falls) or from interruptions in blood flow within the brain. The latter of these is known as a cerebral vascular accident (CVA) or stroke, which is what the doctors first suspected when the diver presented at the hospital. The fact this diver also had the symptom of tongue deviation was another possible indicator that the diver had experienced a stroke, as the mechanism is similar with bubbles obstructing the blood flow to parts of the brain. However, it is likely this doctor was not familiar with diving medicine.

After testing, stroke was ruled out and the diver was diagnosed with Type II DCS. Symptoms of Type II DCS are considered more serious.

They typically fall into three categories: neurological, inner ear and cardiopulmonary. Neurological symptoms may include numbness; pins and needles or tingling (paraesthesia), an altered sensation, muscle weakness; an impaired gait, or difficulty walking; problems with physical coordination or bladder control; paralysis; or a change in mental status, such as confusion or lack of alertness.

It is common for divers to be assessed by a neurologist before being treated for DCI to rule out CVA. Type II symptoms can develop at different speeds. A slow build up can obscure the seriousness of the situation by allowing denial to persist.

Less common symptoms, such as difficulty walking, urinating, hearing or seeing - especially if their onset is quick - can prompt faster recognition and action.

Fortunately, the diver in this case acted fast and requested help at the first onset of symptoms, so he was able to receive prompt treatment and ultimately, he recovered well.

For more diving health and safety articles follow our Blog where we discuss topical diving health and safety issues.

Visit: daninsider.org and follow us on Facebook by searching DAN Asia Pacific.

SAFETY MATTERS

JOIN DAN + 24/7 Emergency Medical Services + Emergency Medical Evacuation Assistance

+ Membership & Assistance Coverage + First Aid Training + Online Dive Safety Resources

Need more information? Send DAN AP an email (info@ danap.org) or call +61-3-9886 9166

DANAP.ORG

www.dive-pacific.com 55

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Leopard seal applies for residency Three dive pioneers pass on

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Whales, sharks, paradise

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Poor Knights: Rich days of wonder

The richest marine ecosystem on Earth

The no-brainer case for more, bigger marine reserves Shark feeding regs tightening?

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The Kiwi Boxfish story

the Year - finalists

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RUN1167

What you see is what you get in Niue. And what you see diving is everything.

With crystal clear waters, surrounding the world’s largest uplifted coral atoll, you can see up to 80m in any direction. A world teeming with healthy marine life.

A world waiting for you to discover.

Start discovering Niue today, www.niueisland.com www.dive-pacific.com 57

S H A D E S O F C O LO U R P H OTO G R A P H I C C O M P E T I T I O N

Being in the right spot at the right time brings results

By Dave Moran, Editor at Large

O

ne of the joys of underwater photography is that you never know what will present itself to your camera’s lens during the dive.

I encourage you to have your camera as your personal buddy, both on land and while diving – you will improve, I guarantee!

All four winners this issue were observant enough and quick enough to seize the mo-ment/opportunity to recognize a subject that had that little extra X factor that elevates an average image to a winning image.

The judges again encourage the use of post photographic programs such as Adobe Light-room to improve the final presentation of an image.

Give it a go --- it can be fun seeing what you can do!

This “opportunity to grab the moment” takes time to develop.

The judges and the team at Dive New Zealand/Dive Pacific magazines look forward to receiving your personal masterpieces. See: www.divenewzealand. com click on Photo Competition. It’s free to enter. You can view galleries of all the entries over www.seatech. co.nz/blogs/shades-of-colour-photo-competition

The more time you spend underwater taking images the sooner this skill of recognizing a photo-graphic opportunity becomes second nature!

The old saying is never more true – the more you do something, the better you will become at doing it.

Thanks for taking the time to enter!

‘Friendly loggerhead turtle’; Byron Bay, New South Wales, Australia: Sony a7R III, Nauticam NA-A7RIII housing, Canon 8-15 mm lens with Metabones V adapter, Zen 100mm port, 2 x Sea & Sea YS-D2 strobes.

A dvanced Category Winner:

Congratulations Simon Pierce, New Zealand Simon was diving at Julian Rocks in Byron Bay, Australia, in December 2018 when this friendly loggerhead turtle called by to say “Hi!” Simon did some basic

58 58 Dive DiveNew NewZealand Zealand| |Dive DivePacific Pacific

cropping, colour and contrast edits with Lightroom. Backscatter removal in Photoshop.

Simon receives a Gift Voucher for NZ$100.

Judges’ comments: This is a stunning close-focus

wide angle image of an inquisitive turtle. It seems just slightly overexposed. A reduction in the turtle’s highlights in Adobe Lightroom would have made it perfect.

