SCUBA News 272
(ISSN 1476-8011)
March 2023

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SCUBA News (ISSN 1476-8011)
Issue 272 - March 2023
https://www.scubatravel.co.uk
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Welcome to SCUBA News. Thanks for subscribing - any comments, questions or dive site reviews email news@scubatravel.co.uk. I look forward to hearing from you.

What's New at SCUBA Travel?

	Captivating diving in the Cayman Islands From the wreck of the Kittiwake on Grand Cayman to the breathtaking Bloody Bay Wall on Little Cayman, these Caribbean islands have much to offer divers. LEARN MORE…
	Revealed: the World's best 100 Dives in 2023 The definitive list of the best dive sites on the planet. How many of them have you dived? LEARN MORE…
	Croatia Calling With fab vis and many offshore islands, the diving in Croatia is very good. LEARN MORE…

10 Last Minute & Early-Bird Liveaboard Deals - Save up to 40%

From the solar eclipse in Raja Ampat to the historic Adelaar liveaboard with just 4 cabins. Plus Mexico, Maldives, Bahamas and the Red Sea. All splendid diving destinations.

1. Aliikai, Indonesia, Raja Ampat Solar Eclipse, 15 - 27 April 2023 (12 nights), SAVE 20%, Price from EUR 6,677 per trip per person
2. Blue Manta, Indonesia, Komodo - North & South, SAVE 10% on selected trips from May to August 2023 (6 or 7 nights), Price from USD 2,430 per trip per person
   * This offer is available for new individual bookings until the end of May 2023
3. Rocio del Mar, Mexico, Socorro Islands, 06 - 15 May & 16 - 25 May 2023 (9 nights), SAVE 10%, Price from EUR 3,464 per trip per person
4. Quino El Guardian, Mexico, Socorro Islands, Save 10% on selected trips in April and May 2023 (9 nights), Price from USD 3,150 per trip per person
5. Discovery II (Samira), Egypt, North Wrecks and Ras Mohamed & Brothers, Daedalus, Elphinstone, 15 - 22 Apr 2023 & 29 Apr - 06 May 2023 (7 nights), SAVE 10%, Price from USD 890 per trip per person
6. Discovery I (Amelia), Egypt, Brothers, Daedalus, Elphinstone, SAVE 10% on April 2023 trips, Price from USD 1,029 per trip per person
7. Carpe Diem, Maldives, North Male - South Male - Vaavu - South Ari - North Male, 09 -16 Apr 2023 & 21 - 28 May 2023 (7nights), SAVE 15%, Price from EUR 1,550 per trip per person
8. Aqua Cat, Bahamas(Tiger Beach), Weeklong Cruise, 16 - 23 December 2023 (7 nights), SAVE $500, Price from USD 2,695 per trip per person
9. Sea Serpent Excellence, Egypt, Brothers, Daedalus and Elphinstone, 27 Apr - 04 May 2023 (7 nights), SAVE EUR 100, Price from EUR 1,349 per trip per person
   
10. Adelaar, Indonesia, Cousteau's Nirvana (Maumere - Wakatobi - Bau Bau) & Komodo & Beyond, SAVE UP TO 40% on April 2023 departures (10 nights), Price from USD 2,974 per trip per person

The Ghost Goby (Pleurosicya micheli ) is our Creature of the Month

If you look carefully at this semi-translucent little fish you can see its organs. The ghost goby lives mainly on massive stony corals to around 30 m, in the Indo-Pacific including in the Red Sea.

Our ghost goby, P. micheli has red fluorescent eyes. This is probably to help them forage for their preferred food of miniscule crustaceans, as red fluorescence enhances visual contrast at depths below 10 m.

Also known as the stony coral ghostgoby, the fish lays its eggs on sea squirts. The female lays relatively few eggs but they are then guarded by the male against predators.

The family Gobiidae comprises at least 2000 species. More than half of these are found on coral reefs. Many coral reef gobies are capable of bi-directional sex change, sometimes more than once. Another adaptation which increases the potential number of offspring.

Vertebrata > Osteichthyes > Teleostei > Gobiiformes > Gobiinae > Pleurosicya > Pleurosicya micheli

References

Microhabitats and ecomorphology of coral- and coral rock-associated gobiid fish (Teleostei: Gobiidae) in the northern Red Sea, Jurgen Herler. Marine Ecology 207

Meadows et al. Red fluorescence increases with depth in reef fishes, supporting a visual function, not UV protection, Proceedings of the Royal Society, 2014

Gobies on Coral Reefs. Chapter in The Biology of Gobies, R. A. Patzner et al (editors). Science Publishers, Jersey, British Isles, New Hampshire 2011

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Diving news from around the World

	Sunken warships exceptionally good for coral reefs, Thistlegorm study finds Scientists this month described the first investigation of sealife on the famous Thistlegorm shipwreck.
	Algae-farming fish help coral reefs bounce back from bleaching events The presence of territorial farmerfish that look after algae gardens seems to help branching corals recover after heat stress has bleached them
	Seagrass key to livelihoods and marine habitats The United Nations this month declared a World Seagrass Day, recognizing their importance and creating awareness of this much-overlooked marine habitat.
	Coral reefs in the tropical Pacific could survive into the 2060s, study finds Some reefs increase their resilience to elevated temperatures by being built by corals that shuffle algal partners following ocean heatwaves
	Will new bottom trawling rules do enough to protect South Pacific seamounts? Bottom trawling involves dragging heavy nets and trawl "doors" along the seabed that run roughshod over any organisms or structures in their path; scientists have compared it to clear-cutting a forest.
	Historic agreement to protect seas reached after decade of talks The High Seas Treaty places 30% of the seas into protected areas by 2030, aiming to safeguard and recuperate marine nature. The agreement was reached just hours ago at UN headquarters in New York.

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Photo credits: Tim Nicholson, Jill Studholme, Kristin Riser, Jianye Sui

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