SCUBA News - #178 - March 2015

SCUBA News ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ SCUBA News (ISSN 1476-8011) Issue 178 - March 2015 http://www.scubatravel.co.uk ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~ Thank you very much for subscribing to SCUBA News. I hope you enjoy it. If you would like to contribute an article, please get in touch. You can download a pdf version of this newsletter here. Should you wish to cancel your subscription to SCUBA News you can do so at http://www.scubatravel.co.uk/news.html. SCUBA News is published by SCUBA Travel Ltd. Visit Thailand Dive and Sail Luxury liveaboards in Thailand and scientific Manta Ray Expeditions to Myanmar's Mergui Archipelago http://thailanddiveandsail.com/ Contents: - What's new at SCUBA Travel? - Letters - Divers Asked to Report "Ghost" Fishing Gear - Diving news from around the World What's New at SCUBA Travel? Diving in the Canary Islands The Canary Islands are a Spanish archipelago off the northwest coast of Africa. They have year-round sun and little rain. The Canaries have the most diverse shark and ray community of the whole European Union, with 79 species identified. More on diving the Canaries now at scubatravel.co.uk/europe/spain-diving.html Diving in Saudi Arabia Dive numbers have dropped in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia as visa restrictions means that fewer dive tour operators are offering trips. The main diving areas are around Jeddah and Yanbu which is 300 km north. There are also good reefs south of Jeddah. scubatravel.co.uk/redsea/divesaudi.html Letters HSE Diving Qualification In an earlier issue Trish asked whether an HSE diving qualification would be recognised abroad. Hi Regarding diving outside the UK with a hse scuba, this was absolutely no problem for my friend on a recent diving trip to Thailand. Recognised at shops both in Koh Tao and Koh Phi Phi. Jon Barnes More on different qualifications... Divers Asked to Report "Ghost" Fishing Gear World Animal Protection are asking divers to report "ghost" fishing gear. They say that an estimated 640,000 tonnes of fishing gear is lost or abandoned in our oceans each year, entangling and killing millions of animals including seals, turtles and whales. Photo by Martin Stelfox (CC BY-SA 4.0) When you see or remove any ghost gear, you can upload your sighting which will then appear on a map. This will enable the animal welfare charity to identify which are the most common types of ghost gear and from where they come. The information will be used to as evidence to convince governments and industry to create safer, cleaner oceans for animals. Identifying ghost gear hotspots lets volunteers take urgent action wherever sea animals are most at risk. Further Reading Divers asked to report Ghost Gear Diving News From Around the World Our round up of the more interesting underwater news stories of the past month. For breaking news see our Twitter page or RSS feed With ever-warming waters, European fish are on the move Sardines, anchovies and pilchards are moving increasingly further north, occupying the higher temperature environments that are now found there. Brazil urged to protect marine life Brazil can transform this moment of political turmoil into positive action, and become a leader among developing countries facing widespread extinction of aquatic animals. Prince Charles calls for end to dumping of plastic in world's oceans Prince tells marine environment conference he is horrified at the littering of the seas and haunted by photographs of seabirds killed by ingesting plastic Putting animals online: Does it protect or destroy? Even in the digital realm, observation and conservation make uncomfortable bedfellows Dolphins, diatoms and sea dragons join census of all known marine life Census of all known marine life lists more than 220000 species and deletes 190400 duplicates Lionfish threatening Florida's economy `Invasive lionfish are a serious threat to Florida's saltwater fishing industry - the second largest in the nation - and the thousands of jobs it supports, according to an economic commentary from Florida TaxWatch. Rough Reputation: Are invasive species all bad? A common misunderstanding is that any species found living in a new habitat is an invasive species. Many of these, rather, are introduced species, a category that includes any species found outside of its natural habitat due to human actions. Newly discovered algal species helps corals survive in the hottest reefs on the planet A new species of algae has been discovered in reef corals of the Persian (Arabian) Gulf where it helps corals to survive seawater temperatures of up to 36 degrees Celsius - temperatures that would kill corals elsewhere. Oceans yield 1,500 new creatures, many others lurk unknown Scientists identified almost 1,500 new creatures in the world's oceans last year, including a humpbacked dolphin and a giant jellyfish and reckon that most species of marine life are yet to be found. Sensor sniffs out methane in deep sea vents The ocean floor is teeming with methane, the natural gas that fuels our homes. According relatively modest changes in global ocean temperatures or sea level could trigger a massive release of oceanic methane. If a rise in water temperatures passes a certain threshold, sizable methane hydrate deposits could decompose rapidly and release a large quantity of heat-trapping gas back into the atmosphere. Satellites reveal ocean acidificaton Remote monitoring of large swathes of inaccessible ocean from satellites that orbit the Earth some 700 km above our heads is set to revolutionise the way that marine biologists study the ocean. LED lights for bycatch reduction A research study by the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife and Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission has found that attaching of a series of LED lights to the fishing line of a shrimp trawl can significantly reduce bycatch. * Copyright SCUBA Travel - http://www.scubatravel.co.uk/ * Reprinting permitted with this footer included. We are happy for you to copy and distribute this newsletter, and use parts of it on your own web site, providing the above copyright notice is included and a link back to our web site is in place. Photo credits: Tim Nicholson; David Burdick Previous editions of SCUBA News are archived at http://www.scubatravel.co.uk/news.html SUBSCRIBING AND UNSUBSCRIBING Visit Unsubscribe and add or remove your e-mail address. To change whether your receive the newsletter in text or HTML (with pictures) format visit this link ADVERTISING Should you wish to advertise in SCUBA News, please see the special offers at http://www.scubatravel.co.uk/newsad.html Other advertising opportunities are at http://www.scubatravel.co.uk/advertising.html CONTACTING THE EDITOR Please send your letters or press releases to: Jill Studholme SCUBA News The Cliff Upper Mayfield DE6 2HR UK news@scubatravel.co.uk PUBLISHER SCUBA Travel Ltd, 5 Loxford Court, Hulme, Manchester, M15 6AF, UK

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