The background is well lit and in good focus, congratulations!

‘Protective Clownfish’; Talumben, Bali: Canon 5D MkIII, Canon macro 100mm, Ikelite housing, 2 x Ikelite DS161 strobes – f/16, 1/200, ISO 100

Novice Category Winner: Congratulations, Stephen Hopkins, New Zealand.

Stephen was diving the waters of Talumben, Bali when he decided to take some time capturing the beautiful image of this cheeky clownfish whose home was within

an unusual anemone. Finally, the anemone parted, and the little guy spun around to face the intruder into his domain – love it!

Stephen receives a Gift Voucher for NZ$75.

Judges’ comments: We can’t really find anything wrong with this image! The really interesting subject here is not only the clownfish – it's also the anemone! The anemone has interesting coloured tentacles. Excellent lighting.

Advanced Highly Commended:

Congratulations Mark Blomfield, New Zealand.

Well spotted Mark! A cheeky crested blenny on the Canterbury Wreck in Northland New Zealand.

Mark receives a Gift Voucher for NZ$75.

Judges’ comments: This is a beautiful pin-sharp image.

We would have liked to see slighter greater exposure on the fish and less on the surrounding edges… easy to fix in Lightroom!Having said that, the surrounding cavity frames the crested blenny nicely!

‘Crested Blenny on Canterbury Wreck’; Northland, New Zealand: Nikon D7200 in Sea & Sea housing, 105mm micro lens, 2 x Sea & Sea YS-30 Duo strobes – f/32, 1/200, ISO100

www.divenewzealand.com 59

S H A D E S O F C O LO U R P H OTO G R A P H I C C O M P E T I T I O N

Novice Highly Commended: Congratulations, Sarah Milicich, New Zealand.

Marine reserves are just wonderful for photography and Taputeranga Marine Reserve in Princess Bay, Wellington did not disappoint Sarah for presenting subjects to photograph such as this impressive octopus.

Sarah receives a Gift Voucher for NZ$50.

Judges’ comments:

This image is technically not perfect but catching this exciting interaction between an inquisitive blue cod and octopus makes it a high scorer.

A little bit of post production work could have made it the winner!

Note: Octopus and cod are neatly arranged on a diagonal, well done, Sarah. A great natural history image!

The judges, Iain Anderson and Andy Belcher and the team at Dive Pacific magazines look forward to receiving your photographic masterpieces in May for the July-September issue.

‘Confrontation’; Taputeranga Marine Reserve, Wellington: Canon SX280, Canon WP-DC49 housing – f/3.5, 1/60, ISO800 Sea Tech is the official New Zealand distributor of Ikelite, Fantasea, Recsea, Inon, Bigblue, Nauticam and other leading brands of underwater photographic equipment.

Visit: www.seatech.co.nz or for personal service email: info@seatech.co.nz

Image by Shades of Colour contestant Dan Westerkamp

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www.seatech.co.nz AVAILABLE FROM YOUR PROFESSIONAL MARINE & DIVE STORES. ALL TRADE ENQUIRIES WELCOME.

60 Dive New Zealand | Dive Pacific

A selection of notable photos entered for this edition's competition

(N) Nick Bell - NZ (A) David Haintz - Victoria, Australia (N) Stephen Hopkins - Wellington, NZ

(A) Mark Blomfield - NZ

(A) Dave Weeks - Calgary, Canada

(N)Susan Harris - Roatan Honduras

(N) Sarah Milicich- Wellington, NZ

www.divenewzealand.com 61

DIGITALIMAGING Hans Weichselbaum www.digital-image.co.nz

You’d be surprised how many professionals, photographers, desktop publishers and printers are confused by these concepts of image size and resolution so this article is to help you get your head around file size, resolution, pixels per inch and dots per inch (ppi and dpi).

O

ur photographic images are made up of pixels. In contrast, vector graphics consist of lines and curves to form polygons and other shapes. When you add text to a photo that would be an example of adding vector graphics to it.

But cameras and scanners only produce pixels.

The pixels that make up an image are stored as an image file with the most common file formats being JPEG and TIFF. But there are many others. The file size will depend on the number of pixels, but also on the file compression.

Of course, we want to see the image either displayed on a screen or printed onto paper and that’s where image resolution enters the frame.

Image file size The size of a digital image is determined by the number of pixels it’s made up of. A 12 MPixel (MP) camera will give you 4000 x 3000-pixel pictures.

My example in Image 1 is a photo of a [fish] with 4288 x 2848 pixels, which gives us 12.2 MP. (It originated from a 22 MP camera and was cropped to its current size.)

