Scubashooters net e mag issue n19 sep 2016

ISSUE

N°19 S E P 2016

PORTFOLIO

PASQUALE VASSALLO

TIGER BEACH BAHAMAS DREAM

by M. Lonfat

THE VERCOR REGION

by C. Weber-Gebert

GOING BACK TO BASIC

by M. Barrow

ITALIAN SEA STEEDS

by F: Turano

REMOVE THE BACKSCATTER

by C. Umili

MONTHLY CONTEST S. H. Snowden-Smith wins “Half & Half””

Dear Scubashooters did you know that 94 percent of life on Earth is aquatic? That makes us land-dwellers a very small minority and underwater photographers an even smaller community of explorers About 70 percent of the planet is ocean, with an average depth of more than 3700 meters. Given that photons (light) can’t penetrate more than 100 meters below the water’s surface, most of our planet is in a perpetual state of darkness, that’s why we need strobes to bring out colors when we take photos underwater. Interestingly enough the great majority of the photos we see around comes from the first 40 meters below the surface... Deeper photos are possible thanks to R..O.V.s and scientific research submarines only.

Deep sea is the largest museum on Earth: There are more artifacts and remnants of history in the ocean than in all of the world’s museums, combined.

We have only explored less than 5 percent of the Earth’s oceans.

In fact, we have better maps of Mars than we do of the ocean From these numbers you can figure out the great importance on recreational scuba diving and UW photography to help scientists to better know the ocean environment and map marine life around the globe. The database architecture of our flagship website www.scubashooters.net is a great tool to help marine biologists tracking down species around the ocean and hence your contribution to the website is a great help to science too .

Stay tuned for more!

Marino Palla Owner and Founder Scubashooters Network

Cover image

“Umbrella”

by Pasquale Vassallo

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C O N T E N T S 3

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EDITORIAL

by Marino Palla

THE VERCOR REGION IN FRANCE The excitement of karst landscapes

by Claudia Weber-Gebert

TIGER BEACH Bahamas Dreams

by Michel Lonfat

GOING BACK TO THE BASICS

by Makoto Barrow and Mike Barrow

PORTFOLIO Pasquale Vassallo

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23° MONTHLY CONTEST: “Half & Half”

STOP TO BACKSCATTER WITH PHOTOSHOP

by Cristian Umili

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THE SEA STEEDS

by Francesco Turano

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OXYGEN DAN Europe

Editor: FABIO STRAZZI Verein Scubashooters, 8952 Schlieren - Switzerland

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The Vercor Region in France

The excitement of karst landscapes Words and Pictures

Claudia Weber-Gebert The karst area of the Vercors is located in the foothills of the France-Alps, bounded on the East by Grenoble and on the West by Valence in the Rhone valley.

This location is an insiders‘ tip where tourism has grown very slowly, barely industry, no congested roads, no large concrete tourist centers and just one small supermarket – a petit commerce.

Quiet and contemplative, characterized by marked crafts, agriculture and tourism. The region is known by scientists and mountaineers, hikers, base jumpers, speleologists, bat researchers and cave divers.

The access road in the territory enters into narrow gorges, where the restricted streets were partially knocked-off of the rock to form tunnels. Coming from the south via the little village of Die, serpentines lead up to the slopes of the plateau. Size restricted vehicles are only authorized to use this road. A mass tourism by buses is therefore excluded.

The Vercors, divided into two parts by the canyon of the river “La Bourne”, comprises an area of approximately 1.350 square kilometers: the North, which has opened up and developed for tourism has to offer all kinds of sporting activities - and the South, which is still wild and in its original purity.

Bizarre beauties that have arisen in the course of millions of years . In the areas made​​ available for day visitors an impressive LED lighting is used to highlight the natural beauty that is otherwise hidden in the darkness .

TRAVELS

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14 In the early 70’s of the last century, the Vercors was declared as a regional natural preserve. As for flora and fauna, one will find alpine plants and animals that are eradicated elsewhere in Europe.

The plateaus and valleys provide habitat for eagles, various birds of prey and vultures, alpine ibex and marmots. More recently, lynx and wolves have also been resettled.

Alpine plants such as edelweiss, gentian and carline thistle occur there - but a special feature are the 60 species of orchids, of which the well known lady slipper’s orchid is only one to be mentioned.

The Vercors has to offer some 2000m mountains, of which the Mont Aiguille with 2086m is not the highest, but probably the best known, as it was the cradle of alpinism. In this region the alpine mountaineering was “invented” beginning of the 15th century by Charles VIII. At that time the mountain was conquered by ropes, hooks and ladders.

Even today, many hikers and climbers come to the region, which by its status as a nature park still shows a reasonably intact mountain scenery.

The “ trap “ in the background – only way through is underwater. In the subsequent transition system with 33 km length, there are always larger caverns with air bags.

Caves Particularly impressive in this region is the subsoil with its natural attractions: the numerous stalactite caves with their bizarre structures of calcium deposits.

Five caves have so far been made accessible to visitors: Grotte de Choranche Grotte de Thaïs Grotte de la Luire Cuves de Sassenage Scialet de Draye Blanche

How did the karst area in the Vercors and this stalactite formations develop ?

Typical for the cave of Choranche are the “ fistula “ that hang from the ceiling like straws . They are hollow inside and the water drips slowly and steadily out of them. Thus, the water level in the cave is almost consistently . A fistula grows about 5 cm in 100 years. For photographers, 3-4 times a year guided photo tours are offered .

In the Mesozoic age, that was about 250 million years ago, when this area was still below sea level, reef limestone were formed and layers of marine deposits were created. This included snails, mussels and other marine life (now visible everywhere as fossils in the different rock layers).

In the Tertiary, that means 65 - 2 million years ago, rises and folds through tectonic processes have been produced by the pressure of the African plate on the Central Europe plate. Today this makes the aspect of the area, with more than 300m steep cliffs and drop-offs of the plateaus.

Rainwater, seeping away on the plateaus, have emerged the wonderful formations in the caves.

