DIVE PACIFIC 177 - May/June/July 2021

NEW ZEALAND'S DIVE MAGAZINE 

NEW ZEALAND’S ONLY DIVE MAGAZINE 

ISSUE 177 

May/June/July 2021 

P A C I F I C 


P A C I F I C 

Discovering ever 

more of New Zealand 

MANTA fantasy! Our best kept u/w secret! 

Vanuatu: The top 5 coral dive spots 

New citizen science projects: Join in now! 

www.DiveNewZealand.com 

Bottom trawling releases more carbon that global aviation! 

Diving with an unseen injury 

Spearfishing National champs: full report 

Is New Zealand failing its marine protection goals? 

www.dive-pacific.com 1

TecFestnz 2021, 

top event 

TecFest 2021 turned out an 

excellent event, with a large 

number of active try divers ready 

to take full advantage of two 

bright and sunny days on April 

30th and May 1st. 

Paul Powney had this 

Takacat ready for you 

to go for a spin. Paul 

says over 10,000 

of these foldaway 

Takacats have been 

sold, and they’re ideal 

for divers 

Lance McKirdy and rebreather from 

Dive Milford Sound ( www.descend. 

co.nz ) representing Scuba Force, a 

German brand 

Participants enjoyed full value 

using the top equipment on offer, 

thanks to the big organisational 

effort of Brent McFadden of Go 

Dive Marlborough. 

The action this year was at the 

Wharekaka Point Reserve lake 

front site at Taupo, then on the 

Sunday, for a leisurely hour long 

swim along the Waikato River. 

First though, we were invited 

to get to grips with twin tanks, 

dry suits, at least three types 

of scooter, side mount systems, 

full face masks, 

rebreathers and 

more. All under the 

expert guidance of 

some of the people 

pictured here, 

many of whom 

presented great drill 

from their bank 

of specialist and 

technical knowledge. 

They were 

joined by equipment 

suppliers, and some 

highly informative 

and entertaining 

presentations, all 

superb bar none. 

For instance, in 

addition to those 

mentioned we 

were also fully 

engaged with 

presentations by: 

Richard Taylor of Worksafe NZ, 

on the responsibilities of dive 

operators and other other dive 

businesses 

Jeni Tassell of Kiwi Divers and Dive Supplies.co.nz 

offered a range of full face masks to try, with 

cameras and lights at the back 

Laura, a newish recruit to Mares New Zealand 

Grant Searncke with one of two large RIB’s, taking 

divers elsewhere on the lake to dive

Annika Andresen with VR 

headsets for all to enjoy a visit to 

the animal life at the Kermadecs, 

the Poor Knights and Three 

Kings Islands (Annika also has 

a feature on concussion in this 

issue) 

Xavier Vrijdag on Gas Narcosis 

Keith Gordon, on the wreck of the 

Ventnor 

(see Dive Pacific Issue 174) 

Pete Mesley with a very personal 

and hilarious history of technical 

diving in New Zealand 

Tim Marshall on ‘Ups and 

Downs’ or the similarities/differences 

between 

flying and diving. 

And the inimitable 

Professor Simon Mitchell, 

first on ‘Optimal 

Decompression’ then 

with a fascinating Saturday 

dinner presentation on last 

year’s exploration at the Pearse 

Resurgence in Nelson (See also the 

cave diving feature in this issue) 

Hanna van Waart presented on lessons 

to be learnt from the Thai cave rescue 

and how full face masks assisted 

Lugging the scooters out 

A twin tank set up trial 

What you need to know… 

Richard Chitty from Divesupplies. 

co.nz with a ranges of scooters to 

beat the current, and save you for 

the big task ahead 

Scooter to try 

The highly experienced Steve Davis, 

a side mount authority, and all 

round very easy to get on with 

type of person 


contents 

42 

39 

IN DEPTH NZUA REPORTS 

4 EDITORIAL: First ever diver survey highlights outstanding issues 

with NZUA President Tristan Reynard 

SOUNDINGS Local and international news & comment 

9 New sea cave adventure coming to Kelly Tarlton’s 

10 Bottom trawling devastates seabed AND atmosphere: Nature 

NZ failing to meet marine protection goals 

12 2020: The Year of the Quiet Oceans 

16 

13 Marine climate change study wins PM’s science prize 

14 Deep sea shark luminescence 

Seabirds spend 40% of time over the high seas 

15 Micro plastics in fish – will it harm you if you eat it? 

16 ANZAC dive sets records 

18 Blue Dragon find. Jelly fish wash up explained 

33 Seaspiracy: Is the Netflix documentary kosher? 

Endangered river dolphins two species 

38 DIVE TALKS scheduled for October in Portugal 

World’s deepest wreck dive 

40 

BUCKET LIST DESTINATIONS 

14 Fiordland – diver’s paradise 

30 Vanuatu: The top five coral dives 

34 Manta fantasy: Our best kept u/w secret 

39 New top underwater art museum opens in Townsville, Queensland 

40 Great Barrier Reef project wants citizen scientists – join up! 

PADI backs call for Reef data analysts 

SPECIAL FEATURES 

55 

25 Cave divers discovering more New Zealand: Latest finds 

with Bruce Clulow 

42 Diving for a purpose: Join Aotearoa Lake’s citizen science team 

cleaning up New Zealand lakes 

49 Diving with an unseen injury. What concussion taught me 

Annika Andresen recounts her recent experience 

2 Dive New Zealand | Dive Pacific

Cover photo by Kiwi cave 

diver Matt Coutts is of our 

author Bruce Clulow in the 

double barrel shotgun cave 

on the West Coast. 

Head to page 25 

25 

34 

OUR EXPERT COLUMNISTS 

6 Good news on trawl ban 

LEGASEA UPDATE 

7 Knowing what to do when the current takes you away 

Water Safety NZ makes a compelling yarn of it 

22 Extremely tight competition at the National Spearfish champsr 

Spearos Notebook with Jackson Shields 

46 Conservation: Is it necessary? The debate in 1971 

BACK IN THE DAY with Dave Moran 

47 The Sandagger’s Wrasse 

SPECIES FOCUS with Paul Caiger 

52 The risk of a cold shoulder: OCS and hypothermia 

INCIDENT INSIGHTS with DAN, the Divers Alert Network 

30 

57 How to make Depth of Field work for you 

DIGITAL IMAGING with Hans Weichselbaum 

GEAR BAG 

33 Orcatorch’s photo competition 

55 Submarine wins design award again 

68 Nauticam’s weird and wonderful 

MORE 

60 CLASSIFIEDS 

64 Subscribe to Dive! SPECIAL OFFER! 

49 

67 Shades of Colour Photo Comp returns! 

Check out our website www.divenewzealand.co.nz 


NZUA REPORT with TRISTAN REYNARD 

First ever diver survey throws up issues... 

In the first ever survey of its kind, 

NZUA has obtained key data on 

who is diving around New Zealand, 

why they dive, and their diving 

practices and experience. 

The diving community is aging. 

And new participants in younger 

age groups is on the decline. (See 

graph). 

The main reason people go scuba 

diving, snorkelling or spearfishing, 

for 65% of respondents, is to gather 

food. The other 35% dive for 

such as photography, underwater 

hockey and breath-hold sports. 

• 50% dive less than once a month 

on average. 

• 24% dive at least once a week 

• 2% dive at least five days per 

week meaning its their work. 

Some 2195 active divers took part 

in the survey from every region 

except the Chathams. Surprisingly 

perhaps, far more divers 

responded from the Coromandel 

than elsewhere with 17.7% per 

10,000 people, over four times 

the national average. Second and 

third were Northland (9.6%) and 

Marlborough (9.0%) at twice the 

national average. 

At NZUA we know future surveys 

of this kind will need to make sure 

the sample group is not skewed by 

highly engaged divers, but nevertheless 

we’re pleased by the level 

of understanding about the safety 

and behavioural landscape that 

this first survey gives us. 

Dive quals 

83% of respondents hold a dive 

qualification, with most trained 

through PADI, SSI or NZUA. And 

while 70% of those who primarily 

go spearfishing and have some 

training, they are likely to have got 

it through their SCUBA training. 

Spearfishing respondents head 

out on average less than six days a 

year, and they have the lowest rate 

of qualifications (55%). 

Using a rating system respondents 

were asked about their knowledge 

of such things as the buddy 

system, boating safety, shallow 

water blackout an so on. 

27% of unqualified divers 

compared with 5% of qualified 

divers registered an overall 

safety knowledge of ‘6’ or 

less. Training does work. 


P A C I F I C 

established 1990 


P A C I F I C 

May/June/July 2021 Issue 177 


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follow the links on our website 

www.Dive-Pacific.com 

P A C I F I C 

Diver Emergency Number, New Zealand : 

0800 4 DES 11 1800 088 200 (toll free) 

Australia : +61-8-8212 9242 

Publisher 

NZUA Publishing Ltd 

New Zealand Underwater Association 

40 Mt Eden Rd. Auckland 1024 

+64 9 623 3252 

Editor 

Gilbert Peterson 

divenz@divenewzealand.co.nz 

+64 27 494 9629 

Advertising Sales Manager 

Colin Gestro +64 272 568 014 

colin@affinityads.com 

Art Director 

Mark Grogan +64 9 262 0303 

bytemarx@orcon.net.nz 

All rights reserved. Reprinting in whole 

or part is expressly forbidden except 

by written permission of the publisher. 

Opinions expressed in the publication are 

those of the authors and not necessarily 

the publishers. All material is accepted in 

good faith and the publisher accepts no 

responsibility whatsoever. 

www.DiveNewZealand.co.nz 


Registered Publication 

Dive Pacific ISSN 2624-134X (print) 

ISSN 2324-3236 (online) 


Tristan Reynard 

Knowledge of safety overall is 

of course a key element of dive 

training, and this was reflected in 

higher overall ratings by respondents 

with dive qualifications. 

Issues of concern 

40+ year olds recorded low 

average ratings on the need 

refresher courses and fitness/ 

medical checks while spearfishers 

rate the risk of shallow 

water blackout low. A lack of 

formal or informal trip reporting 

was also evident. 

With SCUBA qualifications valid 

for life, and as two thirds of 

respondents were 40 or older, 

many of them may well not be 

fully up to speed with the latest 

dive information. 

Food gatherers recorded a significantly 

lower rating for their 

understanding of the need for 

medical checks, refresher courses 

and showed lower levels of 

knowledge in general than divers 

for non-food related reasons. 

Other key findings 

Training beyond SCUBA, 

especially with the popularity 

of spearfishing, should become 

a focus, along with the need to 

engage with communities where 

food gathering is the dominant 

driver of activity. 

NZUA will be looking for ways 

as well to reinforce the benefits 

of medical checks and refresher 

courses. 

It’s a concern that younger age 

groups appear to be falling, which 

is a trend reinforced by global 

data. We will be giving that a lot 

more thought along with how to 

attract and retain more females 

to the industry. 

About the survey 

The survey attracted 2195 respondents. 

It was widely distributed 

across multiple channels, 

through social media and 

promoted on news sites including 

Stuff.co.nz, NZHerald.co.nz, and 

via NZUA’s network of partners 

and the NZUA email newsletter. 

69% of respondents were 40 or 

over with 40-59-year olds the 

biggest age group by far. Just 

28% were between 20-39 years 

old; only 3% were under 19. 

Most were male (86%) and the 

proportion of males to females 

increased by age group. 

- Tristan Reynard 

President, NZUA 

Tristan@nzua.org.nz 


LegaSea Update 

Good news on trawl ban 

As divers we often see 

first-hand the damage 

to the seabed caused by 

trawlers and scallop dredges, 

so often we are the most vocal 

when it comes to debates 

around banning these fishing 

techniques from inshore 

waters and habitats. We have 

good news. 

The New Zealand Underwater 

Association was one 

of a dozen entities 

to congratulate the 

Hauraki Gulf Forum 

on their recent policy 

decision to remove 

all industrial bottom 

trawling and scallop 

dredging from the entire 

Marine Park. 

While there is no specified 

timeframe this is welcome 

news for coastal communities 

from north Auckland to Waihi, 

at the southern reaches of the 

Park. Environmental interests 

around the country are also 

watching these developments 

with bated breath. 

Trawling in the Hauraki Gulf 

has been a contentious issue 

for more than a century. In 

1918, after much discussion 

about whether trawling 

ought to be permitted in the 

Gulf and where, the Minister 

of Marine established a 

Commission of Inquiry to 

consider trawl exclusion zones 

and fish catch limits. 

It seems incredible that 103 

years later we’re still debating 

the merits of allowing industrial 

sized nets, chains, 

bobbins and box dredges to 

rip through some of the most 

productive inshore habitats 

surrounding our coastline. 

Today we have no excuses. 

Due to in-depth studies and 

technological advances we 

now know much more about 

the value of biogenic habitats 

and the need to protect these 

precious seabed communities 

because these are the places 

that sustain our snapper, 

kingfish, baitfish, crayfish and 

shellfish beds. What’s more, 

a productive and diverse 

inshore marine ecosystem 

sustains us all. 

