X-Ray Mag

October 2011

Sea urchins move slowly, crawling with tube feet, and also propel themselves with their spines
Sea urchins move slowly, crawling with tube feet, and also propel themselves with their spines

Sea urchins see with their whole body

12 years ago By Main minion

According to a study that appeared in the Journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, new research has indicated that sea urchins may use the entire surfaces of their bodies—from the ends of their "feet" to the tips of their spines—as huge eyes. Scientists have long known that marine invertebrates react to light without any obvious eye-like structures, raising the question of how the animals see.

A dugong (Dugong dugon) at the Sydney Aquarium in Sydney, Australia.
A dugong (Dugong dugon) at the Sydney Aquarium in Sydney, Australia.

Australian conservationists urge for new sanctuaries

12 years ago By Arnold Weisz

"Environment Minister Tony Burke has a once-in-a-generation opportunity to protect tropical sealife across northern Australia. The government's recently proposed reserves must protect every one of these iconic areas from the threats of oil and gas drilling and overfishing", said Paul Gamblin from WWF-Australia.

"Unless large sanctuaries are established in these iconic places, Australia will not be able to claim that it is adequately protecting its tropical marine environment."

(file photo) Dive certification course session in a pool.

PADI to award 20 millionth scuba diving certification

12 years ago By Arnold Weisz

PADI has been tracking certifications and will announce the winner after this goal has been reached. A countdown counter has launched on the PADI website that provides daily updates as the organization approaches this achievement, which they expect to reach by late September.

The diver to receive PADI's 20 millionth certification will win an all-expenses paid trip for two to explore natural wonder of the world, the Great Barrier Reef, and other local attractions such as the World Heritage listed Daintree Rainforest, courtesy of Tourism Queensland.

Bird's nest coral (Seriatopora hystrix)

Deep-reef coral hates the light, prefers the shade

12 years ago By Arnold Weisz

New research published in BioMed Central's open access journal BMC Evolutionary Biology used genetic and photosynthetic analyses to demonstrate that these genetic differences reflect adaptations to the different environmental conditions encountered at different depths.

A team of researchers from the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies and The University of Queensland looked at coral populations from three habitats on coral reefs: the sheltered back reef (Back Reef), the wave-exposed top of the reef slope (Upper Slope) and the dimly lit deeps (Deep Slope).

Do's and Don't's of Responsible Shark Diving

Words
Andy Murch
Images
Andy Murch
Divers with lemon sharks. Photo by Andy Murch
Divers with lemon sharks. Photo by Andy Murch
Download the full article as pdf ⬇︎

Maybe the concept of ‘responsible shark diving’ sounds a little oxymoronic, but there are many things that you can do to protect yourself and the sharks during your interaction. First and foremost, I can’t stress enough the need to gain as much knowledge as possible about the animals and their environment. To go into the water without at least a basic idea of how the sharks are likely to react is foolhardy to say the least.

Dolphins decompress too

12 years ago By Main minion

It has been a widespread belief that marine mammals do not struggle, as human divers do, with decompression sickness - "the bends" - when ascending from great depths.

However, veterinary scientist Michael Moore from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute in the US, thinks that it is "naive" to think that diving mammals do not also struggle with these laws of chemistry.

Michael Menduno - the man who coined the phrase 'Technical Diving' and founded aquaCORPS magazine

So, what is AquaCorps?

12 years ago By Rosemary E Lunn

Jump back to the summer of 1996 and British Cave Diver Mike Thomas presents me with a copy of aquaCORPS magazine, (and I still have this issue in my office today). It was a defining moment in my diving career. Mike had taken me under his wing, showing me there was more than 30 metre, single tank, recreational, air diving. The aquaCORPS issue was N11, October / November 1995 and I vividly remember being thrilled to learn of a brave new world of diving.

In some cases, camera strobes are sealed units that cannot be taken apart, which can pose a bit of a problem with over-zealous screeners. To this effect, some strobe manufacturers have issued a statement regarding the safety of bringing their units on planes. Print this statement out and bring it. In this case it has been attached to the strobe in question.

Travelling with Dive Equipment

12 years ago By Peter Symes

Knives, spear-guns and other objects that can be used as weapons must, obviously, be checked. Any sharp objects packed in checked luggage should be securely wrapped to prevent injury to security screeners.