In a nutshell, this process can be explained like this: carbonated calcium is released from the limestone, caused by carbonic acid in the water - a corrosion takes place. More penetrating water leads to leaching of dissolved calcium carbonate, thereby forming large cavities in which water collects and flows.

16 At the same time, a reverse process takes place. The lime-saturated solution dripping down from the cave ceiling and leaving deposits on cave ceilings and floors, that is visible as stalactites and stalagmites after millions of year. The calcareous water forms gutters when flowing on the ground, some of them also have bizarre shapes. These wonderful and unique formations are serving as a magnet for visitors.

The Cave of Choranche As can be clearly seen on the 3D model in front of the cave of Choranche, the water runs off and only gets out above the ground when it strikes on a waterproof barrier. Until then, the water flows predominantly vertically through a 300 - 500m thick limestone layer. It is crystal clear filtered and has highest water quality.

The cave of Choranche was discovered in 1871, when in a dry period the inhabitants of Choranche were searching for the source of the river Gournier. Water came out of a gap in the rock. After having cleared away loose scree, the inhabitants found a narrow corridor which ended in a large hall with an subterranean sea. The two underground rivers “Le Coufin” and “Chevaline” flow together here.

By the dry period, the access to this hall was released. Only 20 years later, the pioneer and speleologist Oscar Descombaz (*1866-+1914) explored the caves of Choranche - after the water level had dropped again by another dry period.

Today about 100,000 people per annum are visiting the cave of Choranche and explore the natural wonders on paved paths and under the supervision of the cave guides. The part opened for tourism is well-lighted and spectacularly staged, since 2013 , with modern LED technology.

The peculiarity of the “Grotte de Choranche” are the numerous thin fistula that hang from the ceiling like straws and grow only approximately 5 cm in 100 years. This fistula is due to the constant flow of water in the grotto, as the water descends slowly, but constant in these tubes. The longest of these fistulas has a length of 3.20m.

Stalactites and stalagmites are represented in different sizes and lengths, partly they are grown together over millions of years to large columns.

In the “cathedral”, an impressive space of about 50 x 80m, an enormous amount of “tambourines” arranged in cascades can be found, round gours into which the water drops steadily from the ceiling. The water accumulates to underground lakes, which flow out through gours - a bizarre world is formed.

Bournillon Detail shots of stalactites and stalagmites . In nature, there are no limits of shapes - anything is possible .

The “Grotte de la Luire” at 45 km the longest cave system of the Vercors. At high water times, the level may rise up to 450 m in this transitional system. It drains into the “Grotte de Bournillon”, an impressive cave near Châtelus with a ceiling height of 140 m. The size of the cave opening is very impressive, especially the pink rocks of the vault that develops the largest cave in Europe.

18 Right “next door”, the highest waterfall in Europe with 320m height can be seen.

The water rushes down from the semicircular cliffs of the “Cirque du Bournillon” and then merges with the water from the cave river.

Man has made his benefit with the amounts of water and the height of the cliffs: here a pumped storage power plant is incurred to generate electricity. Further down in the valley, the water is dammed again, the reservoir serves as a water supply in the area.

Fauna In the part of the Bournillon cave, that is not accessible to the public, speleologists have found eyeless and non-pigmented crabs, catfish and other species. As eyes and pigmentation are not useful in a dark environment like a cave, other sensors such as antenna or barbels have been developed by evolution to scan the environment, and thus to perceive.

The symbolic animal for caves, the “Olm” (Proteus), is found in Choranche only tentatively in aquariums as it’s endemic only in the caves of the Balkans, what is now Slovenia. In other regions, these animals are not to be found, unless they are exhibited in aquariums. The pigmentless, about 35 cm large eyeless animals can be up to 60 years old. At birth, eyes are still present, but they wither away rather quickly and are later no longer recognizable.

Close togetehr Europes highest waterfall and Europe’s largest cave entrance .

From the semi-circular cliffs of “ Cirque du Bournillon “ the water falls 320 m deep down . The cave of Bournillon , with a ceiling height of 140 m , is exit point of an underground duct system 45 km long and has its origins in the “ Grotte de la Luire “ . The water is used for a pumped storage power plant

The space over the water surface in the numerous caves is almost exclusively settled by bats, of which there exist about 30 species in the Vercors - an ideal retreat for light-shy animals. There are regular guided tours under the guidance of skilled specialists, participated by the tourists and school groups.

A recently discovered endemic insect in the caves of the Vercors is a species of longhorn beetles. However, there is still not much published.

Speleology - caving Where it stops for day visitors in the caves, it begins for the speleologists, archaeologists and researchers: In the Choranche cave, which so far has researched

the most, a transitional system of 33 km in length has been explored. Scientists can penetrate within 6 - 8 hours. The only access is through the so-called “siphon”, a trap in an underwater cave part in the cave of Choranche. Passages, corridors and tubes lead to differently sized cavities with air bags in different levels. The exploration is still ongoing and will enhance the knowledge of this system. Any further attempt is recorded and documented in maps.

However, access is limited to keep the cave system in it’s natural shape, even for the “French Federation of Speleology” to 10 - 20 times per year.

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Diving Where water, rivers and lakes are present, we can do - of course - diving. One, who has found his niche in the large number of diving centers in France, is a native of the Vercors: William Thumy (www.vercors-plongee.com). His passion since earliest youth is cave-diving in the caves and crystal clear rivers of the Vercors. His diving center “Dive Xtreme” specializes in dives in caves, grottos, rivers and under ice with different levels of difficulty.

Even with the scientific explorations in the various caves, he is often involved and knows the latest state of the art In the “Cave of Gournier” which is not far from the cave of Choranche, you can dive autonomously. Then, however, the equipment must be carried to the cave entrance. The water is consistently cold, about 8 - 10 ° C and crystal clear. A dry suit is highly recommended, but not necessary. Experiences in night diving and and a good buoyancy is a clear advantage.

View from the cave to the cave entrance with picturesque water reflections and light incursions . Even if there prevail summer temperatures , there are a maximum of 8-10 ° C in the cave and in the water .