In recent months local 

communities have mobilised 

their support for more 

fish in the sea and improved 

fisheries management. Ngāti 

Pāoa has placed a rāhui 

affecting four species around 

Waiheke Island, and Ngāti 

Hei has placed a rāhui on 

scallop harvest from Opito 

Bay on the eastern side of the 

Coromandel Peninsula. A two 

year temporary closure application 

has been lodged for 

both areas and public consultation 

is open until mid-May. 

At their most recent meeting, 

the Hauraki Gulf Forum 

received heart-felt presentations 

from Ngāti Pāoa, the 

Waiheke community, Ngāti 

Hei and LegaSea. In response, 

the Forum reaffirmed is 

position 

that fishing 

methods 

which 

damage the 

seafloor 

should be 

removed 

from the Marine Park. 

…It seems incredible that 103 years later we’re still 

debating the merits of allowing industrial sized nets, 

chains, bobbins and box dredges to rip through some of 

the most productive inshore habitats surrounding our 

coastline… 

At this stage we don’t know 

when these damaging fishing 

methods will be banned. 

We certainly cannot wait 

another century for action. 

The New Zealand Underwater 

Association, LegaSea and 

other groups are urging the 

Forum to act now to take 

advantage of the community’s 

appetite for positive change. 

(And if you haven’t already 

please do sign the petition at: 

rescuefish.co.nz/petition). 

Want to help? 

If you want to help this 

ongoing effort, please support 

us. 

https://legasea.co.nz/support-us 

NZUA AGM set 

On Saturday, July 3rd NZUA 

will be holding its 68th 

Annual General Meeting, this 

time online from 10am-12 noon. 

While the Board recognises the 

value of members’ coming-together 

every year, holding the 

meeting online was thought 

prudent. All members are 

invited to the virtual gathering, 

with the speaker line-up to be 

notified shortly, but you need 

to register. To do that, and if 

you haven’t been sent the other 

relevant papers such as remits, 

recommendations and Notice of 

Motions please contact 

Andrea@nzua.org.nz 


Know what to do... 

...when the current takes you away 

Todd Russell is a man who 

knows only too well the power 

of ocean currents in the Cook 

Strait. In December 2019 Todd 

was separated from his two other 

diving companions and the boat 

off Red Rocks, when a current 

caught him as he surfaced. He was 

found five to six nautical miles 

from his designated exit point 

after spending three hours bobbing 

on the surface of what many call 

the Cook Strait cauldron. 

Todd and his dive companions 

had recently completed their Open 

Water dive course so they were 

fully prepared for their day under 

the water. And it is testament to 

their understanding of Tangaroa 

and mātauranga, the diver’s code, 

and the procedures they followed 

pre-dive and throughout their 

dive, that saved Todd’s life. 

In 2020, 12 men sadly were not as 

fortunate as Todd. They lost their 

lives doing what they enjoyed, 

spending a day under the water, 

primarily catching kai to share 

with whānau and friends. 

Such is the finality of an underwater 

dive gone wrong that very 

few victims are hospitalisations. 

On an average four hospitalisations 

occur annually with 

symptoms ranging from non-fatal 

drowning, swallowing seawater, 

lacerations and fractions, and 

other medical events occurring 

while under water. 

Injuries resulting in an ACC 

claim total 500 annually and cost 

millions of dollars per year. The 

nature of these injuries range from 

ear/sinus problems, impact against 

rocks or boats, injuries by fauna, 

strains, sprains (often to the neck), 

injuries from own gear such as 

spearguns and decompression 

problems, including an average 20 

victims of decompression sickness 

or ‘the bends’ requiring hyperbaric 

treatment annually. 

In 2020 the preventable underwater 

drownings of 12 males is 

the worst statistic since 1995. 

In the previous five years, 2015 to 

2019, the average was 8.2. Now is 

the time for all underwater divers 

to take stock of how, why and 

where they’re diving and refresh 

their safety procedures, check 

equipment, their ability and skill 

SOUNDINGS 

LOCAL NEWS 

level and get their ‘fit to dive’ 

medical check. 

The risks of underwater diving are 

aplenty. While our safety messages 

of never diving alone are being 

heeded with bystanders present 

among 11 of the 12 victims, it still 

didn’t save their lives. Five rescues 

and three resuscitations were 

attempted to no avail. 

Alcohol was known to have been 

involved in just two cases, but 

this could have been the difference 

between living and dying. 

Remember, never go diving after 

…(New Zealand) averages 20 victims of decompression 

sickness or ‘the bends’ requiring hyperbaric treatment 

annually… 

a hard night on the booze or a day 

of beers on the beach or boat. Just 

don’t drink when you’re diving and 

know what to do when the current 

takes you away. 

Note: The fatal and non-fatal 

preventable drowning statistics 

are sourced from WSNZ’s 

DrownBase and injuries sourced 

from ACC. 

To view Todd Russell’s story of survival, watch Te Waiora Kohikohi 

Kaimoana at https://kmko.nz Te Waiora is a documentary series 

exploring the deep connection Māori have with water. 

WWW.SURVIVETHEDIVE.NZUNDERWATER.ORG.NZ DIVE EMERGENCIES 0800 4 DES 111 


The Dive Zone group are keen 

to see divers enjoy their own 

backyard this summer and 

looking forward to getting you out 

on, and under the water in each of 

their fantastic dive locations: Dive 

Zone Bay of Islands, Tauranga, and 

Whitianga. 

Each of their stores offer awesome 

service with a full range of dive 

gear to hire or purchase, with 

good quality, reliable brands such 

as Mares and Beuchat leading 

their range. Be it a new dive 

knife, a float or flag or even the 

whole kit; the Dive Zone stores 

are locked and loaded ready to 

help you, our summer visitors, 

enjoy, and get the most out of 

their diving. 

All stores also offer tank filling 

and testing, and BCD and 

Regulator testing. 

Three top dive 

destinations 

invite you… 

Since our stores are located in 

out of the way areas, we are well 

used to assisting divers with last 

minute problems that can pop up 

and prevent you from getting out 

on the water. 

Got a friend or family member 

that wants to learn? Or do you 

want to upskill? All of our stores 

offer a full range of PADI dive 

training courses, and all of them 

are available throughout the 

summer. 

Make the most of our Summer Road 

Trip offer. Dive with all three stores 

and go into the draw to win $1000 

to spend with us. 

What are you waiting for? 

Come and visit us. 

Dive Zone Bay of Islands 

Dive Zone Tauranga 

Dive Zone Whitianga 


New Sea Cave Adventure 

coming to Kelly Tarlton’s 

new Sea Cave Adventure 

A zone paying homage to the 

wonders of the Hauraki Gulf is 

being developed at SEA LIFEKelly 

Tarlton’s Aquarium in Auckland. 

The new attraction is costing $1.1 

million, a world-class interactive 

experience aiming to educate 

and inspire guests by telling the 

story of the ecology and history 

of the Hauraki Gulf Marine Park 

established 21 years ago on 27 

February 2000. 

The adventure’s four themed 

chambers will encourage guests 

to encounter 

native octopus, eel, 

starfish, crayfish, 

pufferfish and crab 

species as well as 

interact hands-on 

through video and 

digital displays. 

“Our aim is to 

advocate for the 

Hauraki Gulf Marine 

Park by creating an 

engaging and educational 

experience 

that inspires guests 

to continue discovering 

the Gulf after 

they leave the Aquarium,” said Dan 

Henderson, General Manager of 

SEA LIFE Kelly Tarlton’s. 

“We are grateful for the Department 

of Conservation’s 

ongoing support, 

which will help 

us ensure Sea 

Cave Adventure 

is a world-class 

experience full of 

hidden discoveries, 

unexpected surprises 

and digital interactives.” 

Julie Kidd from 

DoC said; “Our 

hugely successful partnership 

with SEA LIFE Kelly Tarlton’s 

helps us reach hundreds of 

thousands of people to share the 

wonder and uniqueness of New 

Zealand’s only national park of 

the sea.” 

The Sea Cave Adventure zone 

continues the legacy of founder, 

globally-renowned adventurer 

Kelly Tarlton, who created the 

world’s first ocean tunnel. 

Construction of the Sea Cave 

Adventure begins this month to 

be ready for December’s summer 

school holidays. 

SEA LIFE Kelly Tarlton’s is 

currently home to magnificent 

sand tiger sharks, rescued sea 

turtles undergoing rehab, NZ’s 

only colony of Sub-Antarctic 

penguins, hundreds of different 

fish species, and much more. 

For more go to 

www.kellytarltons.co.nz 

Artists impressions of the new Sea Cave Adventure 


SOUNDINGS 

LOCAL NEWS 

Bottom trawling devastates atmosphere 

AND seabed: Nature 

Photo: Greenpeace 

New study finds bottom trawling releases as much carbon as air travel world wide 

Scientists have calculated that new study published in March 

bottom trawling, legal in New this year in the highly respected 

Zealand, releases as much carbon journal Nature. 

into the air as did pre 

Covid aviation worldwide, 

or more than the 

total carbon emissions 

of Germany. 

Dragging enormous 

nets across the ocean’s 

seabed to catch fish 

for your dinner, while 

wrecking the seabed and 

making it uninhabitable, 

also contributes directly 

and vastly to climate 

change. (see footnote) 

The finding is from a 

More than 50 countries agreed 

in January to protect 30% of 

their land and ocean area by 2030 

for biodiversity purposes, but 

New Zealand wasn’t one of them. 

Yet during the 2019 election 

campaign Labour promised to 

protect 30% of New Zealand’s 

marine environment by 2030. 

“The High Ambition Coalition 

for Nature and People,” (HAC), 

was officially launched in Paris 

earlier this year ahead of the One 

A net from the ocean floor 

Planet summit hosted by French 

President Emmanuel Macron, and 

alongside co-chairs, the UK and 

Costa Rica. 

Oceans and Fisheries Minister 

David Parker instead has noted: 

“The Government’s first priority 

regarding marine protection is 

to reform the Marine Protected 

Areas Act. One of the most 

glaring issues to fix is that we 

don’t yet have marine protection 

legislation covering the exclusive 

The report also presents what 

amounts to a peer-reviewed, 

interactive road map for how 

nations can confront the 

interconnected crises 

of climate change and 

wildlife collapse at sea. 

Photo: Greenpeace 

It states that protecting 

strategic zones of the 

world’s oceans from 

fishing, drilling and 

mining would not only 

safeguard imperiled 

species and sequester 

huge amounts of carbon, 

it would also increase 

overall fish catches. 

“It’s a triple win,” said 

NZ failing to meet 30% marine protection by 2030? 

economic zone. It is Government 

policy to seek protection of 30% of 

marine areas over time,” he said, 

not committing to the 2030 date. 

Newsroom’s Marc Daalder first 

reported on New Zealand’s 

absence from the international 

group back in January. 

But when he further inquired 

of Parker’s office about the HAC 

coalition and the 30x30 target he 

was redirected to Conservation 


Enric Sala, a marine biologist 

who directs the Pristine Seas 

Project for National Geographic. 

Dr Sala led the Nature study’s 

team of 26 biologists, climate 

scientists and economists, 

reported Catrin Einhorn for the 

New York Times. 

In order to maximize fish catch 

alone, the study found, nations 

would need to set aside 28% of 

the ocean for conservation since 

no-fish zones serve as nurseries, 

replenishing fish and crustacean 

populations which then disperse 

beyond protected areas. 

At present about 7% of the 

world’s oceans have some form 

of protection with less than 3% 

highly protected. 

The study in Nature reported that 

each year bottom trawlers scrape 

an estimated 1.9 million square 

miles of the sea floor. If undisturbed, 

the carbon stored there 

can remain for tens of thousands 

of years. 

Initially the team had no plans 

to calculate the amount of 

emissions released by trawling 

until an outside reviewer for 

Nature required it, Dr Sala said. 

So his team hired an additional 

researcher and got to work. 

“I could not believe it,” he 

recalled, describing when his 

colleagues revealed the amount 

of emissions. “Immediately I 

went to Google and checked the 

global emissions by sector and by 

country, and said, ‘Wow, this is 

larger than Germany’s.’” 

The carbon released from the 

sea floor leads to more acidified 

water, threatening marine life, 

and reduces the oceans’ capacity 

to absorb atmospheric carbon 

dioxide. China, Russia, Italy, the 

United Kingdom and Denmark 

lead the world in such trawling 

emissions. 

The study’s findings bolster an 

international push to safeguard 

at least 30% of the Earth’s lands 

and waters by 2030, known as 

30x30. New Zealand’s in shore 

protected areas currently stands 

at 0.035% scattered around the 

coastline (See Dive Pacific, Issue 

176) with 11.51% in mega offshore 

reserves such as the around the 

Kermadec Islands where policing 

presents big challenges. 

SOUNDINGS 

LOCAL NEWS 

[In two separate cases recently, 

New Zealand fishing vessels 

have been caught and fined 

for bottom trawling in marine 

protected areas. In one case it 

was the ship’s second offence 

with the ship forfeited. The judge 

hearing the case then released it 

after the payment of a pitifully 

small fine. The captain’s defence 

was he was unaware where the 

ship was, an insult to anyone’s 

intelligence and surely grounds 

for disqualifying him from his 

role as captain.] 