Every image pixel of a colour photo is represented by three bytes of data (the red, green and blue channels). So, our 12.2 MP photo will be 12.2 x 3 = 36.6 Mbytes, which is indeed the size of the (uncompressed) TIFF file.

If you turn a colour image into black & white, you don’t have three colour channels anymore but only a single lightness channel. That’s why greyscale images are one third the size of colour images.

Most images are stored as JPEGs, and you will notice your 20 MP camera doesn’t produce 60 MB files but a lot smaller on your hard drive, perhaps 1 to 2 MB. JPEG files use file compression to save on storage space and, most importantly, to make it easier to get them across the internet.

Image 1 – [Fish], originally 4288 x 2848 pixels 62 Dive New Zealand | Dive Pacific

JPEG (Joint Photographic Experts Group) The JPEG file format originated in 1986 and was standardised in 1992. Today it is the universal file format for storing images. It’s not suitable for line drawings or other textual or iconic graphics with sharp contrast between adjacent pixels, but is ideal for photographic images.

However, you need to remember that JPEG files use file compression – lossy compression. This means that image information is discarded to reduce file size. It is amazing that you can achieve a compression of 1:10 and even 1:30 or more without visible quality degradation.

When saving a JPEG file you have a choice of different quality settings.

Photoshop works on a scale from 1 to 12, and the following Table shows some results you can get with our original 36.6 MB image file:

For saving a master file you should use a high-quality setting of 10-12.

For emailing images a medium setting is fine, and for websites use the image preview to find the lowest quality setting which doesn’t show any image degradation.

Standard monitor dimensions

If you save an image repeatedly after editing you should use an uncompressed file format, for example TIFF or PSD, because the damage to the file gets compounded. Image 2 shows the damage to the file if it is saved three consecutive times using a medium quality setting.

Image 2 – Damaged File

80lpi B&W Newsprint and 150lpi Colour CMYK print

done by the display driver with no need to worry about image resolution, although you might notice the poor quality of an up-sampled image.

If the image is going on a website, all you need is the pixel dimension since websites display one image

Image 3 – Original Image

laser and offset printer work lines per inch (lpi) is the unit we should use instead of ppi.

Monitor display vs Print resolution In offset printing print resolution is determined by the halftone screen frequency. The file resolution should be between 1.2 and 2 times the screen frequency. Newspapers are printed with a coarse 80 line screen. A 2x factor will give us a file resolution of 160 lpi. Glossy magazines typically use a 133-150 line screen and high-quality art is printed with a 200 line screen. At this high level of screen frequencies a factor of 1.5 is considered sufficient. This gives us a maximum file resolution of 225 for glossy magazines and 300 lpi for the best fine art print.

Today’s high-resolution inkjet printers work by putting 1440 to 5760 drops of ink per inch onto paper. For this we are talking of dots or drops per inch and dpi is the correct unit. Every pixel of your file needs to be dithered

Images 2 and 3 are very high magnifications of the same area from our original image. The blocks of 8 x 8 pixels introduced by the compression are clearly visible.

pixel per screen pixel. For example, a common image size would be 600 x 400 pixels, so the image needs to be resized to these dimensions.

Monitor display vs printing resolution

…If the image is going on a website, all you need is the pixel dimension since websites display one image pixel per screen pixel… (but) if the image is required for a printer, then you need to look at the pixels/inch (ppi) settings…commercial printers routinely ask for 300 dpi files…

If the image is going to be displayed electronically (on a monitor, website, projected on a screen) you only need to consider the pixel dimensions with no need to worry about the image resolution.

For example, my current screen is 52.0 x 32.5 cm and displays 1920 x 1200 pixels. This works out to 36.9 pixels/cm or 93.8 pixels/inch (ppi).

If an image is displayed full screen on my monitor and it has fewer pixels than my monitor’s native 1920 x 1200 pixels, then it’s going to be up-sampled by the display driver. If the file has more pixels, it will be down-sampled. That’s all

On the other hand, if the image is required for a printer, then the image resolution becomes important and you need to look at the pixels/inch (ppi) settings.

Commercial printers routinely ask for 300 dpi files (this should actually read ppi because we are dealing with image pixels, not ink dots). This figure goes back to the resolution of the first Laser Writers in the mid-1980s and 300 dpi has become something of a magic number for printing (as 72 dpi is for monitor display). Strictly speaking,

with many ink drops to simulate thousands of colours. You certainly don’t need to (and you shouldn’t) feed your printer with 1440 to 5760 ppi files! As with offset printing, a file resolution of 300 ppi (or dpi) is plenty for very high-quality inkjet printing.