Fallen from the cave ceiling stalactites adorn the bottom of the enormous cave

When cave diving in the “ Grotte du Gournier “ water drain gutters can clearly be seen, originating from earlier times . Here , the water level must have been significantly lower some million years before.

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The Medusa - a stalactite formation in the form of a “ jellyfish “ - is the main attraction for divers

The ways into the Vercors are limited and narrow to a height of about 2.50m . For buses these roads are not suitable . In some places, the 90 - degree bends are a challenge even for 2 oncoming cars .

In the huge cave, where the water is 3 - 5 m deep, you can see stalagmites on the floor and there are the stalactites fallen from the cave ceiling. The walls have the structures of calcium deposits that are usual for caves - a sign that the water level must have been much higher even over long periods. The particular pride is the “méduse” on the wall, a stalactite formation in jellyfish shape and a real eye-catcher. To the rear end, where the underground river comes from, the cave becomes more and more narrow and the ceiling is becoming increasingly flatter – there is a slight current towards the cave exit. On the back wall you can see a sort of gutter and sinter pools, through which the water drained in former times. Normally, the water is crystal clear, if not previously some divers have plowed through the cave and have stirred up the sediment. Through the constant light flow of incoming water, the suspended particles are transported towards the cave exit and after a short time, the visibility is good again.

Not to be underestimated are the lighting conditions that are comparable to a night dive. Although light is incident from the cave entrance and the walls are bright, the light is swallowed by the huge size of the cave of Gournier and in the water nothing remains. Good torches are recommended!

The Gournier is considered the most beautiful underground river of the world.

Its course can track up to 15 km. Again and again, galleries open with waterfalls and pools, connected by gours and gutters. With ropes, ladders and hooks, the scientists have now penetrated deeper and deeper. Some videos can be seen on YouTube in the internet.

Barnabé Fourgous, a french scientist, has found the fossilized skeleton of a bear that extinct more than thirty thousand years ago. Due to the conditions in the cave, the skeleton is very well preserved. In some parts of the cave system you can also find evidence of prehistoric people.

More specifically it is with diving into the water-bearing passages themselves.

To do so, one must have previous experience in cave diving and the appropriate training. Not everyone is allowed to dive inside and if, only under leadership.

Here again, William Thumy is the right partner for divers who want to undertake this adventure.

From narrow water-filled tunnels to spacious rooms with air bags and more, the cavities are always connected by underground rivers and tunnels - fearless can dive an unique wonderland and admire the bizarre lime structures underwater.

Technical equipment is required - here you should ask in advance, what requirements are imposed.

Based on the section of the “Grotte de Thaïs” (created by Yves Billaud) you can clearly see the difficulties in extreme cave diving: the road is long and partially narrow - the return trip must be counted in. As the previously explored part has a difference in altitude of about 90m, an advanced decompression procedure is required.

From village Die to the south, the high plateaus of Vercors can be reached via sepentines .

Most times, only the scientists can be found in the caves to study, explore and document and go even deeper into the various caves. All scientific studies are coordinated by EDYTEM (Environnements, Dynamiques et Territoires de la Montagne - environment, dynamics and territories of the Mountain), an associa-

24 tion of the CNRS (Centre national de la recherche scientifique - national center for scientific research) and the University of Savoi, consisting of speleologists, pre-historians, geologists and geographers.

People in the Vercors region

In the back of the cave it’s all for the scientist . Dangerous is at high tide , when in no time all the passages are flooded .

It is documented by artefacts of human remains from prehistoric age, that the region is known to the mankind for a long time. The caves offered protection against the cold and water was available in abundance. There were also animals such as deer and ibex, which could be hunted. Marmots served as fat and fur supplier. However, proof of real settlement is found rather in the deeper parts of the Vercors.

During the 2nd world war, the Vercors served as a refuge for the people from the Resistance. Some medieval castles have been irrevocably destroyed during that phase.

Today’s villages in the Vercors have a more rural character with no big supermarkets but lots of small shops where you can buy the products of the region: goat cheese, dairy products, walnut products and handicrafts. Hotels are reasonable small and personal, accommodations can be found on many isolated lying farms.

Still today you can find evidence, like in Pont-en-Royans, that man has come to terms with the water and has made it for himself a benefit. The tiny village Ponten-Royans was one of the first places in France, which had its own power supply. Until the 60‘s, parts for electric installations were produced in this village.

In the “Museum of water,” you can have a look at the entire history concerning the water.

Photographer : William Thumy who with his diving center “ Dive Xtreme “ found a niche . Specializing in caves and cave diving, river diving and ice diving he takes with its base a special position . For diving in the underground passages , however, it requires a special training .

The picturesque setting of hung on the rock houses in Pont-en-Royans , the “ entrance “ to the northern Vercors . People here havealways lived with the water and made their benefit with the water.

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TIGER BEACH DHIVEHI RAAJIE

BAHAMAS DREAM GET BORED IS A PITY

Words and Pictures

Michel Lonfat

TRAVELS

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At last ... The confirmation has just arrived. My travel agent called me to tell me that we will be able to leave in November for the Bahamas in order to take a cruise to dive “Tiger Beach”.

One of my dreams can finally materialized: to go diving with one of the largest sharks, namely the “Tiger Shark”.

According to Wikipedia, the Tiger Shark (Galeocerdo vat) is a shark of the family of the Carcharhinidae. He is the only representative of Galeocerdo kind and is part of the largest shark species. It usually measuring 4 to 5 meters, for an average weight of 500 kg. It is found in temperate and tropical oceans.

It is a solitary shark hunting in general at night. It has a tail fin heterocercal, thin and pointed. His body is brownish towards gray and normaly covored with dark vertical stripes, especially better seen on young specimens. It is these stripes that earned him the famous name of “Tiger Shark”.

After quite a tiryng trip from Switzerland, we finally land in Miami. From there, we still had a long road drive towards Palm Beach where we will spend the night before boarding the boat.