Footnote: For more on bottom 

trawling go to: 

https://tinyurl.com/6f3sftmz 

“What was a forest of sponges and 

coral, which is a critical habitat for 

the development of fish, now is mud, 

and the area of the ocean floor that 

has been transformed from forest to 

level mud, to a parking lot, is equivalent 

to the entire area of all the 

forests that have ever been cut down 

on all of the earth in the history of 

humanity. We’ve managed to do that 

in the last 100 to 150 years.” - Erik 

Frederiksen, a marine ecologist 

at the Scripps Institute in 

Oakland California (3/3/2021) 

Photo: Malcolm Pullman/Greenpeace 

Photo: NIWA 

Minister Kiri Allan, who said: 

“That was our commitment and 

that’s what we’re committed to. It 

is one of our manifesto priorities, 

we’re strictly working to those 

manifesto priorities.” 

Asked for the Department of 

Conservation understanding, 

DoC’s International Manager, 

Danica Stent, referred to the 

Convention on Biological 

Diversity which New Zealand is 

a party to, saying New Zealand’s 

protection efforts were focused 

there. 

“Parties to the Convention on 

Biological Diversity (CBD) are 

involved in a formal process to 

negotiate a new set of global biodiversity 

targets for the next decade,” 

she said. “These are due to be 

adopted at the next Conference of 

the Parties (COP 15).” 

Meanwhile Forest & Bird’s George 

Hobson said “we want to see that 

the Government’s committed 

themselves to that 30 percent 

by 2030 target, because it is 

backed by science and it will be 

massively beneficial to the biodiversity 

we’re so lucky to have in 

Aotearoa.” 

“We can use the example of the 

antipodean albatross. They’re 

critically endangered in New 

Zealand, yet, last year, one single 

commercial fisher caught four 

and killed all of them. 

“They’re magnificent, long-lived 

birds that just need this type of 

protection urgently. We want to 

see the Government recognise 

this state of crisis that our oceans 

are facing.” 


SOUNDINGS 

INTERNATIONAL NEWS 

2020: The year of the quiet ocean 

Seldom has there been such a chance to collect quiet 

ocean data in the Anthropocene Seas. COVID-19 drastically 

decreased shipping, tourism and recreation, fishing 

and aquaculture, energy exploration and extraction, 

naval and coast guard exercises, offshore construction, 

port channel dredging and other human clatter. 

With this precious opportunity, an emerging Ocean 

Listening Network aims to study soundscapes in seas 

uniquely quietened by COVID-19 - more than 200 widely 

distributed non-military hydrophones are already 

listening. 

Travel and economic slowdowns 

due to the COVID-19 pandemic 

put the brakes on shipping, seafloor 

exploration, and many other 

human activities creating a unique 

moment to begin a time-series 

study that the impacts of sound 

have on marine life. 

A community of scientists has 

identified 200 or so non-military 

ocean hydrophones worldwide, 

the recorded data from which 

they want to pool into a 2020 quiet 

ocean assessment. They plan to 

keep on monitoring ocean soundscapes, 

including whale sounds and 

other marine life while assessing 

the racket levels of human activity. 

Sound travels far underwater 

A hydrophone in the ocean can 

pick up low-frequency signals 

from hundreds, even thousands 

of kilometres away, and for over a 

century, navies have used sound 

to reveal submarines, underwater 

mines and other national security 

purposes. Marine animals likewise 

use sound and natural sonar to 

navigate and communicate across 

the ocean. 

But the effects of human generated 

ocean sounds on marine life 

remain poorly understood. 

Assessing risk 

“Assessing the risks of underwater 

sound for marine life requires 

understanding what sound levels 

cause harmful effects and where in 

the ocean vulnerable animals may 

be exposed to sound exceeding 

these levels.” said Peter L. Tyack, 

Professor of Marine Mammal 

Biology at the University of St 

Andrews, Scotland. 

In 2011 the International Quiet 

Ocean Experiment (IQOE) was 

launched with a Plan commenced 

in 2015. Among the goals? Create 

a time series of measurements 

of ambient sound in many ocean 

locations to reveal variability and 

changes in intensity and other 

properties of sound at a range of 

frequencies. Then came COVID-19. 

Some of the data from 231 non-military 

hydrophones have their 

geographic coordinates and other 

metadata shown on the IQOE 

website (https://www.iqoe.org/ 

systems), and the organizers hope 

to attract many more contributors, 

especially from across the 

Southern Hemisphere. 

Example of a measured 

ocean soundscape 

This map shows the difference 

between the total noise level and 

the natural noise level with differences 

up to 30 decibels (dB) at 15 

locations across the North Sea for 

a year. Shipping noise dominates 

human noise. While 30 dB on its 

own is not loud, the superimposition 

raises the level significantly 

higher than natural noise. 

Tracking vocalising animals 

Meanwhile, scientists over the past 

decade have developed powerful 

methods to estimate the distribution 

and abundance of vocalizing 

animals using passive acoustic 

monitoring. 

Their fledgling hydrophone 

network contributes to the Global 

Ocean Observing System (GOOS), 

a worldwide collaboration of 

observing assets monitoring 

currents, temperature, sea level, 

chemical pollution, litter, and other 

concerns. 

Comparable global events? 

Comparable unintended opportunities 

for maritime study are 

rare and important. They include 

the start (1945) and stop (1980) of 

above-ground nuclear testing when 

the movement and decay of traces 

of carbon and tritium provided 

major insights into ocean physics, 

chemistry, and biology. 

The terrorist attacks on September 

11, 2001 caused the cancellation of 

hundreds of civilian airline flights 

allowing scientists to study the 

effects of jet contrails (or their 

absence) on weather patterns. 

The attacks also led to a shipping 

slowdown and ocean noise reduction, 

which prompted biologists 

to study stress hormone levels 

in endangered North Atlantic 

right whales in the Bay of Fundy. 

The research revealed higher 

September stress hormone levels 

over the next four years as the 

whales prepared to migrate to 

warmer southern waters where 

they calve, suggesting the industrialized 

ocean causes chronic stress 

of animals. 

Data graphed by JP Morgan reveals 

the impact of COVID in several 

categories of commercial activity. 

If true also of maritime activity as 

suspected, it suggests a relatively 

short-lived quiet ocean due to 

COVID -- late March to mid-May, 

2020. 


dnz164 

SOUNDINGS 

LOCAL NEWS 

Climate change in the ocean wins PM science prize 

Dr Christopher Cornwall of 

Te Herenga Waka/Victoria 

University of Wellington has 

been awarded this year’s Prime 

Minister’s MacDiarmid Emerging 

Scientist Prize worth $200,000 for 

finding answers to the impacts of 

ocean acidification 

Ocean acidification is responsible 

for coral and other reefs 

dying around the world caused 

by increasing man-made carbon 

dioxide concentrations in the sea. 

Dr Cornwall went looking for 

answers to three questions that 

irked him: 

• Why is there such large 

variability between species’ 

responses to ocean acidification? 

• Can species acclimatise to it 

over one or multiple generations? 

• How will ocean acidification 

actually manifest on coral and 

other reefs? 

To get answers, Dr Cornwall used 

coralline algae (calcifying red 

seaweed) and corals in cuttingedge 

work involving novel 

geochemical techniques and 

boron isotopes, complex laboratory 

experiments, fieldwork, and 

a raft of new modelling. 

“Coralline algae form the foundation 

of temperate and coral reefs 

and are also the required settlement 

substrate for the larvae of important 

species such as corals, sea urchins 

(including kina), and abalone 

(including pāua). 

“Although coralline algae and corals 

are some of the most susceptible 

taxa to ocean acidification, we did 

not know why, Dr Cornwall said. 

“Neither was it clear how reduced 

calcification in the future would affect 

reef growth.” 

“The science community did not have 

methods to understand how coralline 

algae and coral regulate carbonate 

chemistry internally.” 

Another team led by Dr Cornwall 

has undertaken a global study of 

the impact of acidification and 

ocean warming on coral reefs 

Dr Christopher Cornwall 

Photo Gerry Le Roux for Royal Society Te Apā rangi 

around the world. They estimated 

the growth of hundreds of reefs 

and combined physiological 

responses to climate change with 

modelling to see how reef growth 

might change. 

“The results of this work indicate 

that the fate of each coral reef is 

related directly to our carbon dioxide 

emissions,” Dr Cornwall said. 

“Only by limiting our emissions can 

we halt the erosion of these reefs.” 

TUTUKĀKĀ 

NEW ZEALAND 

DAN, (Divers Alert Network) says 

that with most divers unable to 

dive as much as they would like 

lately, and since many haven’t 

been diving at all, it’s essential 

to take some time to plan your 

safe return to diving. So they 

want all divers to consider a few 

important factors before they get 

back in the water and created a 

resource to help you prepare, at 

DAN.org/Return 

“The data consistently show higher 

rates of incidents in the first dives 

urges divers to return to diving safely 

following periods of not diving,” said 

DAN vice president of research 

Petar Denoble, M.D., D.Sc. 

“So as divers gear up to get back 

to it, we ask them to take a look 

at the issues most commonly 

associated with injuries and 

emergencies.” 

At DAN.org/Return you can review 

important considerations related 

to your health and fitness, equipment, 

skills and travel plans, all 

key elements of dive safety. 

FREE 

PHONE 

SIMPLY 

AWESOME! 

0800 288 882 

www.diving.co.nz 

3-5 Rona Place, Tutukaka, Whangarei, SOUTH PACIFIC 


SOUNDINGS 

LOCAL NEWS 

Deep sea sharks glowing in the dark found off 

New Zealand 

Large sharks that can glow in 

the dark and discovered by 

researchers off the New Zealand 

coast (see Dive Pacific Issue 176) 

caught world-wide attention. 

Scientists discovered that the 

kitefin shark, the blackbelly 

lanternshark, and the southern 

lanternshark, emit a luminescent 

glow in their habitats between 

200m and 1000m down. They 

were already known but their 

ability to glow had not been 

previously documented. The 

three species were collected 

during a fish survey in January 

2020. 

The kitefin shark which can grow 

to 1.8m long is now the world’s 

largest known luminous vertebrate, 

said the paper published 

in the journal Frontiers in 

Marine Science, and also the first 

documented shark with fully 

luminous dorsal fins. The 

researchers believe kitefin sharks 

might use their glowing ability 

to camouflage themselves while 

hunting. 

Lead author Jerome Mallefet of 

The kitefin shark. 

the University of Louvain-la- 

Neuve, Belgium, said the sharks 

used a different mechanism to 

glow than other bioluminescent 

animals. 

“[They] control their light production 

system by hormones, while 

most of the bioluminescent 

organisms use nerve control 

to trigger their light,” he told 

Belgian broadcaster RTBF. 

Other luminous marine creatures 

include algae, crustaceans 

and jellyfish, with their ability 

serving different purposes for 

different species. Some, such as 

jellyfish, use it to startle predators 

and attract other creatures 

that prey on their predators. 

Non-marine creatures such as 

glow worms use their light to 

attract prey. 

There are also more than 75 

known species of bioluminescent 

fungi which only glow at 

night, attracting insects that land 

on them and pick up spores to 

spread to other areas. 

Photo: Jérôme Mallefet 

40% of time on the high seas: Global seabird study 

Global seabird research, 

including by NIWA, has 

resulted in the first assessment 

of where the world’s most threatened 

seabirds spend their time. 

The movements of almost 6000 

seabirds from tag data around 

the world has found albatrosses 

and large petrels spend nearly 

40% of their time on the high 

seas. Over half of albatross 

species and their close relatives, 

the large petrels, are at risk of 

extinction. 

About 168 seabird taxa have 

been recorded in New Zealand 

waters, many of which breed 

nowhere else. New Zealand hosts 

the largest number of breeding 

species of seabirds anywhere in 

the world. 

The new research, published 

recently in Science Advances 

Albatross spend 40% of their time on 

the high seas. 

Photo: Rebekah Parsons-King 

highlights the need for international 

co-operation to ensure 

their survival, its authors say, 

NIWA seabird ecologist Dr David 

Thompson says as well as New 

Zealand, several species also 

spend time in Chile and Peru, in 

Japan and the USA in the North 

Pacific Ocean, while others visit 

Namibia and South Africa. 

The researchers tracked the 

movements of 5775 individual 

birds from 39 different species 

using miniature electronic tags 

tagged at 87 breeding sites in 17 

countries. 

Dr Thompson says hundreds 

of seabirds are killed in New 

Zealand waters each year - 

caught on longlines or in trawl 

nets near the surface. 


Micro plastics in NZ fish found 

Some of the first research 

into how micro plastics are 

affecting New Zealand fish 

shows micro plastic fragments 

can find their way through a 

fish’s gut lining into their muscle 

tissue. 

Experiments by two science 

students from NIWA and 

University of Auckland Joint 

Graduate School of Coastal and 

Marine Science have shown 

some fish species in the Hauraki 

Gulf ingest more micro plastics 

than others, with 25% of all fish 

sampled having micro plastics 

in their guts. Micro plastics are 

defined plastic pieces less than 

5mm long. 