In the next issue we’ll look at how big you can print with a given MP size file, and how to resize, and especially upsize files, to print at different sizes.

www.dive-pacific.com 63

Chapter 3:

Back to the Basics

Pt.II (abbreviated) A Practical Guide for Beginners by Alexey Zaytsev Second edition translated from the Russian exclusively for Dive magazine.

(All photo's by Alexey Zaytsev)

Alexey Zaytsev is well known amongst Russia’s dive and underwater photography community, and has undertaken professional photographic assignments in many places around the world, including many visits to Egypt, Sudan, Bali and elsewhere. To illustrate the book, and also his own credentials, Alexey is making available a selection of his fine photographic work.

Alexey lives in Auckland, New Zealand.

Focal length and aperture A numeric aperture value is determined by dividing the focal length of a lens by the diameter of its aperture at its current setting. It doesn't matter what lens you use and what focal length it has - if you set the f-stop at f 8 using one lens and then change this lens to a lens with a different focal length but keep the aperture settings at f 8, the amount of light hitting the sensor will be the same (given the shutter speed and ISO are the same).

You can calculate the aperture value using the formula: F/d = f where F is the focal length, d is the actual diameter of the aperture and f is the aperture value. If you look at the image, you will see that the more we close (reduce) the aperture, the more of these diameters can fit along the focal length.

Figure (8) shows an example where the aperture is closed to the value of f4. Once again, the higher the f number, the smaller the aperture hence less light hitting the camera sensor.

"Napoleon wrasse" St. John's Reef, Red Sea, Egypt.

"Clownfish" St. John's Reef, Red Sea, Egypt.

Nikon D300 10-17mm F3,5 on 17mm (f13; 1/125; ISO200) Ikelite housing, two strobe Ikelite DD160

Nikon D300 105 mm F2,8 (f16; 1/125; ISO200) Ikelite housing, two strobe Ikelite DS160

64 Dive New Zealand | Dive Pacific

is set to f 22 (a relative value), in reality you are shooting at f 44 (an effective value).

Why do we need effective f-stop values?

Figure (8)

Relative and effective aperture values If you add extension rings between the camera body and the lens, the distance between the lens and the sensor will increase. This generates an interesting effect: the actual aperture value will be higher than that indicated on the lens because the diameter of the diaphragm opening is divided by a larger distance between the lens and the sensor. The f-stop value indicated on the aperture scale is called a relative f-stop value; the actual value is called an effective f-stop value.

You can easily verify this effect using a macro lens by focusing the lens on infinity. Rotate the aperture dial to close down the aperture (ie the f-stop number should change from smaller to bigger). The smallest aperture will be f 22. Now focus the lens on the shortest distance. Again move the aperture dial. You will see that its value is f 64! You don't have to make any calculations; the camera will show you the effective f-stop value itself and if you want to check this number, you can calculate the effective aperture value using the following formula: fe = fr (m + 1) where fr is a relative f-stop value and m is the scale (the range of magnification). For example, if you use a macro lens that allows you to shoot with magnification of 1:1 with a relative f-stop value of 22, then fe = 22 (1/1+1) = 44.

So when you are shooting with the 1:1 magnification and the aperture

When underwater photographers shoot nudibranchs, shrimp or other underwater critters you will notice they position strobes very close to the subject because of the very large effective f-stop values required. Remember the fish and the gate? Because very little light hits the sensor, the strobes must be positioned only a few centimeters away from the subject.

DOF? Doh! Depth of field is probably the most important photographer’s tool able to affect the nature of any image.

It’s the focus range of the area in front and behind a subject that the lens is focused on that remains acceptably sharp.

Just like a paint brush in the hands of an artist, depth of field can help photographers separate out the subject by blurring the background. All it takes is opening up an aperture. The more you open it, the blurrier the background looks which is ideal for shooting portraits or small subjects that you want a viewer to focus on.

And visa versa. By stopping down the aperture you can obtain a maximum possible DoF all the way to infinity, such as for shooting landscapes‌

If the lens is focused on a remote subject eg something located three metres away, then a third of the DoF is located in front of the subject with two thirds behind it.

This ratio changes if the lens is focused on a very short distance.

Depth of field depends on four variables.

1) t he larger the f-number (smaller lens apertures), the greater the depth of field. The smaller the f-number (wider lens aperture), the smaller the DoF. 2) t he longer the shooting (focus) distance, the greater the DoF. The shorter the distance, the shallower the DoF. 3) T he shorter the focal length, the greater the DoF. The longer the focal length, the shallower the DoF. 4) S ensor size. The smaller the sensor, the greater the DoF of a lens compared to the same lens used on a full frame camera.

