Daily Scuba News Round Up 28 April – 04 May 2019 May 5, 2019 by lukesheppard

Sunday 28th – New MPA at Ascension Island

So a new MPA or Marine Protected Area is opening up in Ascension Island in the southern Atlantic Ocean. This new MPA site is twice the size of the UK, it’s going to be around 443,000 square kilometres. Its aim is to help protect green turtles, swordfish, sharks, tuna, and marlin… You know the fish from Finding Nemo.

Monday 29th – Pink oasis found in California

Scientists have discovered something pretty cool at the bottom of the Gulf of California. They have found a fairy floss coloured underwater oasis that looks otherworldly. Dr. Mandy Joye from the University of Georgia and her team ventured 2000 meters…. Yes 2000 meters down into the Gulf with the intention to study hydrothermal vents and the environment that surrounds them. 

Tuesday 30th – Sardine fishing banned in California

West coast regulators have voted to ban commercial sardine fishing for the fifth straight year after a recent evaluation of the northern Pacific stock revealed a steep decline. So this ban spans the entire length of the U.S. West Coast and the refreshed ban comes just in time as it was planned to let commercial fishing resume on 1st July this year.

Wednesday 1st – Great Whites are cowards

The most famous sharks on the planet are most likely the Great White shark but the big scary Great White is afraid of something else in the water now. Researchers from Monterey Aquarium and Stanford University were tracking shark movements but as soon as orcas came close the big tough Great Whites ran for the hills and ran hard. 

Thursday 2nd – Plastic Pollution really sucks!

So there are metal boxes that have been dragging around the ocean since 1931 and these boxes have accidentally created a record of the history of ocean plastic. This device is known as continuous plankton recorders or CPRs for short.

Friday 3rd – Free eco courses for scuba divers

The UK registered charity the Reef World Foundation have started free online courses to help diving professionals to conduct environmentally friendlier dives, manage their guests and better prevent them from damaging coral reefs.

Saturday 4th – Dogs are awesome!

Ok, people this really is going to be a short and sweet story today. Now we all know oil rigs suck! They are damaging marine life and are of course a massive contributor to climate change in all sense of the word, but because of this story, I’m happy that this particular oil rig exists.

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