Devina Shetty focused on 

snapper, yellowbelly flounder, 

gurnard, jack mackerel, kahawai 

and pilchard. Micro plastics were 

found in 70 of 305 fish specimens, 

including in more than 

half of the yellowbelly flounder 

sampled. 

“This higher ingestion rate for 

flounder could be due to micro 

plastics accumulating in marine 

sediments which makes up more 

of their diet compared to other 

species, or it could be because 

the flounder samples were all 

obtained from the Waitemata 

Harbour, which is closer to 

Auckland as apotential micro 

plastic source,” Ms Shetty said. 

Veronica Rotman 

focused on hoki from 

the West Coast of 

the South Island, 

Cook Strait and the 

Chatham Rise. One or 

more micro plastics 

were found in the 

stomachs of 95% of 

the 60 fish examined, 

with 90% of the 

particles identified as 

fibres. 

Ms Rotman also 

completed a 10-week 

tank experiment at 

NIWA’s Northland 

Marine Research 

Centre where 

snapper were fed a diet 

containing polystyrene micro 

plastics at different concentrations. 

She found those fed a 

higher concentration were more 

likely to have micro plastic in 

their white muscle tissue. 

“This suggests ingested micro 

plastics can translocate from the 

gut and into the muscular tissue, 

potentially making that plastic 

available to anything that eats it, 

whether larger fish or potentially 

humans.” 

Ms Rotman also observed that 

only a low micro plastic treatment 

can result in significant 

inflammatory, vascular and 

structural changes to fish intestine, 

suggesting similar damage 

SOUNDINGS 

LOCAL NEWS 

Devina Shetty examines fish for micro plastic ingestion 

occurs in the wild. The damage 

to the intestine increased with 

micro plastic concentration, 

with 60% of high treatment fish 

displaying severe alterations. 

“The intestine is fundamental for 

the absorption of nutrients, and 

changes to the structure found in 

this experiment would ultimately 

impair nutrient absorption and 

fish growth in the long term. 

Further ingestion of micro 

plastics may compromise the 

permeability, efficiency and 

immunological response 

of the (fish’s) digestive tract 

affecting organ function, reproductive 

success, growth and 

ultimately, survival”. 

NIWA fisheries scientist Dr 

Darren Parsons oversaw the 

projects. He said there had only 

been one previous study looking 

at the effects of micro plastics 

on New Zealand fish species, 

and “micro plastics are found 

throughout the world’s oceans, 

even in Antarctica. They pose a 

unique threat to marine life.” 

Veronica Rotman feeds fish in NIWA’s Bream Bay lab for a study on whether fish are 

absorbing micro plastics 

Next steps would be to focus on 

micro fibres, the most common 

type of micro plastic found in the 

ocean, and more comprehensive 

experiments to establish the 

long-term effects micro fibres 

have on fish. 


SOUNDINGS 

LOCAL NEWS 

ANZAC Dive 

sets new depth 

record 

On April 8th Tim Macdonald 

(Australia) and Rob McCallum 

(New Zealand) completed a 

submersible dive to the bottom 

of the Challenger Deep, Mariana 

Trench. They reached a preliminary 

depth of 10,925 metres at 

the deepest point of the world’s 

ocean, becoming the deepest 

diving Australian and Kiwi ever. 

The successful 12 hour long dive 

was announced from the DSSV 

Pressure Drop, the expedition’s 

68m support ship and completed 

in the DSV ‘Limiting Factor, a 

Triton 36,000/2 submersible 

owned by Caladan Oceanic. 

The two-seater is capable of 

withstanding pressures of up to 

1,400 bar, akin to 11,000 tonnes 

per square metre at full ocean 

depth. 

“We did spare a thought for Sir 

Ed (Hillary) as we descended 

through 8,850m (the equivalent 

height of Everest) and still had 

another couple of kilometres to 

go,” said McCallum. 

The dive’s primary purpose 

was to test acoustic navigation 

equipment. When operating at 

extreme depths, researchers 

need to rely on acoustic telemetry 

to navigate and know 

precisely where samples were 

collected. 

The pair conducted a series 

of technical acoustic tracking 

exercises, ran a 2000m long 

highdefinition camera transect 

and collected geological samples. 

“This privately funded vehicle 

is poised to make some of the 

greatest gains in ocean science. 

It both demonstrates our new 

ability to reach into the hadal 

zone, but also of the importance 

that private funding will play 

in the future exploration of the 

deep ocean,” said 

The expedition team has 34 

members working in ship operations, 

ocean mapping, science, 

sub technical and outreach. 

Australian Tim Macdonald was 

part of the design and build 

team for the submersible. New 

Zealander Rob McCallum is a 

20-year veteran 

of ocean exploration 

regarded 

Post dive DSV 

as an expert 

in deep water 

submersible 

operations. His 

company EYOS 

Expeditions 

has planned, 

managed and 

led hundreds 

of expeditions, 

including every 

expedition 

undertaken by 

DSSV Pressure 

Drop and her 

submersible. “This is a remarkable 

vehicle, a true pathfinder to 

the last frontier of exploration on 

Earth, the deep ocean,” he said. 

The team now heads to Australia 

to conduct science research 

deep in the Indian Ocean in a 

joint project with the Minderoo 

University of Western Australia 

Deep-sea Center sponsored by 

Andrew Forrest. 

For more visit www.eyos.com 

and www.caladanoceanic.com 

www.nzunderwater.org.nz 


Photography by Darryl Torckler 

Photography by Darryl Torckler 

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www.dive-pacific.com 17 


(Getty Images) 

SOUNDINGS 

LOCAL NEWS 

Blue Dragon ‘Blue Fleet’ invades 

Like a tourist on a cruise ship, 

the by-the-wind sailor jellyfish 

(Velella velella) spends its 

days drifting on the open seas 

and gorging on an endless buffet, 

reports Living Science. 

The jelly’s rigid sail pokes just 

above the water catching wind, 

with an array of purple tentacles 

dangling underneath. It floats 

from place to place capturing 

tiny fish and plankton wherever 

it roams. Then, every year, 

on beaches around the world, 

colonies of sailor jellies are blown 

ashore, and become stranded by 

the thousands where they dry up 

and die. 

Julia Parrish, a University of 

Washington professor and 

co-author of a new study on 

mass Velella strandings, says 

they are common when seasonal 

winds change course, but some 

like a 2006 event on the west 

coast of New Zealand saw jellyfish 

corpses numbering in the 

millions. So what force of nature 

makes some Velella strandings 

so much larger than others? 

(Use photo from Dive mag from a 

couple issues back?? Of jellies on 

Northland beach??) 

In their new study (March, 2021 

Marine Ecology Progress Series 

Journal) Parrish investigated 20 

years of Velella observations 

from the west coast of the United 

States undertaken by a citizen 

science programme called the 

Coastal Observation and Seabird 

Survey Team (COASST). 

The researchers found nearly 

500 reports of Velella strandings 

in the COASST database from 

300 beaches, and according to 

those reports, the most massive 

die-offs by far occurred during 

spring months from 2015 to 2019 

when dead jellyfish littered more 

than 1,000 km of continuous 

coastline. 

The die-offs coincided with 

a massive marine heat wave 

known as “the blob.” Beginning 

whole ‘Blue Fleet’ invaded Northland’s 

A Coopers Beach at Doubtless Bay early in 

the summer, reports Andy Stewart. 

Amongst the various blue jellyfish he 

identified were bluebottles (Physalia utriculus), 

by-the-wind sailor (Velella velella), 

blue button (Porpita porpita) and violet snail 

(Janthina janthina). 

But the most stunning of all was the blue dragon 

(Glaucus atlanticus) aka as blue swallow amongst 

other names. The blue dragon is a pelagic 

nudibranch that feeds on the stingers it hangs 

out with in the blue fleet. “What an amazing 

little critter to see!” 

Sadly when the Blue Fleet arrives at New Zealand 

it is most likely the end of the journey. It is 

normally found in warmer waters. Andy warns, 

“if you see a blue dragon take care as they are 

quite venomous from eating the stingers, but 

very very cool to see!!” 

Millions of dead jellyfish washing up around the world 

A raft of by-the-wind sailor jellyfish 

wash up on Vancouver Island, Canada. 

in 2013, surface waters off the 

US Pacific coast began heating 

to levels never recorded before, 

warming that continued through 

2016 affecting the entire marine 

food chain and resulting also in 

mass die-offs of seabirds, baleen 

whales, sea lions and other 

creatures. The new study says it’s 

likely that heat wave also drove 

the mass die-offs of by-the-wind 

sailor jellyfish reported during 

those years. 

There’s more. The warming 

ocean waters may have 

been good for the jellies, the 

researchers said, because as the 

blob increased ocean surface 

temperatures, fish such as 

northern anchovies and others, 

benefited from longer spawning 

seasons, providing more food 

for the Velella jellies which may 

have caused jellyfish populations 

to spike before the seasonal wind 

changes blew them ashore. 

So with Velella jellies thriving, 

much larger stranding events 

may have occurred. With global 

warming predicted to increase 

the frequency of marine heat 

waves, jellies may become 

climate change winners, the 

researchers wrote, but at the 

expense of other species. 


An experience 

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your diving and snorkeling. The dives were amazing, and all the staff are first class. At 

Wakatobi they will accommodate any request, but you hardly need to make any since they 

have thought of essentially everything.” ~ Dr. James and Laurie Benjamin 

www.wakatobi.com 


Underwater Hockey reports 

AGM & 2021 Interzones 

The 2021 AGM was held via Zoom on March 27th 

2021 attended by the Executive and representatives 

of the majority of the clubs with the Annual 

Report presented and Financial Statements and 

2021 budget approved. The annual report can be 

found on the UWHNZ website at 

www.underwaterhockeynz.com/NEWS-1 

The UWHNZ Executive were appointed as 

follows: 

• President - Sarah Arnold 

• Secretary – Coral Dolman 

• Treasurer – Lisa Thompson 

• Immediate Past President – Tony Colquhoun 

• Executive Members – Bruce Chamberlin, 

Rebecca Brosnan, Rob Feist & Isobel Halliday 

Tristan Reynard provided a verbal update on 

the status of international tournaments and 

advised of the ongoing discussions within the 

CMAS UWH Commission on their future. Any 

announcement about them will be made in due 

course. 

Tony Colquhoun presented the UWHNZ High 

performance plan - this is also available on the 

UWHNZ website and will be updated once there 

is more certainty on the international tournaments. 

During a discussion on club affiliation fees and 

the benefits thereof a clear message emerged 

urging all clubs to register all of their players as 

members of UWHNZ, not just those attending 

UWHNZ competitions. 

Other actions for the Executive from the AGM 

are: 

• Investigate providing materials for referee 

courses online rather than hardcopy 

Some outstanding hockey was played at this 

tournament, along with a number of close games, 

including the 3rd, 4th playoff between Northern 

B and Southern in the Women’s grade which 

was tied up at 2-2 at full time. It took a further 

14 minutes of sudden death before Northern B 

finally scored the winning goal. 

Though a few teething problems were endured, 

live streaming was available for the majority of 

the tournament and, thanks to the great water 

quality in Wellington Regionals Aquatic Centre, 

the coverage was outstanding, and there to be 

enjoyed by the UWH fans across New Zealand 

and the world. We were lucky enough to have 

Sky Sport Next stream four games on Sunday. 

The winners, Central A in the Men’s grade, and 

Northern A in the Women’s grade were the 

defending champions with Central A having held 

it since 2019 and Northern A since 2012. 

The final standings were: 

Men’s Grade 

Women’s Grade 

1st Central A Northern A 

2nd Northern Central A 

3rd Southern A Northern B 

4th Mid Northern Southern 

5th Central B Central B 

6th Southern B Mid Northern 

7th Masters Masters 

• Proposal for a Club Presidents Forum with the 

UWHNZ Executive 

• Review the 2017 remit: “The three South Island 

regional boundaries are merged into one 

Southern region until a review in 2020.” 

2021 Interzones 

UWHNZ held the first tournament of the year 

in Wellington over 9- 11 April with a total of 14 

teams involved and over 150 players, coaches, 

refs, and officials. It was good to see invitational 

Masters teams in both grades along with two 

men’s teams from the South Island. 

Central A - Men gold medal 


Northern A – Women gold medal 

Southern A Men bronze medal 

Northern - Men silver medal 

Central A - Women silver medal 

It is acknowledged how lucky we are in New 

Zealand that we are able to hold these tournaments 

in the current covid-19 environment, 

something our UWH friends across the world are 

acutely aware of. 

Northern B - Women bronze medal 

A big thanks to Shayne Blake (Tournament 

Director) for all his tireless work behind the 

scenes. Without him, our tournaments wouldn’t 

run as smoothly. 

International situation 

With the international situation still uncertain, 

the CMAS National Federations met on 27 

March 2021 to determine how to handle World 

Championships in the post covid-19 environment. 

A contingency plan was presented with the 

following key points: 

• Check feasibility for an International CAT B 

tournament to be held in Turkey in 2022; 

• Elite and Masters Worlds hosted by Australia in 

2023; 

• Age Group Worlds hosted by Turkey in 2024; 

• The feasibility of these will be reviewed in July 

2021 by the National Federations. 