Eg the size of a sensor used on a mirrorless camera such as Olympus is twice as small as that of a full frame camera. A 25 mm lens (equivalent to a 50 mm lens on a full frame camera) with an aperture of 8 gives almost the same DoF as a 50 mm lens on a full frame camera with the aperture value set to 16. This great feature of a cropped sensor makes it possible to shoot at lower ISOs in natural light or to use less powerful strobes for shooting macro.

Figure (9) Glass dome port Nauticam with a diameter of 140 mm for the fisheye www.dive-pacific.com 65

The terror of diffraction the devil is not as black as painted …

Diffraction is the deviation of light when it passes close to an obstacle.

If a circular obstacle (eg a round opening in an opaque screen) is placed in the way of parallel beams of light, a diffraction pattern - a system of alternate black and white rings- will appear on a screen located behind the obstacle.

If light passes through a crack, parallel pattern lines will be seen on the screen.

Quite often, when shooting a landscape, a photographer wants to obtain the maximum possible depth of field. Logically, by stopping down the aperture he should be able to obtain higher depth of field.

However if he stops down the aperture too much, the sharpness of the image will be lost as diffraction blurs the image. So by chasing depth of field you may lose the overall sharpness of your image.

The same happens with the widest possible aperture – the overall sharpness of the image decreases significantly.

Airy disk The interference pattern generated by a round lens when it is illuminated by parallel beams of light is called the Airy disk (after scientist George Biddell Airy).

If the diameter of the central spot of the Airy disk becomes larger than the physical pixel pitch of the sensor, the image becomes blurry.

(There’s more about the sensor and pixels later in this chapter).

What this means is that there is a specific aperture value for each

Claudia Reef, Red Sea, Egypt.

NIKON D700 15 mm F2.8 (f8; 1/160; ISO200) Ikelite housing, two strobe Ikelite DS160

66 Dive New Zealand | Dive Pacific

type of camera, or its sensor, after which the sharpness of an image will deteriorate. This value is called an aperture limit. The more pixels on the sensor, the smaller their physical size. Therefore sensors with fewer pixels could produce a sharper image at higher aperture settings.

For example, a 12-megapixel sensor

of Nikon D700 makes it possible to stop a lens down to f14 without a noticeable deterioration of the image sharpness, while its younger brother D800 with a 46-megapixel sensor will noticeably blur an image at apertures smaller than f8.

But you can easily make friends with diffraction and live happily together. Try this. On a clear sunny

AF35

DS51 Award of the photo competition "Golden Turtle" 2010 (Russia) "Giant squirrelfish" St. John's Reef, Red Sea, Egypt.

Nikon D300 105 mm F2,8 (f16; 1/125; ISO200) Ikelite housing, strobe Ikelite DS160

day put a camera on a tripod, set it to the aperture priority mode A and take a series of photos at ISO100.

DS160 & 161

Focus the camera to infinity and take a series of photos at all aperture settings. Carefully study the photographs on a big screen. You will be able to see clearly what f-values result in the sharpest images.

Most likely, they will range within f5.6-8.

So if your main priority is to obtain maximum sharpness in your photos, shoot with your aperture set to mid-range values. However, if a large depth of field and a black background is important, as would be the case if you were shooting macro, don’t be afraid to close the aperture down to f16-22. The loss of sharpness caused by diffraction could easily be fixed in Photoshop during post processing.

Next time we will discuss lenses and what types there are.

Distributed by

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Trade enquiries welcome.

www.dive-pacific.com 67

DIVE STORES / TRAVEL

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68 Dive New Zealand | Dive Pacific

KIWI DIVERS SSI, TDI/SDI, RAID dive centre.

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AUCKLAND / DISTRICTS

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Sea Adventures PADI 5 Star Instructor •NZ Certified dives • Snorkel Tours • Training to Development Centre – also Technical diver•training Instructor Level • Full gearTDI hire available including CCR. Open 7 days. Dive courses – beginner Very friendly, professional & experienced to Instructor.

Club dives and trips Masters. in NZ and overseas. local Instructors & Dive Dive retail, fills, gear hire & servicing.