Once on the “Dolphin Dream”, a boat aged about twenty years, but still in pretty good condition, Captain Scott announces that the start will be delayed due to the bad weather. We finally feft at 4:00 the next morning instead of 8:00 p.m. that were planned.

To arrive in the Bahamas, we have to cross the Straits of Florida, where the Gulf Stream is committed ...

So we left from the port of Palm Beach at 04:00 as planned. I remember Captain Scott saying the day before : “As soon as you hear the engines start up, take on a pad against seasickness ... It’s going to be a very very bumpy ride...”

And he was right – we did the crossing with waves of over 3 meters .... And this for almost nine hours, fortunately with a slight “better” at the approach of “Grand Bahamas Island” where we had to make a mandatory stop for customs controls.

After these formalities, another 3 hours of sailing was sheduled ahead of us to get to the wellknowed “Tiger Beach”.

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At dusk, we finally arrived in this mythical place which is only a sandbar 7 m deep in the middle of the sea, far from everything, not an island in sight, nothing but water. This is where we will spend our week.

The staff of Dolphin Dream were already preparing the ball baits for the sharks. After a few minutes already around 20 Lemon Sharks were moving all around our boat .... Waow now that was great first feelings ...

During five days, at the rate of 3 to 4 dives a day, I had extraordinary encounters, at the height of all my expectations.

Some dives with 4 Tiger Sharks at the same time, others with 30 Reef Sharks.

Some times Nurse Sharks would also invite themself and of course during each dives the fascinating Lemon Sharks.

All this without any aggression on the part of these so-called “predators” or “man-eaters”.

With us on the boat, also unforgettable human encounters. Among all these passionate Wolfgang and Felix Leander, father and son, freedivers, spokespersons and defenders of our sharks (www.oceanicdreams.com). David Ulloa: producer (www.valeofilms.com/david), Jupp Kerckerinck founder Sharkprotect (www.sharkprotect.com) and of course Captain Scott of the Dolphin Dream, the owner of the boat and its friendly crew.

The return to Florida went well. We arrived at the Port of Palm Beach .The sea was rough but much less than on the way there Back home, my head was filled with a multitude of images and unforgettable memories with the desire to share my Tiger Beach adventure with everyone and above all, being impatient to return.

Quite simply, the need to live again those amazing moments.

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GOING BACK TO THE BASICS Words: Makoto Barrow Pictures: Mike Barrow “Respect marine life. Choose not to touch anything under water.”

This is what we learned at the very beginning of our diving lessons and have been constantly reminded of wherever we dive around the world.

Recently, however, manipulating marine life, or “staging”, is becoming widespread in some places in the name of underwater photography.

The manipulation often involves touching and moving critters, forcing them to come out of their habitat, making them stay on the “stage”, and/or moving, poking or squeezing their habitat (e.g. corals, sponges).

SAVE THE OCEAN

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54 The main problems of staging are: 1) It may interrupt the animals’ vital activities. Critters have reasons to be at that particular location – usually hiding from predators or feeding.

Moving them from the location can compromise these life-supporting activities.

2) As the number of underwater photographers is rapidly increasing, the accumulation of “trivial” disturbances may have larger impacts not only on the animals but also on their habitat in the area.

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I am not a photographer but play a spotter role for my husband who is keen on underwater photography.

I admit that there was a time I lightly touched marine life for him to take better shots. I don’t anymore for the reasons mentioned above.

I know some of the critters cannot be photographed without manipulation, but if that is the case, giving-up is our option especially if the photos will not serve a specific educational or scientific role.

Furthermore we realised that, after all, it is the artistry of the photographers which makes photos original, not how nicely the subjects sit for the photographers.

Striking photos often come from an ordinary subject which was photographed in a least disturbing way.

When plunging into the ocean, we are visiting the home of some of the most amazing creatures on earth.

So once again, let us go back to basics. Respect all life and always remain peaceful when under water.

In this way we, both photographers and non-photographers, all can better appreciate beautiful marine life.

When plunging into the ocean, we are visiting the home of some of the most amazing creatures on earth.

So once again, let us go back to basics. Respect all life and always remain peaceful when under water. In this way we, both photographers and non-photographers, all can better appreciate beautiful marine life.

“Using the animal’s natural habitat as background can provide stunning contrast and draw us into their atmospheric and unique worlds.”

PORTFOLIO

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PORTFOLIO

PASQUALE VASSALLO

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Underwater photographer and studious of the marine ecosystem, Pasquale was born in Naples in 1970. Since his childhood, he learned to love the sea and to skin-dive searching for octopuses and urchins.

Over the years, his passion for the great blue evolved into pure exploration of the underwater world.

Self-taught person, he began his underwater photography career with a Nikonos III in 1989, more and more oriented towards photography of biological interest, fostered by the richness of the Gulf of Naples’ seabeds.

His photos havebeen published in major national and international magazines such as National Geographic, Tauchen, Dive Master, Discovery Magazine, Focus and many others.

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Pasquale gained also several awards and recognition around the world, including the prestigious “Plongeur d’or” in 2011 and “Plongeur de bronze” in 2015 in Marseille.

Number 100 of the Asian Diver magazine published one of his portfolio, and Ocean Planet Scuba Diver magazine included some of his images inside the special unique edition dedicated to those artists who left their mark in underwater photography.

Together with his lifetime underwater photographer friend Guido Villani, Pasquale is one of the Neapolis’ international photo contest creators. In 2015, he started to collaborate with Enzo Maione, owner of Centro Sub Campi Flegrei, for realizing the first “Guide to the Archaeological submerged Park of Baia” in preview at ADEX 2016 in Singapore.

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TECHNIQUE

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STOP TO BACKSCATTER WITH PHOTOSHOP Words and Pictures

Cristian Umili

It would always be better to place our flash correctly in order to clear the suspension found in water, but sometimes it is not possible because there is a lot of suspension, or because we have only the flash integrated into our compact camera, or because we use a fish eye lens and we have little flash mobility.