Further details including the CMAS documents 

are on the UWHNZ website: 

www.underwaterhockeynz.com/NEWS-1 


S pearos notebook 

2021 National Spearfishing 

Champs: Extremely tight 

competition! 

with Jackson Shields 

The Covid delay of last year’s Championships from April to October meant a quick 

turnaround for this year’s event held out of Cooks Beach on the Coromandel Peninsula over 

Easter weekend. The new compressed four day format of Women’s/Junior’s, Photography, then 

the two day Open competition also streamlined the event. 

Ideally, in a lead up to a competition, it would be good to go to the area beforehand to scout 

out promising ground and species. Unfortunately, weather leading up to the event was 

not good, restricting access, but it can pay to be flexible as fish seem fickle to us humans, 

what with their behaviour changing with the phase of the moon, time of day, current, water 

temperature, wind, visibility and so on. 

DAY ONE 

Day one of the Open was 

held at the northern end of 

Great Mercury Island in a 

designated zone about 6km 

long with the boats anchored 

in the middle of the zone in 

shelter. Winds were blowing 

15-25knots SW; visibility was 

around 7 metres. 

All competitors dive in pairs 

and must stay within the area 

boundaries. 60 divers began 

in the starting triangle for 

the six hours of competition 

time. All divers must be back 

at the starting point within 

that time otherwise you are 

disqualified. 

In this particular area you 

have two options: head north 

or south. Divers do their best 

analysis of which area will hold 

the biggest selection of species, 

as well as the most efficient 

fishing. It is a good idea to 

swim 3km in one direction only 

to find a barren area… At the 

starting triangle you see the 

divers checking, deciding their 

direction. 

Swim race 

The start becomes a full on 

swim race, but divers’ enthusiasm 

and adrenaline soon 

dwindle and they begin to drop 

Pre competition warm up and dinner 

off even though falling behind 

the leading pack can result in 

missing out on fish that spook 

easily. My dive partner Paul and 

I headed towards a pinnacle 

hoping for some pelagic species 

and maybe a John Dory or 

Boarfish. 

Racing through the shallows on 

the way we picked up a small 

Snapper, Butterfish, Kahawai 

and a Kingfish, not quite as 

successful as we had hoped. 

But the pinnacle was alive with 

pelagic fish and only one 

other pair were there to take 

advantage. We secured Blue 

Mao Mao, Koheru and a bigger 

Kingfish. Then we began 

exploring the bottom at 25-32 

metres but it was very quiet 

with a notable lack of good 

species. 

Trouble 

Meanwhile we had the smaller 

kingfish on the short float 

line as we had prioritized our 

other fish to go in the Wettie 

float boat. Suddenly a big 

Bronze Whaler shark, spotting 

the exposed fish, came 

crashing into Paul, grabbed 

the Kingfish and took off with 

both it and Paul’s speargun. 

This was an issue because 

the shark was also towing our 

float boat away. Fortunately 

its thrashing about managed 

to cut the bungee line and it 

disappeared into the depths 

with the fish and Paul’s gun. 

A change of tactics was needed, 

so we headed in shallow to 

attempt to get more Snapper. 

That proved difficult. By now 

we were past the half way mark 

and needed to plan our return 

of about 2.5km swimming 

into 20knots of wind towing 

our catch. We attempted one 

last go out wide then began 


heading back while trying to 

find a pressure point of current 

on the way. We came across a 

small pocket that resulted in 

two Trevally and a big Porae 

then, with time running out, it 

became a hard slog back to the 

boats. 

All basic fish 

We had secured 15 fish in total 

but all were basic fish, though 

just enough to beat Dave 

Mullins and Storm into second 

place. The difference between 

our catches was minimal. We 

were on 100% with Dave and 

Storm on 97.4% and several 

other teams in the 80-88% 

range. Two day percentages are 

added to determine the winner 

so the first day’s effort wasn’t 

much of a buffer. It was still 

anyone’s competition. 

DAY TWO 

Comp director Herb made the 

decision that Day Two was to 

be held at Cuvier Island in its 

entirety. But we would all still 

be limited by our swimming 

capacity from the boats. 

Weather was touch and go with 

a slow rough trip getting out. 

Paul Best and Jackson Shields: Day Two’s winning catch 

As for Day One a big swim to 

start was called for. Getting 

motivated can be more difficult 

after a big six hours diving the 

day before. Day Two required 

an even bigger swim but we 

planned to use the wind and 

current to assist us this time. 

Conditions were beautiful with 

15 metres visibility. Again, Dave 

and Storm had a similar plan 

to ours in mind, and we knew 

Dave would know a few tricks 

about the area. 

Crucial direction 

They made headway on us in 

the initial swim so we took 

…A big Bronze Whaler shark spotted the exposed fish, 

came crashing into Paul, grabbed the Kingfish and took off 

with both it and Paul’s speargun… 

Three Generations of NZ Champions Spanning from 1960 - 2021 

Dave Shields, Darren Shields and Jackson Shields 

a different line to the area 

where we were both obviously 

heading. This proved crucial… 

We managed good size Snapper, 

Butterfish, Porae and Kahawai 

before getting to the desired 

area. By the time we arrived 

Dave/Storm had already been 

there for some time, but fortunately 

it was just us two pairs, 

and we managed Blue Mao 

Mao, Pink Mao mao, Trevally, 

Koheru and two more Snapper. 

Eventually more pairs turned 

up and we broke for the 

shallows. The first fish we saw 

there was a Kingfish… followed 

by another Snapper. We only 

needed one more Porae to max 

out on the basic species. So 

we headed along the island in 

the deeper weed-edges which 

were loaded with fish but 

not the ones we were after… 

Nevertheless we secured a 


S pearos notebook 

Parae pretty quickly. As we 

headed deeper out wide the 

two days of diving began to 

take their toll. Nice areas in 

32-35 metres would be good but 

diving there at this point was 

too much. It would open us to 

risk. The mind wants to do it 

but the body says no. 

Weigh in 

Back at the weigh in speculation 

was ramping up as the 

news of team catches travelled 

ahead of us. We knew it would 

be tight again. There were 

mentions of an abundance of 

the same species that we had. 

Dave and Storm weighed in 18 

species, but fortunately for us 

again we managed 19. With 

this we got 100% again with 

Dave/Storm extremely close at 

96.9%. Amazing, after 12 hours 

of diving scores can end up so 

close! 

Third place was rounded out 

by Dwane and Coby Herbert 

(youngest competitor), a father/ 

son combination and an incredible effort. Also a 

special mention with fourth place taken out by 

my father Darren and his dive partner Ian, two of 

Paul Best and Jackson, New Zealand Open Champions; Darren Shields 4th place - 

Most Meritorious and Silver Oldie (Over 50 Champion); Sophie Hamilton, NZ Women’s Champion 

the oldest competitors. 

A big thanks to Herb Herbert and his team for 

taking the time to organize a fantastic competition! 

Photographing the shy giant squid 

The elusive giant squid has 

inspired tales of legendary 

krakens with bodies as large as 

islands though in fact it grows 

only to about 14 metres long. 

Yet despite their size they are 

rarely seen; most wash up dead 

or dying, or become ensnared in 

deep-sea trawl nets. 

Then in 2012 a team of marine 

scientists filmed a young giant 

squid 630 m below the sea south 

of Japan, and they did it again in 

2019 in the Gulf of Mexico. 

Now the authors of a new study 

say the creature’s elusiveness 

is due, in part, to its enormous 

eyes, the largest of any animal 

and about the size of a basketball. 

These huge eyes not only 

help giant squids make their way 

around the deep, dark ocean, but 

probably also make them extra 

sensitive to the bright lights 

marine researchers mount on 

submersibles and underwater 

cameras. That sensitivity could 

explain why they are so hard to 

find in their natural habitats, 

the authors say; by the time a 

research vehicle reaches a squid’s 

swimming grounds, the squid 

has long since fled its lights. 

So as not to alert any giant squid 

that maybe nearby, researchers 

involved in the 2012 and 2019 

sightings turned off the lights of 

their submersible and stopped it 

moving. They then illuminated 

their camera with a dim red 

light. 

“Many deep-sea species, 

including squid, have monochromatic 

visual systems adapted 

to blue [light] and blue bioluminescence 

rather than long 

wavelength red-light,” the 

researchers wrote. “Using red 

light may thus be a less obtrusive 

method for illuminating deep-sea 

species for videography.” 

The lure worked, drawing A. 

dux out of the darkness on both 

occasions. As it happened the 

giant squid in the Gulf of Mexico 

was a little too convinced and 

tried to attack the submersible’s 

camera arm, which allowed the 

team to measure it’s 1.8 metre 

long tentacles. 

A dead giant squid (Architeuthis 

dux) found on Golden Mile Beach 

in Britannia Bay, South Africa in 

2020. 

(Image credit: Adéle Grosse) 


Discovering 

ever more of 

New Zealand 

Bruce (right) with Tom Crisp after we connected 

Totara cave to cottage cave in Takaka in 

November 2019 thus making the Spitalls System 

the 10th biggest cave in New Zealand 

Photo by Kieran Mckay 

…exploring where no one has ever gone before 

The author Bruce Clulow in an unexplored passage of the Riuwaka cave system after approximately 8 hours of diving and caving in. Photo by Kieren McKay 

A small group of super adventurous divers are mapping ever more of New Zealand’s underground cave 

systems. Their explorations are linking up cave systems hitherto at a dead end, using the full range 

of caving and diving technology and skills available while developing new approaches along the way. 

Bruce Clulow, who last reported for us on Cook Islands cave treasures (See Dive Pacific 164, June/July, 

1918) guides us on a tour of some of their most recent cave diving expeditions. 

Exploring dry and underwater 

caves in New Zealand is hard 

work! It’s physically and mentally 

challenging. Dragging cylinders and 

dive equipment sometimes through 

quite small sections of a dry cave 

just to jump in a pool of water to 

see if the cave continues underwater 

is not for everyone, including 

many cave divers. 

But for some of us, that challenge 

is the very reason we keep on 

exploring. To overcome the 

challenges, and be the very first 

people to see and map a new 

passage underground or underwater 

is incredibly satisfying. 

You can see why it’s called double barrelled shotgun - 

with the two tunnels 

Photo by Matt Coutts 


The WEKA (Wet Exploration 

of Karst Areas!) team of 

which I’m a member, reside in 

different parts of New Zealand 

and get together whenever we 

can to share our enthusiasm for 

exploration. 

Over the last 10 years we’ve 

explored and mapped a significant 

amount of underwater 

cave passage in various parts 

of New Zealand. However this 

article focuses on our recent 

discoveries in the Marlborough/ 

Tasman district and the West 

Coast, then I’ll discuss some 

of the attributes you need if 

you yourself were thinking 

of beginning to explore cave 

systems underwater. 

Marlborough/Tasman 

The Spitalls System lies in the 

Takaka Valley Karst, a network 

of dry and underwater caves 

accessed on land owned by Rob 

Davies and Michele Allison. 

Rob and Michelle are very 

experienced dry cavers from 

Wales who moved here about 10 

How hard can it be? From the base of a vertical pitch in the Riuwaka reached after diving and dry caving 

for about 4 hours. This was taken on the way out of the cave after 15 hours exploring. 

We dragged dive gear through places like this to get to new dive sites 

years ago and who purchased 

the land in Takaka because of 

the caving opportunities on 

offer! 

…In February 2020, Australians Dr Richard Harris and 

Dr Craig Challen dived to 245 metres depth in the Pearse 

using twin rebreathers. The dive lasted 17 hours 

(of which 16 hours was decompression)… 




The Spitalls is prone to flooding 

so can only be explored in 

the right conditions. Rob and 

Michelle spend their summers 

exploring dry sections and 

call in cave divers for the 

submerged areas. 

The original cave diving 

explorers here were Martyn 

Farr, a renowned Welsh cave 

diver, and Kieran Mckay, a kiwi 

caving and cave diving legend. 

In 2019, Tom Crisp and myself 

made an important contribution 

by connecting two of the 

caves in the Spitalls System - 

Cottage Cave and Totara Cave 

- in a two hour long dive. This 

link meant the Spitalls system 

then became over 12 km of 

passage, placing it the 10th 

longest cave in New Zealand. 

Thai Cave Rescue of 2018 and 

the experience we gained from 

him during the SAREX was 

invaluable. 

Spitalls and near Motueka is 

the Riuwaka system. Kieran 

Mckay and myself have made 

two trips here in the last six 


The Spitalls System was also 

the location of the first Cave 

Diving SAREX (Search and 

Rescue Exercise) in November 

2019, a highly successful event 

run by Dr Richard Harris. 

Richard was involved in the 

…The use of underwater habitats, heated under-suits, 

underwater communication systems, and multiple rebreathers 

are required for the extreme depths… 

Riuwaka 

A half hour drive from the 

months, exploring further into 

this spectacular cave system 



than any previous expeditions. 