20 dive sites (10 to 20 minutes) including 5 wrecks 9 Marina 4View, Mana, Porirua. (including engine QANTAS Sandringham flying P: 04and 233-8238 E: old nzsa@scubadiving.co.nz boat 150 year sailing ship Star of Russia) www.scubadiving.co.nz Temp 24-28°c. Viz 10m to 40m.freediving Free pickup from Dive Kapiti Your scuba, & spearfishing Resorts town. specialists in the heart of theinKapiti coast. Quality servicing, airfills, dive training,27518 Kapiti Island dive & P: +678 or email: spearfishing trips and retail sales. Full range of Cressi dive@bigbluevanuatu.com products, our friendly staff are always happy to help! www.bigbluevanuatu.com 27 Milne Drive Paraparaumu 5032.

For your safety Vanuatu has P: 04 297 0075 E: craig@divekapiti.co.nz recompression facilities. www.divekapiti.co.nz

On the seafront downtown Port Vila.

• Certified dives • Snorkel Tours • Training to Instructor Level • Full gear hire available • Very friendly, professional & experienced local Instructors & Dive Masters.

20 dive sites (10 to 20 minutes) including 5 wrecks (including 4 engine QANTAS Sandringham flying boat and 150 year old sailing ship Star of Russia)

Temp 24-28°c. Viz 10m to 40m. Free pickup from Resorts in town.

P: +678 27518 or email: dive@bigbluevanuatu.com www.bigbluevanuatu.com For your safety Vanuatu has recompression facilities.

www.dive-pacific.com 69

DIVE STORES / TRAVEL / PRODUCTS / SERVICES

Fiordland Discovery Fiordland boasts some of New Zealand’s most spectacular diving, fishing and hunting.

We offer six-day, five-night private charters in the Fiords and the Tasman Sea. Be one of the first to discover Fiordland aboard our luxurious new cruise boat, the Fiordland Jewel. Multi-day cruises, private charters and individual bookings are available for diving, fishing & hunting. #Fiordlandjewel P: 0800 100 105 or +64 3 441 3322 E: hello@fiordlanddiscovery.co.nz www.fiordlanddiscovery.co.nz www.facebook.com/FiordlandDiscovery Waikawa Dive Centre located at Waikawa Marina, Picton. Offering dive training and trips through the Marlborough Sounds. Fully-certified dive cylinder filling/testing, dive gear servicing/repairs, hire gear.

Carrying a multi-brand range of diving equipment.

Open 7 days during summer. Ready to take care of all your diving needs.

P: 03-573-5939, F: 03-573-8241 waikawadive@xtra.co.nz www.waikawadivecentre.co.nz www.facebook.com/WaikawaDiveCentre Deep Blue Diving Making diving affordable for all divers. The Deep Blue brand is well known for its value for money and has a strong company reputation for delivering quality and excellent service. Visit our website or come in and see us for a huge range of dive gear, equipment servicing, tank filling, gear hire and Padi training.

15B Byron St, Sydenham, Christchurch 8025.

P: 03 332 0898 E: sales@deepbluediving.co.nz www.deepbluediving.co.nz

INTERNATIONAL DIVE OPERATORS AND RESORTS AUSTRALIA

DIVE COMPRESSOR

sales and servicing

High Pressure Equipment NZ Ltd

Pro Dive Cairns Offers the highest quality, best value PADI dive courses and 3-day liveaboard Outer Great Barrier Reef dive trips in Cairns. We have 16 exclusive dive sites across 4 different reefs to choose from and departures 6 days/week.

Check out www.prodivecairns.com or call us on +617 4031 5255 or E: info@prodivecairns.com Spirit of Freedom visits the remote dive destinations of Cod Hole, Ribbon Reefs, and Coral Sea. The 37m vessel offers spacious en-suite cabins, every comfort on board, and exceptional service. Marine encounters include the potato cod feed, Minke whales in season, and the shark dive at Osprey Reef.

E: info@spiritoffreedom.com.au www.spiritoffreedom.com.au Tusa Dive Cairns local day dive operators with over 30 years experience diving the Great Barrier Reef.

Tusa’s fast modern catamaran the Tusa 6 will visit two unique sites where you can enjoy up to three dives in the day. Tusa Dive also offer a great day out for snorkellers. P: 00617 4047 9100 E: info@tusadive.com www.tusadive.com

p h 0 9 -444

Master Agents for Bauer Kompressoren in New Zealand and have been for the past 20 years.

• Servicing & repairs of all compressor brands: Bauer, Poseidon, Coltri, Bristol, Brownie. and most other brands.