Photoshop may help us for that. Of course, if the suspension is too much neither with this program there is much to do. That’s why I always invite you to pay attention during shooting and to use the Photoshop tool like a safety tool and not delegate to it heavy editing.

The logic would be to use Photoshop or Lighroom to develop the file not to re-create the photograph.

1) CLONE STAMP AND HEALING BRUSH If we have only a few dots, or one big point of suspension, or even a small air bubble, we can use the “Clone Stamp Tool”. After selecting the tool, I recommend creating a blank layer and choosing in the tool menu on top “all levels” so to work and to display what you clone on the layer. In case of error, you can fix it by clearing the level or using the eraser and re-start. Another tip, if you have to remove a big point, is to do cloning by turning around at every click. This leads to a cloned area more natural, instead of starting from a side following a single direction.

Instead of the “Clone Stamp”, we can use the “Healing brush.” Not the rapid, but the normal one, in order to be us to choose the point from which to take the information. The “clone stamp” takes information from the point of origin we choose by pressing “ALT + click” and brings them to the desired location. The healing brush takes all the same the information from a point of origin using “Alt + click”, but when we click on the destination point to cover, this tool processes a mix of existing and new information on the point for a more natural effect.

There is not a better tool: they do pretty much the same thing but in a different way, and choosing one or the other depends also on the

Original image

Once located the suspension or a bubble to erase, zoom in with the “magnifying glass” tool.

photograph. On a light blue background the “healing brush” will do just fine, but if we need to remove the suspension from a background with different shapes and colors, the use of the “Clone Stamp” will be more convenient, in order to have full control of what you are doing.

For both instruments we should choose from the menu on the top left either the size of the brush and the hardness, i.e. if the brush will have a sharp edge (100) or soft (<100).

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We create a new layer and select the “Clone Stamp”, setting to work on all levels

We begin to erase the white spot cloning first on one side and then on the other by changing the direction, to make the correction more natural

Correction performed

Let’s remove the bubbles and other reflexes.

In complex areas such as the surface reflections, you better use the “healing brush”

We create a new layer on which we will work using the “healing brush”

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Select the “Healing brush” tool

Original picture

By alt + click and click, we erase the trail of bubbles.

We zoom in on an area with suspension

2) PATCH The “patch” tool works directly on the image, therefore we cannot use a blank layer to work on, but we can still duplicate the image so to quickly return to the original in case of mistakes. Through this tool, we choose a more or less extensive area of our photography.

Once made the selection by holding down the mouse button, we need to choose a nearby area where to get the information to mix with the existing ones. Basically, it works like the “patch”, but over larger areas. This tool is fine in case we have large and spaced out suspension spots or one point of the image with the suspension and the rest clean. Above all, the suspension should be located on the blue of the sea or in any case on a homogeneous background: black, gray or red, but not a background where there are different shapes and colors.

It is an excellent tool for wide-angle photography, while the first method is better for macro photography.

We choose the “patch” tool

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We select a point of suspension

Here we see the selection of the point to clean (upper selection) and the selection of the point from which to take the information (lower selection)

Now we go to select the little flash light which came into the frame, and choose an area from which to take the shades of blue

The final image 3) USING LEVELS This method, a little more complex than the others, is useful in wide-angle photographs when you have the suspension a little spaced out but all over the blue. First, we select the “Lasso” tool and the area to clean, or a portion of it. If the area to correct is large, be careful not to select rocks or fishes. Now we do the classic copy and paste (Ctrl + C, Ctrl + V) so that Photoshop creates a level with the selected part. On this new layer, we have to change the method from “normal” to “darken” and then take the “move tool”, select the layer that we created and move the selection up or down at will using the “up” and “down” arrows found on the keyboard, until the suspension disappears. If we have selected just a part of the area, repeat for each section until completion. In the end, we can save in JPG or TIFF format or PSD with the layers we created.

Naturally, we may use all three of these methodologies to clean a single image: it is not that one excludes the other. Actually, they all can be used to different areas of our photography, especially if wide angle.

Original picture

Enlarge a section to see the suspension

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We select the “Lasso” tool

Change the method from “Normal” to “Darken”

Select the area we want, in this case a portion of the blue

Take the “move” tool and, using the arrows up or down, move the portion copied until the suspension disappears

Let’s copy and paste: in this way we create a new layer with the selected area

Repeat the operation for the other sections of the image

102

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THE SEA STEEDS

Words and Pictures

Francesco Turano

MARINE BIOLOGY

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110 A fish of the most unique, one of the most bizarre creatures that can be found in the sea, perhaps the most fascinating fish, is certainly the seahorse.

The beauty and tenderness, the unique look and unmistakable in the animal world as well as its lifestyle, which leads him to frequent the shallow water closest to coastal environments, since always populated by humans, makes this intriguing creature among the most famous animals of the sea since ancient times. Plinius the Old perhaps first described the seahorse (23-79 d. C.) giving it the name of “Hippus,” from which the present name derives. The Greek name is a combination of hippos (horse) and kampos (sea monster). Naturalists of the past report that the powder obtained from its remains was used in pharmacopoeia.

There are talk of seahorses roasted and applied to a wound, of its powder mixed with vinegar or with honey to create miraculous ointments, and many other pretty strange uses. Nevertheless, Eliano explained, the hippocampus could be at the same time toxic or even poisonous. It is said that the horse stomach dissolved into wine would become an extraordinary lethal poison. In fact, it would not be the fish’s stomach to cause the poisoning, but a very rare alga the seahorse eats and that would then be responsible for evil properties.

According to Plinius, the ashes of this fish, combined with marjoram oil or mixed with pitch, would serve as a cure for skin rashes, hair loss, and the bite of rabid dogs. Even Aristotle talks about it in his “Animal’s Reproduction,” probably fascinated by the reproductive peculiarities of this unique species. Even today, some still maintain that seahorses have the power to ward off diseases. Until a few years ago, for this reason, in Venice

and in the Venetian lagoon they used to hang them in groups of three inside the houses. For Greek poets the hippocampus was instead a mythical creature; the gods used it to cross the seas and mythological scenes represent it sometimes like a horse with a fish or dolphin bottom. According to the Greeks, precisely four seahorses, surrounded by an escort of Tritons and Nereids, pulled Poseidon’s chariot.