The Riuwaka consists of a 

series of sumps and dry cave 

passages so climbing, rope 

rigging and dry caving experience 

is needed as well as cave 

diving skills. This is technically 

and physically a very 

challenging cave. However 

the possibility we might be 

able to connect the Riuwaka 

system to the MiddleEarth/ 

Greenlink system, which lies 

approximately one km to 

the northwest, is an enticement 

to further exploration. If 

connected this system of caves 

would be the second largest in 

New Zealand. 

No update of the Malborough/ 

Tasman area would be 

complete without mentioning 

the Pearse Resurgence! The 

Pearse Resurgence offers the 

mother of all cave dives. At 

the base of Mt Arthur water 

from the Nettlebed cave System 

surges out of the limestone to 

form the head of the Pearse 

River. 



In February 2020, Australians 

Dr Richard Harris and Dr Craig 

Challen dived to 245 metres 

depth in the Pearse using twin 

rebreathers – the dive lasted 17 

hours (of which 16 hours was 

decompression). 

The Pearse was still descending 

at the deepest point they 

reached. Richard and Craig 

were planning another expedition 

this year but Covid 19 

postponed the trip. The WEKA 

team are proud to have assisted 

Richard and Craig on their last 

few trips there. 

The Pearse is a cave dive 

requiring very specific skills 

and experience. The use of 

underwater habitats, heated 

under-suits, underwater 

communication systems, 

and multiple rebreathers are 

required for the extreme depths 

of this cave. So far only seven 

people have ventured past 150 

metres and only three of these 

continued past 200 metres. 

Keen anyone? 

The West Coast 

The West Coast has multiple 

cave systems, both underwater 

and dry. The biggest 

challenge exploring here is the 

weather. Heavy rainfall often 

floods these cave systems so 

completely that any expedition 

planned must be prepared 

to lose time waiting for the 

weather to clear. 

The Nile River near Charleston 

flows over a large area of West 

Coast limestone that has a 

number of caves which for 

the past five years have been 

explored by Mike Batey, Guy 

Bates, Tom Crisp, Kieran Mckay 

and myself, with Matt Coutts 

joining the team this year, on a 

two week expedition. 

The main cave explored was 

DBS (Double Barrelled Shotgun - 

the entrance looks like shotgun 

barrels). About two years ago 

Tom and Mike discovered this 

cave and explored 300 metres 

of passage in it. The main 

challenge to exploring further 

was the very high water flow, a 

flow so high that in places you 

cannot swim against it. 

But during our expedition 

earlier this year, a spell of dry 

weather saw the Nile River 

almost dry up, which reduced 

…During our expedition earlier this year, a spell of dry weather 

saw the Nile River almost dry up, which reduced the water flow 

to manageable levels. We were able to explore a further 600 

metres or so of cave passage at depths up to 37 metres… 

the water flow to manageable 

levels. We were able to explore 

a further 600 metres or so of 

cave passage at depths up to 37 

metres. 

Kieran Mckay explored another 

300 metres of passage in a cave 

approximately one kilometre 

away and we think it probably 

connects to DBS, but a rock fall 

at the furthest point in the cave 

blocked our way forward. In 

future we think we will be able 

to move those rocks out of the 

way to continue onwards… 

So what attributes do you need 

if you’re thinking this cave 

diving exploration might be for 

you? 

Obviously being trained as a 

cave diver is an absolute necessity! 

Cave diving involves more 

risk than normal recreational 

diving. Special procedures, 

training and equipment are 

necessary to manage the risks. 

Diving experience plays a large 

part, not just in cave diving but 

also for general technical diving 

as well. 

Modern cave exploration quite 

often requires rebreathers, 

mixed gases, staged cylinders 

and decompression diving. Our 

expedition this year to the Nile 

River near Charleston involved 

dives lasting three hours and at 

depths up to 37 metres. 

We used sidemount and back 

mounted rebreathers (Kiss 

Sidekick and JJs), Trimix gas 

mixes, and Diver Propulsion 

Vehicles (DPVs) as the flow 

in the caves was too high to 

swim against without over 

exertion. The temperature of 

New Zealand’s water means dry 

suits are an absolute necessity 

for longer dives! 

Keep an open mind. Work in 

a team 

Just as important as experience 

is an open mind and the 

ability to work in a team. If you 

can look at a challenge and 

say: “How can we overcome 

this safely and efficiently?” Or 

“What’s the best equipment 

for this job?” then you are 

well on the way to becoming a 

successful cave explorer. 

Being mentally and physically 

fit is also of course key attributes. 

If you aren’t able to cope 

with some hard work then 

you would quickly become a 

liability to yourself and team 

mates. 

Cave diving is a very niche 

part of recreational diving 

with training to become a 

cave diver usually taking place 

overseas due to the lack of 

instructors and appropriate 

training environments locally. 

It requires dedication and a 

substantial investment of time 

and money to become qualified, 

and then experienced enough 

to start exploration diving. 

But the satisfaction from 

completing a successful exploration 

cave dive is definitely 

worth it! 


Vanuatu 

Top 5 

Coral Dives 

1 

Vanuatu is home to one of the world’s largest intact WWII 

wrecks, and well known for its wreck diving. But beyond the 

heavy metal there’s some amazing coral diving to be found. 

Here is our pick of the Top 5 Coral Dives in Vanuatu. 

Owen’s Reef, Tranquility Island, Efate 

This stunning dive is a short boat ride from 

Tranquility Island Eco Resort in Efate. A visiting 

marine biologist once remarked he’d 

never before seen a dive site with 

such abundant coral biodiversity. 

The coral landscape changes at each 

corner turned, with all sorts of hard 

corals including some enormous 

porites, brain and table corals, 

staghorn corals, and sheltering under 

the overhangs and inside tunnels, 

colourful soft corals. 

anemone gardens you’ll ever see. In fact everywhere 

you go in Vanuatu, you’re likely to find 

anemone gardens in the shallowest parts of the 

reef, even on the President Coolidge. One of the 

2 

Bonzer Wreck anemone 

garden, Hideaway Island, 

Efate 

Yes, it’s a wreck, but it’s a very 

pretty wreck, with one of the largest 


largest however, is next to the 

Bonzer, a 5-minute boat ride from 

Hideaway Island Resort. On top of 

a large coral bommie, this bright 

orange anemone garden is several 

metres in diameter, with dozens of 

clownfish in residence. And they’ll 

all come out to say hello as you 

swim around in the crystal clear, 

tropical water. 

3 

4 

Tutuba Island, 

Espiritu Santo 

Tutuba Island is about a 30 

minute boat ride from Luganville in Espiritu Santo 

and fast becoming one of the most popular dive 

sites in Espiritu Santo – once you’ve seen the 

Coolidge and Million Dollar Beach/Point, get yourself 

a coral-fix here. Enormous plate coral fields and a 

seemingly endless variety of soft and hard corals 

lead into swim-throughs, gloomy trenches and 

caves where you can spot lobsters guarding their 

homes. 

Fan Garden, Aore Island, 

Espiritu Santo 

A few metres off the beach on Aore Island 

near Espiritu Santo, this drift dive must be 

seen to be believed. You’ll feel a bit like Alice in 

Wonderland as you drift with the current through 

a forest of seriously enormous sea fans. 

Sometimes called ‘Aore Wall’, in the shallows 

you’ll find nudibranchs, anemones, a variety of 

WWII artefacts and if you’re lucky you might also 

find a colourful mantis shrimp. 

5 

West Side Story, 

Hideaway Island, Efate 

Five minutes boat ride from 

Hideaway Island, this seriously 

huge field of staghorn coral comes 

to within 6 m of the surface. To the 

west of it long fingers covered in 

yellow, blue and green staghorn coral 

drop down to a depth of 30m plus. 

Large schools of pretty little damsel 

fish swim just above the staghorn, 

which also conceals lots of anemones 

between the branching coral. 

For More information visit: 

www.vanuatu.travel 


32 Dive New Zealand | Dive Pacific 

3.30pm “SS President Coolidge – Santo”

Seaspiracy: Call to action or misinformation? 

Seaspiracy has been in 

the top 10 most watched 

programs on Netflix lately and 

it’s reaching audiences that don’t 

usually think about fisheries. 

The documentary highlights 

the damaging effects of fishing 

on the world’s oceans and is 

narrated and directed by British 

filmmaker Ali Tabrizi as he 

who discovers fishing to be 

the ocean’s biggest threat. But 

A range of prizes is on offer again in OrcaTorch’s Search for 

Atlantis photo competition. They include for the winner 

an OrcaTorch D630 4000 Lumens Powerful Canister Dive 

Light for Cave Diving, Wreck Diving. Two prizes for second 

are the D910V 5000 Lumens High CRI Neutral White Video 

Light for Underwater Photography, and three prizes for 

third are on offer of Orca torch dive lights. 

Tabrizi’s single solution—stop all 

seafood consumption — fails to 

recognise what that would mean 

to the livelihoods of many, many 

people. 

That extra attention on the 

myriad issues facing the ocean 

may be successful at getting 

more people invested, but the 

idea that conservation can be 

boiled down to “don’t eat fish” is 

OrcaTorch photo competition enters 3rd year 

short sighted. 

SOUNDINGS 


Endangered Asian river dolphins two different species 

For years questions were raised 

over whether river dolphins 

living on either side of the Indian 

sub-continent in the Indus and 

Ganges rivers are the same, or 

different species. Now a new 

analysis shows they are without 

doubt two distinct species. 

Scientists spent two decades 

looking for river dolphin skulls 

and re-examining tissue DNA 

samples to reach their conclusions 

before publishing their 

findings in Marine Mammal 

Science journal. 

The dolphins live in the muddy 

waters of the Ganges and 

Indus rivers and have lost their 

eyesight relying on sophisticated 

sonar to hunt for prey. The new 

research establishes they have 

clear genetic differences as well 

as different numbers of teeth, 

coloration, growth patterns and 

skull shapes. 

Several thousand Ganges river 

dolphins are estimated to live in 

the rivers of Bangladesh, India, 

and Nepal, but their numbers 

and range are thought to be 

in decline. But the Indus river 

dolphins have increased from 

about 1,200 in 2001 to almost 

2,000 in 2017 due to conservation 

efforts by local communities and 

provincial and national government 

authorities. 

“Only a few thousand individual 

dolphins of each species remain,” 

said Gill Braulik of the Sea 

Mammal Research Unit at the 

University of St. Andrews, who 

led the study. “My hope is our 

findings will bring much-needed 

attention to these remarkable 

animals, helping prevent them 

sliding towards extinction.” 

For the rules and to enter go to The Search for Atlantis 

Photo Contest - OrcaTorch Dive Lights. Entries close on 

June 21st. 

The 2019 winner of the first Orcatorch Atlantis photo contest in 2019 by 

Tom St George 

Winner of last year’s OrcaTorch competition was Kevin 

Aschenbrenner-Sturm with this photo. 


Aotearoa’s best kept 

underwater 

secret! 

By Lydia Green, Founder & Project Manager, Manta Watch Aotearoa New Zealand 

Oceanic manta rays are without a doubt 

Aotearoa’s best kept underwater secret. In 

fact most kiwis have no idea these gentle giants 

are found in our recreational and offshore 

waters in significant numbers. 

Despite their impressive size, which can exceed 

6m across, oceanic mantas are extremely 

elusive; they remain one of the most popular 

yet least understood species. 

The little we do know is pretty impressive, and 

it turns out that these highly intelligent animals 

actually have a lot in common with us humans. 

We both share conservative life histories. We 

both reach sexual maturity in our teens, give 

birth to fully developed, functioning offspring 

after a year’s gestation and partake in complex 

social interactions with our kin. 

Mantas even have the same brain size to body 

ratio as humans, and it also happens to have 

the largest brain of any fish! 

In-water encounters with 

these majestic, highly curious 

animals can be incredibly 

interactive and quite often, life 

changing. 

East Coast, and to the west, as 

far south as Kapiti Island. They 

are known to associate closely 

with our offshore islands and 

fisheries and as a result have 

now become unstable and at 

serious risk of collapse. 

Misconceptions 

A common misconception is 

that manta rays are only found 

in the tropics and can’t handle 

cooler waters. This is only half 

true because there are two 

species of manta ray, and it’s 

the reef mantas found exclusively 

in the tropics. 

Oceanic manta rays on the 

other hand grow much bigger 

and can live in both tropical 

and temperate waters, 

including here in Aotearoa New 

Zealand. In fact, oceanic manta 

rays can be found all around 

the North Island, from North 

Cape down to Gisborne on the 

…Oceanic manta rays can be found all around the North Island, 

from North Cape down to Gisborne on the East Coast, and to the 

west as far south as Kapiti Island… 

have been sighted in both deep 

offshore waters, as well as in 

much shallower inshore waters 

a mere kilometre or two off the 

mainland. 

Endangered 

As of December 2020, oceanic 

manta rays were reclassified 

from Vulnerable to Endangered 

on the IUCN Red List. Globally, 

individuals in many populations 

continue to be captured or 

killed by targeted and bycatch 

Understanding the intricacies 

of Aotearoa’s population has 

never been more critical as it 

could prove to be one of the 

last remaining strongholds the 

species has left. 