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New Zealand Master Agents for: BAUER KOMPRESSOREN compressors/spare parts BAUER-POSEIDON compressors and spare parts

Contact us at: ph 09 444 0804, fax 09 443 1121

32 Parkway Drive, Mairangi Bay, Auckland.

Email info@highpressure.co.nz

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HDS Australia-Pacific

PO Box: 347 Dingley Village Victoria 3172, Australia. www.classicdiver.org

COOK ISLANDS Dive Aitutaki with Bubbles Below Explore Aitutaki’s underwater world with Bubbles Below. Only 40 minutes from mainland Rarotonga to the picturesque island of Aitutaki.PADI dive courses Beginner to Dive Master. Manned boats during dives! Safety and enjoyment paramount! ‘Take only Memories & Leave only Bubbles Dive Safe, Dive Rite, Dive Bubbles Below!’ www.diveaitutaki.com E: bubblesbelow@aitutaki.net.ck The Dive Centre – The Big Fish PADI 5-star dive operator. Services: intro/lagoon dives, dive trips twice a day, courses, retail and rental gear. 2 boats, boats are manned with an instructor, 7 days, night dives. Aroa Beach by the Rarotongan Resort.

dnz164

P: 682 20238 or 682 55238 E: info@thedivecentre-rarotonga.com www.thedivecentre-rarotonga.com

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DNZ163

Dive HQ Christchurch 30 years industry experience, Christchurch’s only PADI 5 Star Instructor Development Centre and Adventure Activities Certified for SCUBA diving and snorkelling. Busy retail store selling the world’s leading brands and offering PADI recreational and tertiary SCUBA qualifications. Full range of spearfishing equipment including breath hold courses. Quality gear hire, service centre, Enriched Air training and filling station, local and international dive and spearfishing trips.103 Durham St Sth. Sydenham, Christchurch.

Freephone 0800-DIVEHQ. P: (03)379- 5804 www.diveskiworld.co.nz E: sales@diveskiworld.co.nz

recompression facilities.

recompression facilities.

More information on Dive Stores, Clubs & Travel at www.DiveNewZealand.com

FIJI

VANUATU

Subsurface Fiji Visit Fiji for fun, relaxing tropical diving. Subsurface Fiji PADI 5-Star Dive shops are located in the beautiful Mamanuca Islands, offering daily trips and courses to some of the best dive spots in Fiji. Subsurface provides full diving services from Musket Cove, Plantation, Malolo, Likuliku, Tropica, Lomani, Funky Fish, Namotu, Tavarua, Wadigi & Navini Island Resorts.

E: info@subsurfacefiji.com www.subsurfacefiji.com (DNZ159)

Nautilus Watersports Vanuatu’s longest running dive operation in Port Vila with 30+ years’ experience.

Nautilus offers 4 dives a day (double dive both morning and afternoon). We also offer PADI course from Discover Scuba right through to Dive Master. For dive groups we can also offer diving/accommodation packages. P: Peter or Leanne +678 22 398 www.nautilus.com.vu E: nautilus@vanuatu.com.vu

Mantaray Island Resort Yasawa Islands – Fiji – Over 40 dive sites ; vibrant reefs, stunning coral gardens, caves, swim throughs, wall dives, drop offs, shark dives, turtles, and a stunning house reef. Fiji’s only accredited free-diving school, Mantaray swimming May–Oct. Small group diving in a safe and enjoyable environment visit us at www.mantarayisland.com Volivoli Beach Resort offers you relaxed, unspoilt white sandy beaches in a spectacular part of Fiji. Ra Divers operates from the resort giving you a water wonderland on the worlds best soft coral dive sites.

The Fiji Siren is a livaboard boat offering you 7 and 10 night dive packages. www.volivoli.com E: info@volivoli.com P: +679 9920942

SOLOMONS Raiders Hotel and Dive Wreck and Reef diving, Accommodation, Bar and dining, Snorkelling Hiking and more. Located 1 hour from Honiara on the waterfront of the historic Tulagi harbour. Dive Discover – Relax. www.raidershotel.com email raidershotel@solomon.com.sb ph +677 7594185 / 7938017 SIDE Dive Munda – Dive the unexplored Experience Magical Munda at Agnes Gateway Hotel.

Award winning service and pristine diving. SSI Instructor Training Centre. WWII wrecks, caves and reefs – untouched and unspoilt. www.divemunda.com divemunda@dive-solomon.com Find us on Twitter, Facebook & Instagram SIDE TAKA Dive See more of the Solomon Islands by liveaboard! Save $700 on a 7 night booking on board MV Taka: 7 Nights Accommodation; 3 gourmet meals daily; 24 Dives – sharks, WWII wrecks, manta rays, night dives; Round trip airport transfers. Conditions apply. For more information or to make a reservations: book@dive-solomon.com Tulagi Dive Solomon Islands An underwater paradise for marine life and explore the many ships and aircraft wrecks at the famous Iron Bottom Sound. We offer the PADI and TDI courses. Phone (+677) 25700 www.tulagidive.com dive@tulagidive.com

THIS SPACE

COULD BE YOURS

DIVE HOLIDAY Travelandco At travel&co (previously Dive Fish Snow Holidays) we’ve been crafting tailor-made active travel trips and experiences for over 30 years.

