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TIGER SHARKS! |
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News
24 February 2009
Umkomaas... a river runs through it. Heavy rains have caused the Umkomaas river to swell it's banks bringing all kinds of debris and muddy water through the launch site. That aside; we're tough South Africans so we still dive and enjoy it nontheless. Heavy winds closed the launch site on Sunday past so it was an unusually early day for us.
This weekend coming will see us celebrating our 5th Birthday at Blue Vision. We're expecting a large amount of divers this weekend and Saturday night's festivities will probably cause a few late divers for the sunday launch ;) All-in-all we expect to have lots of fun combined with some fantastic diving.
Check out another addition to the photo gallery. Matt has taken some nice atmospheric photos of sharks and dolphins. He has gone up to Pretoria today to go on the Instructor Development Course. We wish him the best of luck.
14 February 2009
We've added an addition to our photo gallery. Be sure to have a look at the beautiful dolphins we had on one of the recent dives!
The last few days have not been friendly to us. Large swells have been creating havoc with the surf. Couple that with heavy in-land rains washing down the river mouth and making the launch out the river a nightmare. Needless to say that many divers were dissapointed since the launch site was officially closed.
Tonight will see our Valentine's Bash kick-off and we're sure to have some good fun.
7 February 2009
It's great to be a diver! The month of January had us doing 3 Tiger Dives. One of the Tiger sharks measured just over five meters and as always we had great numbers of Blacktips on the dives.
Sightings lately include White-tip Reefsharks, Sandsharks and we STILL have Raggedtooth sharks on the reef. Usually the Raggies have left by this time of the year, we can only guess that our Raggie Respect way of diving is one of the main reasons they're still around.
February thus far has been hot and sunny with warm diving. Lots of nutrients keep washing in on the reef and cause for great schools of game fish and large numbers of tropical fish.
We have also added a 'Topic of the Week' on our home page. If there is a specific topic concerning diving you would like to see discussed, feel free to send us a mail with your topic and thoughts.
February will have us turning five years old and we'll be having a great celebration on valentine's day.
Topics in February
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Threespot Angelfish
[Apolemichthys trimaculatus] |
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| Description: |
Bright yellow in colour with a broad black band on the edge of the anal fin and a broad white zone above it. A black spot on the forehead and a ocellated dark spot just behind the head. Distinct bright blue lips. Max size recorded at 26cm. |
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| Behavior: |
Usually swims about the reef singly or in small groups. |
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| Depth: |
3-40m |
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| Habitat: |
A tropical coral- and rocky-reef fish. |
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| Diet: |
Feeds on sponges, tunicates, and algae. |
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| On Aliwal Shoal: |
Relatively common. |
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| Other details: |
A sought after aquarium fish. |
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Tiger Shark
[Galeocerdo cuvier] |
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| Description: |
Bluish-green to dark gray or black dorsal surface with a yellowish-white to stark white underbelly. Has a blunt head with serrated cocks-comb-shaped teeth. The broad first dorsal fin originates posterior to the pectoral axil. The much smaller second dorsal fin initiates anterior to the origin of the strongly recurved anal fin. A ridge is present along the back between the dorsal fins. A low longitudinal keel is present on the caudal peduncle and the upper lobe of the caudal fin is long and thin with a subterminal notch. Max. size recorded at 750cm. |
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| Behavior: |
Its large size, scavenging nature and shallow-water feeding result in it being dangerous to people. |
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| Depth: |
1-371m |
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| Habitat: |
Notable tolerance for many different kinds of marine habitat but generally prefers murky waters in coastal areas. It is commonly found in river estuaries, harbors, and other inlets where runoff from the land may attract a high number of prey items. Shallow areas around large island chains and oceanic islands including lagoons, are also part of the tiger shark's natural environment. |
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| Diet: |
The least discriminative of all species, the tiger shark will eat almost anything. Prey includes sea turtles, rays, other sharks, bony fishes, sea birds, dolphins, squid, various crustaceans and carrion. The tiger shark's highly serrated teeth combined with the saw-like action from shaking the head back and forth allows it to tear chunks from much larger marine animals. |
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| On Aliwal Shoal: |
Usually seen on baited dives although present in areas on and off the reef. Less common. |
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| Other details: |
High vulnerability due to commercial and big-game fishing. Minimum population doubling time 4.5 - 14 years. Rated as Near-Threatened on the IUCN Red List. |
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Honeycomb Stingray
[Himantura uarnak] |
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| Description: |
Beautiful pale brown, honeycomb pattern on a dark brown background. White on the underside. Disk size can reach 200cm and the long slender tail can reach up to 3 times body length. This ray has a very sharp snout. Like other rays it likes to bury itself in the sand with only eyes and tail visible. Maximum published weight is recorded at 120kg. |
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| Behavior: |
Mostly shy when it comes to divers and will swim off when feeling crowded. If approached slowly one can get quite close to observe. |
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| Depth: |
20-50m |
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| Habitat: |
Coral reefs, sandy areas, estuaries and lagoons. |
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| Diet: |
Molluscs, crustaceans, small fish, worms, jellyfish and squid. |
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| On Aliwal Shoal: |
Reasonably common during summer months. |
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| Other details: |
Venomous sting on tail. |
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Starry Moray
[Gymnothorax nudivomer] |
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| Description: |
Yellowish-brown in colour with numerous small white spots anteriorly becoming darker posteriorly. Gills are surrounded by a dark blotch. Inside of mouth is a distinguishing bright yellow in colour. |
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| Behaviour: |
Night hunter. Will usually lie with mouth slightly open to move water over its gills while at rest. |
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| Depth: |
2-271m |
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| Habitat: |
Shelters in rocky and coral reef during the day. Mostly found in crevices and overhangs. |
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| Diet: |
Fish, crustaceans and octopus |
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| On Aliwal Shoal: |
Fairly common |
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| Other details: |
Poisonous to eat and bite will probably require medical attention. |
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