To date Manta Watch Aotearoa 

NZ (MWANZ – see panel p.36) 

has collated 350 verified 

sightings from 2001 through 

to 2021. Each sighting has a 

corresponding GPS position/ 

coordinate which is then used 


to create Geo-referenced sightings 

maps. Areas of consistent 

activity (aka “manta hotspots”) 

are identified and become 

the focus of dedicated manta 

surveys. 

Timing vital 

Timing is everything as manta 

rays don’t need to come to the 

surface, so when they choose to 

do so it’s for a specific reason. 

Feeding is often the primary 

driver for mantas to stay at the 

surface for extended periods 

of time, which in turn is determined 

by their zooplankton 

prey. 

…Mantas even have the same 

brain size to body ratio 

as humans, and they also 

happen to have the largest 

brain of any fish!… 

Manta rays have an in-built 

zooplankton super sense; they 

know exactly when prey densities 

are prime for feeding. Krill, 

a primary food source in New 

Zealand, forms dense swarms 

during the summer months and 

when conditions are just right 

can attract scores of manta rays 

to aggregate and feast. 

Latest hot spot 

In early January this year, 

MWANZ investigated a string 

of sighting reports focusing 

on the outer waters of 

Auckland’s Hauraki Gulf/Tikapa 

Moana. After several days of 

monitoring it became clear 

that we’d happened upon a 

significant feeding aggregation 


cataloguing these “photo-ID” images over time, 

we can estimate population size, determine 

an individual manta’s movements and life 

history including sexual maturity, injuries and 

pregnancies. 

…We found that hovering the drone over somersaulting 

mantas proved to be a very effective 

way of obtaining IDs!… 

surpassing all our expectations. And 

from that moment on our team took 

every opportunity to hone in on the key 

variables that had fired up this very 

special hot spot. 

When surface feeding oceanic mantas somersault, 

which is essentially a series of energetic 

back flips to concentrate and entrain their 

prey before swallowing it, their entire belly 

Using a drone has become an essential 

means of collecting data, first to 

keep track of individuals once spotted 

from the boat, and second as a way 

to passively observe and document 

behaviours. Then we soon realized 

drone photogrammetry could be 

further utilised and applied to estimate 

manta disc width (the length between 

wing tips), cruising speed and even to 

take identification images. 

Unique markings 

All manta rays have unique markings 

on their belly or underside. By 


Manta Watch Aotearoa New Zealand (MWANZ) 

Charitable Trust was set up in 2017 to combine citizen 

science with targeted research to unravel the many 

mysteries associated with Aotearoa’s oceanic manta 

rays. 

Our manta journey has just begun, and we are excited 

to see how the project develops. Public engagement 

and participation will continue to be an integral part of 

MWANZ and we look forward to broadening our nationwide 

manta community. 

breaks the surface. We found 

that hovering the drone over 

somersaulting mantas proved 

to be a very effective way of 

obtaining IDs! 

Accurately measuring a manta 

ray’s size or disc width is 

also really important, as size 

directly relates to an animal’s 

age and sexual maturity. This 

in turn helps to build a picture 

of the health and structure 

of the overall population. It’s 

actually quite easy to underestimate 

the size of a manta 

when you’re in the water 

with it, as you have nothing 

to compare it to. Deploying 

something of a known length 

close by, (such as our trusty 

manta ruler) makes accurate 

measuring of an individual 

that much easier. To date 

we have observed a range 

of different sized mantas at 

the hotspot, the smallest a 

2.8m male (likely sub adult or 

teen) all the way to some big 

pregnant females over 5.5m. 

With such a massive search area, citizen science sightings, 

both recent and historic, are pivotal to the project’s 

success. Every sighting increases our collective understanding 

of manta ray distribution and how they are 

using specific habitats and locations up and down the 

country. 

Ultimately the project’s aim is to determine whether 

New Zealand has our own distinct population, or if the 

mantas encountered here in our waters are connected to 

a larger South Pacific group. 

Special thanks to our dedicated research partners, 

Conservation International Aotearoa, Auckland 

University, the Department of Conservation, the Manta 

Trust and Tindale Marine Research Charitable Trust for 

their continued support and guidance. Massive thanks 

too, to everyone who has submitted sightings so far! 

For those keen to get involved and support the project, 

there are numerous ways you can get in touch/share 

your sightings with MWANZ. 

Please check out our dedicated Manta Watch social 

accounts and/or email mantawatchnewzealand@gmail. 

com for an Electronic Manta Sightings Packs which 

contains all the links and information you’ll need to 

become an active citizen manta scientist! 

Getting our manta timing 

‘spot on’ is still very much a 

work in progress. But so far 

we have been blown away by 

the progress and discoveries 

MWANZ has made this season. 

Every manta encountered is 

testament to the huge collective 

effort and collaboration 

that goes into the project. 


SOUNDINGS 


US navy ship sunk 76 years ago reached in 

world’s deepest shipwreck dive 

US navy destroyer sunk 

A during WWII in 6,500 metres 

off the Philippines has been 

reached in the world’s deepest 

shipwreck dive, a US exploration 

team has said. 

A crewed submersible filmed, 

photographed and surveyed the 

wreckage of the USS Johnston off 

Samar Island in the Philippines 

during two eight-hour dives 

completed late March, Texasbased 

undersea technology 

company Caladan Oceanic said. 

The Caladan Oceanic-backed expedition found the bow, bridge and mid-section 

intact with the hull number ‘557’ still visible. 

Photograph: AFP/Getty Images Agence France-Presse 

The 115-metre-long ship was 

sunk on 25 October 1944 during 

the Battle of Leyte Gulf as US 

forces fought to liberate the 

Philippines from Japanese 

occupation. 

Its location in the Philippine 

Sea was discovered in 2019 

by another expedition group 

but most of the wreckage 

was beyond the reach of their 

remotely operated vehicle. 

Caladan Oceanic founder 

Victor Vescovo, who piloted the 

submersible, said “We located the 

front 2/3 of the ship, upright and 

intact, at a depth of 6456 metres. 

Three of us across two dives 

surveyed the vessel and gave 

respects to her brave crew.” 

Only 141 of the ship’s 327 crew 

survived, according to US navy 

records. 

The Caladan Oceanic-backed 

expedition found the bow, bridge 

and mid-section intact with the 

hull number 557 still visible. Two 

full five-inch gun turrets, twin 

torpedo racks and multiple gun 

mounts remain in place, it said. 

At Troia, 90 minutes 

south of Lisbon, the 

most important diving 

event of 2021 (probably) 

is scheduled for October 

8-10. That’s the organisers’ 

claim anyway. 

They says it’s going to be 

different from anything else too. But the impressive 

line-up of presenters may well prove them right. 

DIVING TALKS ; (PROBABLY) THE MOST 

IMPORTANT DIVING EVENT IN 2021 

DIVING TALKS will feature 26 internationally 

renowned speakers, divers like Ahmed Gabr, 

Armando Ribeiro, Belen Andres, Jill Heinerth, 

Krzystof Starnawski, Marissa Eckert, Mark Powell, 

Portugal schedules international 

diving congress 

Martyn Farr, Natalie Gibb, Phil Short, Sabine Kerkau, 

Sami Paakkarinen… (Google them) …perhaps the 

most influential group of speakers ever for a single 

dive event. 

Three fantastic days at one of the most extraordinary 

places in Portugal; the Tróia Peninsula, a 

sanctuary with the Atlantic Ocean to the west and 

the Sado estuary to the east. 

Then there’s the diving... 

DIVING TALKS offers a great pretext for divers 

recreational or technical. The European Atlantic’s 

most transparent waters, schools of fish, big 

pelagics, monk seals, and wrecks, inland caves and 

more. 

For the whole story go to www.divingtalks.com 


New dive/art experience 

at Townsville opens 

SOUNDINGS 


Photo: Richard Woodgett 

The Museum of 

Underwater Art 

(MOUA) is the newest 

dive experience on 

the Great Barrier 

Reef near Townville 

in North Queensland. 

Australia’s only 

underwater museum 

displays a series of 

artworks created by 

underwater sculptor 

Jason deCaires Taylor 

www.underwatersculpture.com 

Taylor created the world’s first 

underwater sculpture park, the 

Molinere Underwater Sculpture 

Park near Grenada, and since 

then created the world’s largest 

underwater sculpture museum, 

the Cancún Underwater Museum 

in Mexico, and Ocean Atlas, a 

5-metre tall, 60-ton sculpture off 

the Bahamas. 

He is best known for site specific 

underwater sculptures that 

develop into artificial coral reefs, 

using his skills as a sculptor, 

marine conservationist, underwater 

photographer and scuba 

diving instructor. 

His work in Grenada has been 

listed among the Top 25 Wonders 

of the World by National 

Geographic. 

The museum 

has been built to 

inspire and educate 

about reef conservation 

with the 

artworks designed 

to allow for coral 

planting to support 

reef restoration. 

Both snorkel and 

scuba experiences 

are catered for so 

divers can witness 

the artworks transform 

over time into their own 

eco-systems and begin thriving 

with marine life. 

The largest installation, the Coral 

Greenhouse, is located in the 

Greater Barrier Reef Marine Park 

at John Brewer Reef, and the first 

underwater building created by 

Jason DeCaires Taylor. He hopes 

it will advance education and 

offer opportunities for scientists, 

...cont’d on p41 


Reef operator launches citizen science tour 

new dive tour launched in 

A Cairns by Passions of Paradise 

is enlisting experienced divers 

to join conservationists to assess 

reef health on the Great Barrier 

Reef. 

Passions of Paradise CEO Scotty 

Garden said their company’s 

research team stepped up their 

reef nurturing and monitoring 

programme during COVID-19 

and are now offering to take up 

to eight people at a time on their 

citizen science programme. 

“The experience is part of a 

full day tour to two outer Great 

Barrier Reef locations on board 

the luxury sailing catamaran 

Passions III and includes two 

dives,” Mr Garden said. 

“Participants will complete 

Eye on the Reef sightings and 

Rapid Monitoring Reports for the 

Great Barrier Reef Marine Park 

Authority. 

“They will also monitor the coral 

planting undertaken through the 

Coral Nurture Programme. 

Through the Programme divers 

find nearby coral fragments that 

have naturally broken off and 

attach them to the nursery to 

grow. 

Then, “once the corals are large 

enough we remove fragments to 

attach back on to the reef using 

a coral clip, leaving enough coral 

fragments in the nursery to 

continue growing new corals,” 

Garden said. 

In the past 18 months Passions 

of Paradise has planted more 

than 2500 pieces of coral on 

Hastings Reef. Each garden 

comprises of ten frames, each 

2.5 x 1 metre in length that 

floats a couple of metres below 

the ocean’s surface. Each has 

the capacity to grow up to 100 

corals. 

Coral nurturing allows scientists 

to plant specific types of corals 

on frames then observe what 

happens when those corals are 

exposed to different temperatures. 

If they have a hot summer, they 

can identify corals that are heat 

tolerant and grow more of them. 

With heat resilient corals in the 

nursery, they can then out-plant 

them onto other reefs. 

The Reef Tour and Eco 

Experience is $A399. For more go 

to passions.com.au 

PADI joins Great Barrier Reef citizen science project 

PADI is teaming up with Citizens 

of the Great Barrier Reef to help 

protect the earth’s largest reef 

system. The Great Reef Census 

offers ways for divers everywhere 

to help improve the health of the 

Reef, one of the top dive destinations 

on the planet. 

From October to December last 

year divers, dive boats, marine 

tourism operators and others in 

the reef community captured 

reconnaissance data and images 

in a survey of more than 160 reefs 

from the tip of Cape York to the 

remote southern Swains. Over 

13,000 images were captured 

and uploaded to the Great Reef 

Census platform. 

Now PADI and Citizens of the 

Great Barrier Reef are calling on 

divers everywhere to help turn 

these images into meaningful 

data, to help scientists and 

managers better understand 

the health of the reef system. 

Each image can be analyzed by 

anyone, anywhere with internet 

access. 

“The Great Reef Census is a 

ground-breaking idea for ocean 

conservation inclusive of anyone 

with access to the internet,” said 

Michelle Barry, a PADI Master 

Scuba Diver Trainer. “This allows 

people all around the world to visit 

the Reef virtually and be part of an 

important project to protect it.” 

The Great Barrier Reef, the same 

size as Germany and a patchwork 

of healthy, degraded and 

recovering reefs, has experienced 

three mass coral bleaching 

events in the last five years, 

meaning traditional management 

and monitoring resources are 

increasingly stretched. 

To get involved go to 

greatreefcensus.org. 

• Citizens of the Great Barrier 

Reef is a cooperative network 

of individuals, organizations 

and businesses working to 

protect and conserve the 

Great Barrier. citizensgbr.org 


Photo: Matt Curnock 

marine students and tourists to engage in actionbased 

learning and conduct research on coral reef 

restoration and new technology. 

The Coral Greenhouse weighs 158 tonnes and house 

20 reef guardians who oversee the propagation of 

coral. 

The installation on the John Brewer Reef in the 

Great Barrier Marine Park is: 

• made from stainless steel and pH neutral 

materials 

• about 80km or two hours by boat from Townsville 

• housed on a naturally formed reef with some 

weather protection, 

• with 10-15 metre visibility, and 

• with natural coral walls and a flat sandy floor. 