A scene, with a little fantasy, nothing short than magnificent: can you imagine Poseidon, the Sea God, who moves fast under the sea on a chariot pulled by sea horses, surrounded by incredible figures like Nereids, mermaids and Tritons, half fish and half men? Many artists of past eras dreamed and skillfully reproduced the scene sometimes so very addictive, enough to drag the viewer into a magical world, densely populated by little known or unknown animal and plant forms, often the result of their imagination! And how would you call an animal resembling a horse that pulls the chariot of Neptune, if not “steed of the sea”? Animals of a parallel world, the seahorses of Neptune’s chariot took the appearance of terrestrial horses adapted to the water world. Many sculptures testify this fact and there are many examples. Just think of the many fountains of Neptune scattered in the Italian cities, usually adorned with sea horses; like that of Florence, in Piazza della Signoria, near the corner of Palazzo Vecchio, by

112

meo Ammannati (1563-1565) and some of his students. The figure of Neptune stands on a pedestal decorated with the statues of Scylla and Charybdis at the center of an octagonal basin, where the statues appear to be moved by sea horses, dancing satyrs and river gods. Also in Rome, in Piazza Navona, there is a Fountain of Neptune, dated 1873.

Again seahorses, mermaids and cherubs playing with dolphins in a harmony that almost makes alive the carved stone. Sculptors and painters sometimes added to the hippocampus two wings like Pegasus, probably inspired by the rapid movement of the dorsal fin that vaguely resembles the wings of a butterfly. The seahorse is also apotropaic symbol. In the past, small seahorses images were used against the evil eye, so much so that these animals have been reproduced in many paintings, like those found in Pompeii. They were painted, for example, on the outer walls of the houses, to protect tenants from bad luck or even on the sides of the boats, for the safeguard of fishermen and fishing. In some Mediterranean traditions, the seahorse was considered the helmsman of the deadâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s boat to the afterlife. Other times, like the dolphin, the hippocampus was a charitable savior. The fish is also depicted, with or without wings, in the decorations of the catacombs and later in Christian art. During the middle Ages the hippocampus was used in heraldry, where usually symbolized a commendable action taken at sea, or in the coat of arms of a port, where instead alluded to the trade departing from that place.

Moving on from mythology to science, we know that the first biologists and naturalists who studied the seahorses were extremely perplexed in observing their characteristics. The structure and shape of the â&#x20AC;&#x153;steedsâ&#x20AC;?

114 of the underwater world are in fact born as by a set of portions of different animals: the head is very similar to that of a horse, the prehensile and elongated tail resembles that of a monkey, the pouch that the males are fitted with follows a bit the shape of the kangaroo’s one, and the protruding eyes, which move independently of each other, seem to be those of a chameleon. It is estimated that in nature there are about 33 species of seahorses, living between the tropics and the temperate areas of the blue planet.

Wanting to draw its own “identity card,” we can immediately identify these fish as belonging to the Syngnathidae family. Of the 33 known species, the largest number of them live in the Indo Pacific region. Australia has about 14 species and Japan 7. In temperate waters of the Mediterranean and North Atlantic we find only two species, both common: Hippocampus hippocampus (Linnaeus, 1758) — snub-nosed seahorse, and Hippocampus ramulosus (Leach, 1814) — seahorse. They both live in bays and inlets near the coast, up to about 30 meters deep, and their home is made up of the bushy marine vegetation grasslands (especially Posidonia beds), but not only. The seahorses are small fishes, thin, elongated, with the body protected by a series of rings and bone plates. Their bodies are very compressed at the sides and rich in roughness, due to multiple skin rings, sometimes thorny and sometimes not depending on the species. The rings are particularly evident and their number varies from 10 to 12 in the trunk and 34 to 39 in the tail. The bone plates, which

together form a true armor, are joined in correspondence of the rings (practically corresponding to the vertebrae), functional joints which ensure a certain mobility to the animal’s body. On the plates and rings there are, variously distributed, carinas, granulations and tubercles that constitute diagnostic characters useful for the identification of the different species. The presence of this armor explains the ease with which these animals can be preserved without special care, leaving them in the sun until the complete drying. On the back and on the head are often present numerous dermal appendages, which may be simple or branched. Notable in all species of seahorses are the eyes, with independent movements that allow to simultaneously observing in different directions. With regard to the fins, we find a beautiful fan-shaped dorsal fin, which extends on the two terminals rings of the dorsal trunk; a small anal fin inserted on the first tail ring; two pectoral implanted behind the operculum and also rather small; no ventral or tail fin. The tail is prehensile and is totally different from a classic tail fin. If you try holding a sea horse’s tail gently between your bare fingers, of course under water, you can appreciate the strange feeling that the prehensile tail transmits when it twists the finger, squeezing it as does the hand of a newborn baby when you put your finger in its center. The brooder pocket (or pouch) is located immediately after the anal opening and is a typical pocket-shaped bag, closed for almost its entire length with only one small opening allowing the introduction of the eggs and the subsequent birth of the babies. In all Syngnathidae, the female lays her eggs in the male’s incubator pouch, who then broods them for a period of minimum

116 eight to ten days. The incubation time depends on the species and on water temperature.

Another distinctive characteristic of the seahorse is having the jaws fused together in a mouth tube, a trait in which the family owe its name: the union of the Greek words “sun,” together, and “gnathos,” jaw, create in fact Syngnathidae. Elongated, with the terminal opening facing upwards and without teeth, the mouth opening is very small and allows only a highly selective diet.

The absence of a real dentition compels the seahorses to suck the food, consisting of small crustaceans and various animals of the zooplankton.