Our team of active travel experts share your On the downtown Port Vila. passion forseafront adventure and can help book an active travel experience that goes Certified dives • Snorkel Tours • Training to •exceptional beyond the ordinary.

Fromhire wreck or reef diving, Instructor Level • Full gear available • learning to dive, to liveaboard adventures - for Very friendly, professional & experienced insider tips on the best dive locations and local Instructors & Dive Masters. tailormade diving experiences let your active 20travel dive sites (10 to 20 minutes) journey start with us. including 5 wrecks (including 4 engine QANTAS Sandringham flying t: 09 479 2210 Toll free NZ: 0800 555 035 boat and 150 year old sailing ship Star of Russia) e: enquire@travelandco.nz www.travelandco.nz/dive Temp 24-28°c. Viz 10m to 40m. Free pickup from Resorts in town.

TRIPS/CHARTERS

P: +678 27518 or email:

C R U I S E dive@bigbluevanuatu.com FIORDLAND fish

•

20 dive sites (10 to 20 minutes) including 5 wrecks (including 4 engine QANTAS Sandringham flying boat and 150 year old sailing ship Star of Russia)

Temp 24-28°c. Viz 10m to 40m. Free pickup from Resorts in town.

P: +678 27518 or email: dive@bigbluevanuatu.com www.bigbluevanuatu.com For your safety Vanuatu has recompression facilities.

SPEAKERS/LECTURERS Available for talks to dive clubs etc. You can find full details on these speakers/lectures at www.DiveNewZealand.co.nz/dive-in-nz/dive-shops/ Terry Brailsford Wreck diving for gold & treasure. Incl the Rothschild jewellery, search for General Grant.

0274 958816, theadmiral@xtra.co.nz Tony Howell History and entertainment with lots of rare historical photos and illustrations – 12 powerpoints in total. 45 mins –1 hr each.

Contact me for topics. 04 233-8238, www.scubadiving.co.nz tony@scubadiving.co.nz

(DNZ156)

Outer Gulf Charters One hour north of Auckland CBD Providing divers with the ultimate diving day out with diver lift, fast/comfortable travel, hot water shower, and all the tea and coffee you want.

Recommended Dive Sites: Goat Island Marine Reserve, Mokohinau Islands, Great/Little Barrier, Sail Rock/Hen & Chickens in style. Trip schedule and info www.outergulfcharters.co.nz or phone Julie 021 827 855

PLACE AN AD WITH US

Dr Roger Grace ‘Why do we need no-take zones?’; ‘20 years as a Greenpeace photographer’.

021 126 5292, gracer@xtra.co.nz Darren Shields Spearfishing titles,uw cameraman, author. Motivating/compelling/innovative/inspiring/ entertaining P: 09-4794231, 021839118, darren@wettie.co.nz Jamie Obern Technical instructor/cave diver, 20+ years exp. globally. Photos/video: uw caves in Mexico, USA, UK, NZ, Australia. Techdive NZ/GUE NZ instructor. P: 021 614 023, www.techdivenz.com jamie@techdivenz.com Dave Moran Ching Dynasty porcelain from the Tek Sing. P: Dive New Zealand 09-521 0684, E: divenz@DiveNewZealand.co.nz Samara Nicholas M.O.N.Z -Programme Director: Experiencing Marine Reserves – Te Kura Moana: samara@emr.org.nz www.emr.org.nz www.facebook.com/emr.mtsct P: 09 4338205 or 0210362019 (field only)

colin@affinityads.com

ADVERTISERS’ INDEX

Very friendly, professional & experienced local Instructors & Dive Masters.

h u nwww.bigbluevanuatu.com t • dive • cruise

your safety Vanuatu has Fish, Hunt, DiveFor or Cruise aboard the fully facilities. or refurbished MV recompression Cindy Hardy. Fiordland Stewart Island, our scenic cruises will provide you with a once in a lifetime experience.

Everything is provided regardless of how short or long your time on board with us is.

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Captain Cook Cruises Reef Endeavour and Tivua Island are 5 star PADI operations – Discover Scuba – Scuba Dive – Open water dive – Advance Wreck Dive, MV Raiyawa at Tivua Island. Fiji P: +679 6701 823 E: fiji@captaincookcruisesfiji.com www.captaincookcruisesfiji.com

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