Feeding on live prey, seahorses had to develop very sophisticated hunting techniques, being lazy by nature in the movements and not being able to chase prey. A real aspirant current, combined with a lightning snap of the mouth and head forward, leads the small prey to end up in the belly of the seahorse so quickly that the human eye cannot perceive it. The animal, equipped with independent eyes, has the ability to follow every minimum movement of its prey without moving the head, exploiting its mimetic capacity related, among other things, also to immobility.

Thereby it triggers its perfect suction mechanism at the right time: the jaw is lowered, the mouth widens and the backwash resulting from the coordination of such movements leads the prey directly in the mouth, with such force that sometimes the small prey are crushed by the impact! Although they seem shy and quiet, these fishes are voracious: the young are able to eat even ten hours a day, during which they can swal

118 low up to 3000 crustacean larvae. So much so that at two months of age can exceed over five centimeters in length. The seahorses stand in the upright position, with the head bent forward to form a right angle with the axis of the body. The upward thrust of the swim bladder, whose volume changes are helpful in vertical displacements, also guarantees the maintenance of this position. Only in case of danger, the seahorses abandon the vertical position. They use the head to decide a direction while swimming: in fact, changing the position of the head, they move their center of gravity and alter the relationship between the pectoral fins and dorsal fin, which normally are synchronized with the same vibratory rate. When seahorses move quickly, i.e. in cases of absolute necessity, the fins may perform up to thirty-five vibrations per second.

In these cases, they are usually in a horizontal position, head forward

and tail lying parallel to the seabed. Slow movements are performed in an upright or diagonal position with respect to the bottom and, in this case, the long tail is folded back on itself with the end shaped like a curl.

Being bad swimmers, anyway they move hardly ever and prefer using the prehensile tail to anchor to the ribbon-like leaves of the sea grass or seaweed or any suitable substrate that can be found near the bottom. The coloring of the hippocampus can range from black-brown with white spots to red, orange and brown up to yellow, with various inserts of spots or stripes of different colors. The patterning may also vary de

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122 pending on the living environment and, for example in the Mediterranean, we find color differences between seahorses from the Adriatic, the Tyrrhenian and the Ionian Sea, as well as differences between the two species found in these seas. The length of the different species ranges between 15 and 30 cm. Regarding reproduction, anomaly of the animal kingdom, among seahorses are the males to give birth to their young.

They are the only living beings in the world where just the male is responsible for the birth of the larvae. In addition, seahorses are in some cases even monogamous, that is during their lives they remain beside one companion only, and this is a unique characteristic among most of the species living in the sea. The male seahorse is clearly recognizable by the presence of the pouch, while the female has a rounded abdomen without pouch. Most seahorses are already sexually active by the first 6-8 months of life. In spring, when the water starts to warm up, for seahorses begin the mating season. Combined in couples that can remain together for life, the seahorses begin to make unusual movements of extraordinary elegance: that is they start courting. After a few days of courtship, seahorses mate. The female, in some cases by twisting the tail with that of the male prior to contact, in others simply bringing its abdomen in contact with that of her companion, emits the eggs, which are appropriately transferred in the pouch of the male, who in the meantime had prepared to receive them and who, simultaneously, releases the sperm.

The crucial moment, when the female lays eggs in the male’s pocket, requires perfect timing and it often happens that, perhaps for the couple’s inexperience, the operation will not succeed. The eggs, whose diameter measure a few millimeters, adhere to the inner sides of “Dad’s belly,” thus receiving the nutrients needed during pregnancy. The male carries the “pregnancy” for a period ranging from several days to several weeks.

During childbirth, the male attaches by his tail to a suitable support and begin to expel the babies through contractions very similar to those of a human woman in labor. At birth the little seahorses measure few millimeters and are totally formed, an adult miniature reproduction. It will always be the male to take care of the offspring. On average, the eggs laid vary in number from a minimum of five to over 1200: everything depends on the species and the size of parents. The newborn babies measure from 8 to 18 millimeters, depending on the species and are immediately ready to feed at full tilt. One of the most frequent complications in childbirth of a seahorse comes from the fact that some of the embryos may die inside the incubator pouch, even before hatching, and this determines undesirable gas formation. The male could swell like a balloon and rise to the surface, thus becoming prey to other larger fish (seahorses were found in the stomachs of tunas and other species of carnivorous fish). In the wild it is very rare to observe the male’s contortions while giving birth, and even more unlikely to observe the female laying eggs in the male’s pouch. In some species of seahorses, that activity seems to take place only at night. Today we must remember that all the existing species of seahorses are, unfortunately, classified in the Red List of Animals in Danger of Extinction (IUCN), as particularly susceptible to the devastating action that mankind is making, not only against them.

According to some estimates, there are more than 42 million seahorses sold every year in the Chinese Traditional Medicine Market. Such a request for seahorses, along with the destruction of their natural habitat, is determining the current “critical situation.” Tough times, therefore, for seahorses, also caught to supply the aquariums around the world. In the early 90’s only Asia “consumed” nearly 16 million specimens a year.

The low birth rate and a short life span must push governments to increase the levels of protection for these particularly sensitive species.

Their behavior and the state of the environment particularly expose seahorses to the problem of their over-exploitation. Their low mobility and reduced ability to live in environments other than coastal ones, makes these animals easy prey for fishermen, especially of those performing trawling and gill-net. The extreme fidelity of couples result in a social structure easily threatened by the event of the lack of one partner, which would decrease the possibility of reproduction. The length of parental cares, together with the small size of the larvae, therefore limit the reproductive rate of the species. Capturing a pregnant male means also taking the larvae that it carries, and a new generation is destroyed at once. In different natural environ

124 ments, the population of sea horses shows, today, a decrease oscillating between 10% and 70%. To give an idea about their commercial preciousness, just remember that their prices far exceeds that of silver, touching at times the price for a kilo of gold. During the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), held in Santiago de Chile in 2002, it was finally decided to protect all the 33 known species of seahorses, which will no longer be traded freely like it has been done so far. This decision does not exclude their trade, but imposes on all the Members increased and tighter controls. The rules state that every nation, with the support of CITES, certifies the regularity of all catches and especially checks every sale. The nations that are home to sea horses in their waters are 105, and 69 nations trade them officially. Among them Brazil, the Philippines and Indonesia are major exporters, while the US and Western Europe are among the largest importers.

The largest exporters of dried seahorses are instead India, Thailand, the Philippines and Mexico, while China and Hong Kong are the largest importers. The priorities to be considered for the conservation of the species are the maintenance of coastal natural habitats and the development of a specific international community, formed by fishermen and seahorses breeders. If no action is taken in the short term, it is likely that more late interventions can then be vain.

Only the commitment of everyone and a full awareness of the mechanisms in place will slow down this frantic man race to nowhere...

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OXYGEN Oxygen has long been recognized as the primary first aid for scuba diving injuries, specifically decompression sickness (DCS) and arterial gas embolism (AGE).

Inhalation of 100 percent oxygen works by accelerating the diffusion and elimination of the excess nitrogen absorbed during diving, improving circulation (thereby promoting reoxygenation of tissues) and reducing swelling and associated inflammatory responses. For oxygen first aid to be most effective, the patient needs to breathe 100 percent oxygen delivered by a certified oxygen provider at an appropriate flow rate and with a good mask fit.

A Brief History of Oxygen Use in Diving First Aid In 1878 French physiologist Paul Bert, while treating compressed-air divers and caisson workers, began using oxygen to relieve symptoms of what is now recognized as DCS. His experimental research on animals corroborated his clinical findings, which led him to be the first to propose using pressurized oxygen to treat “caisson disease.” Despite the fact that surface-pressure oxygen long remained the only available treatment for decompression, it was nearly a century before its use became widespread.

In the early 1960s the expansion of recreational scuba diving led to the use of hyperbaric oxygen to treat dive injuries. It was still another decade before oxygen was recommended while transporting an injured diver to medical care. The use of oxygen first aid for diving injuries increased over the years, but implementation was slow. A review of DAN dive accident data in 1987 revealed that only 37 percent of injured divers received oxygen first aid and that oxygen use in first aid actually dropped between 1987 and 1990. To promote oxygen use, DAN introduced the DAN Oxygen First Aid Program in 1991, which has evolved over the years as understanding of treatment and equipment has grown.

DAN’s Mission In light of compelling evidence in favor of oxygen first aid, one of DAN’s stated missions is to ensure that oxygen first aid equipment and people trained in its use are at every dive site, which means dive instructors and even divers may need to own their own oxygen units, which they care for and maintain.

Storage and Maintenance of Oxygen Equipment Oxygen units should be stored assembled but depressurized in protective cases. This ensures the equipment is ready to use and protects it not only from

damage but also from exposure to oils and grease, which increases the risk of fire. To further reduce the fire hazard, the equipment should also be kept away from open flames or people smoking.

Oxygen units should not be exposed to temperatures higher than 51°C, so they should not be stored in motorized vehicles on hot days. When transporting units to and from dive sites, the equipment should be secured such that it will not fall or roll.

Note that oxygen cylinders are regulated by the same laws as scuba cylinders and thus should periodically undergo hydrostatic testing.

The standard procedure for oxygen-regulator maintenance involves service every two years or as the manufacturer recommends.

Along with the regulator service, check the oxygen washer to ensure it is free of cracks, dirt, grease and oil. If any of these are present, change the washer.

When reseating the regulator, confirm that the pins are aligned with the oxygen tank valve, and test for leaks by turning on the system. As always, remember to depressurize the system before storing it.

Service the oxygen-delivery mechanism (demand valve or manually triggered ventilator [MTV]) every two years or as recommended by the manufacturer. In addition, test MTVs and verify their function before each use. Test the demand valve by inhaling through the mask and exhaling away from it. Check the MTV by depressing the activation button then covering the ventilation outlet with the palm of your hand. It should automatically shut off. If it doesn’t, don’t use it, and send it in for servicing.

Visually check hoses and tubes for cracks or stress marks before each outing and when the system is serviced. Replace these as necessary.

Finally, inspect masks for cleanliness and signs of age.

After each use, clean the system using the following procedure: 1. Wipe down the cylinder and hoses to remove sand or dirt.

2. Disassemble the demand valve or MTV. 3. Soak plastic parts in a mild bleach solution for 10 minutes, rinse with fresh water, and allow to air dry.

4. Do the same with the oronasal mask (Pocket Mask), but discard the chimney.

5. When all parts are dry, place a new chimney on the oronasal mask, reassemble the system, and store it in its protective case.

Non-rebreather masks and bag-valve masks are single-use items and should be discarded after use.

For detailed information and hands-on practice, sign up for a DAN Oxygen First Aid for Scuba Diving Injuries course.

Filling Oxygen Cylinders There are two primary methods of getting oxygen fills: 1. with a prescription 2. with documentation of training (must be current) In the past, a prescription was not required in European countries and a proof of training represented all that was needed to obtain Oxygen fills. The DAN Oxygen First Aid for Scuba Diving Injuries course helps divers meet those training requirements. Unfortunately, the EU and, as a result, some European

DAN EUROPE

130

132 countries, now require a prescription in order to purchase Medical Oxygen fills.

In a few countries, it is even required to rent oxygen cylinders from authorised gas companies instead of owning an oxygen cylinder.

Many divers obtain prescriptions from dive physicians or personal physicians who understand the need for emergency oxygen at dive sites; however, the prescription technically limits the administration of the prescribed drug (oxygen in this case) to the person for whom the prescription is written. Some doctors may be willing to write a pro-

spective prescription authorizing dispensing emergency oxygen, although they are not obligated to comply with such a request.

Although in most European countries it still is relatively easy to obtain oxygen fills, there are countries where it becomes challenging to get your oxygen cylinder filled without the help of a doctor who agrees to issue a prescription.

DAN Training - Oxygen First Aid for Scuba Diving Injuries course DAN Oxygen First Aid for Scuba Diving Injuries course represents entry-level training designed to educate divers and interested non-divers (such as a charter boat captain) to recognise scuba diving injuries and to provide emergency oxygen first aid.

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