For more and to book go to: 

www.moua.com.au 

Dive and 

accommodation 

packages from 

$555pp * 

* Subject to 

availability 

TOWNSVILLE, GREAT BARRIER REEF 

Book your tour today! 

moua.com.au 


Diving for a purpose: Aotearoa Lakes 

When we think about Aotearoa’s aquatic ecosystems 

we usually think of rivers and oceans but our lakes 

are often the most impacted, and overlooked 

environments. It’s surprising how little we know 

about what’s in our lakes, and we don’t have a firm 

handle on the distribution and state of our native 

and pest lake species. Without this information it’s 

impossible to manage our native in-lake biodiversity, 

contain biosecurity risks and enhance lake health. 

To address this shortfall, in 2020 a group of 

passionate volunteers and trained professionals 

formed an environmental organisation called 

Aotearoa Lakes aimed at understanding, and 

improving New Zealand’s lakes. The group gathers 

environmental data to support government and 

research organizations using professional scientists, 

community members, volunteers to collect data for 

real ecological outcomes. 

By Ebi Hussain 

Collaboration is the key. Our 

projects involve local communities, 

regional councils, research 

institutes, universities, and other 

environmental organisations. By 

working with various groups, we 

can set up projects with multiple 

outcomes and create a joint 

approach to the complex issues 

facing our lakes. 

Outreach & professional 

service 

Education is a fundamental value 

for the organisation. We provide 

training and advice to empower 

local communities and other 

organisations to restore their local 

lakes. We also offer environmental 

education and awareness services 

for all ages including educational 

resources, public talks, community 

events and citizen science 

workshops. 

We want to use our skills for more 

than just our own work so we offer 

free professional environmental 

consulting services to communities 

and environmental groups, we 

cover everything from catchment 

management and data analysis 

…We follow up each project with targeted educational content, 

public talks and community events to spread the message… 

to restoration plans, biodiversity 

management and long-term 

monitoring programmes. 

Humble beginnings 

From very humble beginnings we 

have come a long way. Over the 

years we regularly dived in Lake 

Pupuke on Auckland’s North Shore 

where we started documenting 

signs of environmental decline. 

Installing mussel survey transect 

This led to the idea of creating 

a comprehensive monitoring 

programme that would identify 

key impacts on the lake, and 

potential restoration actions. 

By using volunteer divers, under 

the international volunteer 

organisation Project Baseline, 

we collected data on the lake at 

no cost. The project was a huge 

success, (See Dive Pacific Issue 

169, 2019), we partnered with 

local government, universities 

and research institutes to create 

a comprehensive assessment of 

water quality, biodiversity, and 

environmental impacts. This 

work fed directly into council 

monitoring programmes and 

management strategies. 

The project highlighted the value 

of citizen science, and scuba divers 

who can go places no one else 

goes to and see things others don’t 

normally see. The Lake Pupuke 


project inspired us to think 

bigger, and expand. 

Getting established 

In early 2020 a few of us 

brainstormed what our ideal 

organization would look 

like. We wanted to expand 

nationally, do more public 

outreach/environmental 

education and, we wanted 

to offer free professional 

environmental services. 

We wanted to do all this 

without any funding. It 

might seem strange and 

we will seek funding for 

specific projects if needed but 

we wanted our core work to be 

done without any funding requirements. 

Aotearoa Lakes was born out of 

this vision and is now a registered 

New Zealand Charitable 

Trust. We knew the biggest cost 

for any large-scale environmental 

work was professional scientific 

services, and to do 

this type of work 

without funding 

we needed a team 

of professionals 

willing to donate 

their time. We put 

together an initial team of water 

quality scientists, data analysists, 

limnologists, hydrologists, GIS 

analysis, drone pilots and a team 

of technical/scientific divers. 

As we grow, we continue to 

recruit new volunteers that bring 

specialist skills to the organization. 

We now have everyone 

from lawyers and botanists to 

graphic designers and digital 

Surveying mussels in Lake Rototoa 

Multi-sensor monitoring station at Lake Pupuke 

content creators donating their 

time and services for free. This 

model has allowed us to take on 

very ambitious projects with no 

funding. 

What we do 

We generally start by identifying 

key sites and knowledge gaps in 

a region followed by catchment 

and in-lake pressures. We set up 

…We spent 40 hours in the water and counted 2,238 mussels. Of 

these 1,894 were dead leaving only 15% of the mussel population 

alive. We did not find any juvenile mussels…These species 

are on the brink of extinction in Lake Rototoa… 

baseline lake ecosystem assessments 

including water quality 

analysis, biodiversity surveys, 

habitat mapping and pest incursions. 

The combination of catchment 

level information and in-lake 

baseline assessments 

allow 

us to create 

targeted lake 

management/restoration 

plans that align with 

local and central government 

environmental 

policy objectives. This 

strategy ensures the data 

we collect is used and 

actively contributes to 

regional council plans and 

local restoration initiatives. 

We follow up each project 

with targeted educational 

content, public talks and 

community events to 

spread the message, raise 

awareness and encourage 

people to take an interest in 

the health of their local lakes. 

CURRENT PROJECTS 

We are working on various projects 

across the North Island but here’s 

some of the main Auckland 

projects. We haven’t yet started in 

the South Island but it’s definitely 

on the cards. 

LAKE PUPUKE 

In 2017 we set 

out to better 

understand this 

dynamic lake, 

identify the key 

drivers of environmental decline 

and contributed to its ongoing 

monitoring and management. We 

documented seasonal stratification 

profiles, algal bloom formation, 

macrophyte die offs, and even 

a novel discovery of hydrogen 

sulphide layers. 

Installing water quality sensors in Lake Tomarata 


We now understand that 

traditional catchment management 

will not solve the lake’s 

problems. Despite regular 

water quality assessments, 

the ecological state of the lake 

was relatively unknown. We 

documented a significant loss 

in macrophytes and native 

fauna including the complete 

extinction of freshwater 

mussels. 

Understanding the seasonal 

dynamics and impacts 

regarding this precious 

resource is the first step in 

preserving it. We will continue 

our monitoring indefinitely and 

regularly undertake new investigations 

as new questions 

arise. 

LAKE ROTOTOA 

Lake Rototoa, one of the 

healthiest lakes in Auckland, 

was once considered a stronghold 

for freshwater mussels (Kakahi). 

Our initial surveys showed a 

devastating collapse in the mussel 

population, a valuable key stone 

species which are vital to the 

health of the lake. 

The project is the first of its kind 

in New Zealand, with the data 

collected forming a key part of 

a local government research 

programme aimed at enhancing 

the lake’s biodiversity. 

We spent about 40 hours in the 

water and counted 2,238 mussels, 

of these 1,894 were dead leaving 

Juvenile mussels 

only 15% of the mussel population 

alive. We did not find any juvenile 

mussels and all the counted 

individuals were mature adults. 

These species are on the brink 

of extinction in Lake Rototoa, we 

have seen this happen in Lake 

Pupuke but are working hard to 

ensure it does not happen here. 

The findings from our surveys 

will also feed into a model able 

to predict where mussels may be 

found in lakes and approximate 

densities. This tool will help guide 

our surveys in other lakes and will 

hopefully let us predict the general 

state of mussel populations before 

we even get in the water. 

Measuring freshwater mussels for size class surveys 

LAKE TOMARATA 

This is one of our most ambitious 

and complex projects. Lake 

Tomarata and the surrounding 

wetland is home to several threatened 

native species. The lake is 

unique in the region though its 

ecological value has been considered 

poor for many years. 

Our work has led to some exciting 

findings. Firstly, the lake is 

definitely not barren, despite being 

classified as non-vegetated since 

2012, we mapped large native 

macrophyte beds (submerged 

plants), and a lake wide habitat 

assessment has found freshwater 

mussels. No one knew mussels 

were here but there is a single bank 

of them, and 63% of those surveyed 

are still alive. Most exciting is that 

there are juvenile mussels, this 

is the first time we have found 

juveniles in an Auckland lake! 

To understand variations in 

water quality we have installed 

continuous water quality sensors 

to measure pH, temperature, 

dissolved oxygen, and light at 

15-minute intervals at every metre 

through the water column. 

We used divers to ground truth 

the bathymetry and map the 

shallow transitional areas. Using 

drone imagery, we mapped the 

wetland which, with other data, 


was then used to create a 

three-dimensional model of 

the entire ecosystem able 

to display and integrate all 

types of survey data. By 

working closely with the 

Auckland Council this tool 

will be able to help guide and 

inform future management 

strategies for the lake. 

LAKE KOWHAI 

This hidden gem is not 

accessible to the public, but 

we have managed to do a 

preliminary survey of it, and 

what we found blew us away. 

This is arguably the best lake 

in Auckland, with extensive 

native macrophyte beds and 

great water clarity. 

Passing sediment 

samples to the boat 

crew 

We found isolated stands 

of Egeria densa (oxygen weed), an 

invasive and damaging species, 

we mapped the biggest stands 

with a plan to remove them. Hand 

removal by divers is usually not 

recommended because the species 

typically exists in massive quantities 

and can re-establish from a 

single propagule. Considering the 

relatively low quantities at this 

lake our team of highly trained 

divers is aiming to systematically 

eradicate it over the next three 

years. It’s possible we may be able 

to make this the first pest free lake 

in the region. 

Future projects 

We have just started helping with 

a larger NIWA run initiative. The 

aim is to take DNA samples from 

freshwater mussels in various 

locations to understand the genetic 

distribution and variation between 

discrete populations. We will also 

collect dead shells to develop 

better aging techniques which 

along with other data, will help fill 

critical knowledge gaps. At present 

we simply don’t know enough 

about how to better manage their 

populations. 

We are also planning biodiversity 

baseline assessments in other 

lakes – new lakes are rapidly being 

added - starting with Auckland, 

Northland and Bay of Plenty then 

Wellington later in the year. We 

want to achieve comprehensive 

coverage of the North Island by the 

end of 2022 then start to explore 

the South Island. 

No project is too big or complicated. 

With the right team and 

passionate volunteers anything is 

possible. 

How to get involved 

Our intention is always to provide 

an avenue for passionate people 

to get involved and contribute to 

the preservation on New Zealand’s 

amazing lakes and wetlands. 

We welcome volunteers from 

all backgrounds and locations. 

Everyone can contribute in some 

way and as we expand, we are 

looking for people from all over the 

country. 

We also offer support, training 

and environmental education for 

anyone interested. We want to 

provide people with the knowledge 

and skills to create their own 

projects and focus on areas that 

mean a lot to them. 

If you want to get involved or need 

support with your own projects 

please contact us at 

nzlakesorg@gmail.com 

If you want to get involved or need 

support with your own projects 

please contact us at 

nzlakesorg@gmail.com 

Please visit our website https://nzlakes.org 

and social media pages: https://www.facebook.com/ 

AotearoaLakes https://www.instagram.com/aotearoa_lakes/?hl=en 

Benthic algal samples 


BACK IN THE DAY 

Conservation: Is it necessary? 

With Dave Moran 

49 years ago Wade Doak’s 

magazine, Dive South Pacific Underwater 

Magazine, published two articles on 

conservation and spearfishing. 

In the first Eddie Davidson asked: 

Conservation! Is it necessary? 

In the second, Tony Ayling responded 

with yes, Conservation is necessary. 

Since those days has anything 

changed? 

The rules governing spearfishing 

competitions have certainly 

changed, and in brief some of 

these changes are: 

• The number of target species has been dramatically 

reduced. 

• The takeable fish are those that are the more sustainable 

and desirable eating fish species within the competition 

area. 

• Less importance is placed on the weight of the fish being 

weighed in during the competition than the range of 

species. And the maximum weight for any fish is 8kgs. 

• Competitors are no longer driven around in a boat. 

• There is a ‘Box’ that all competitors must fish in. So 

divers have to swim from spot to spot! 

• The number of different species speared is now the main 

points driver. 

• A competition diver needs to be knowledgeable about the 

various habitats various species can be found. 

But what do you think about these issues in general? 

Please let us know. Email your thoughts to 

The Editor, Dive Pacific: divenz@divenewzealand.co.nz 

Here is how the debate was introduced back then, followed by the first of 

the two articles. 

The vital question of conservation 

is one facing divers in all parts of 

Australia and New Zealand: from 

the marine reserve mooted at 

Rottnest Island, to the unjustifiable 

spearfishing bans in Surfers 

Paradise estuaries, and the 

over-fishing sometimes caused by 

regular spearfishing competitions. 

Skindivers are for the most part 

intelligent people and generally 

their love for the sea and marine 

life is greater than their need to 

photograph, kill or collect it. “Dive 

South Pacific” presents thoughtful 

views from two active spearfishermen, 

both members of the 

NZUA Sporting Club Committee. 

Eddie Davidson, of the Cook Strait 

Divers, Wellington, and 1960 NZ 

Spearfishing Champion puts the 

contarary view. 

Tony Ayling, of the Auckland 

Underwater Club, a marine 

biologist with M.Sc. (Hons) will 

present the pro-view in the next 

issue. 

“ 

Conservation! Is it Necessary? By Eddie Davidson 

The 1970 AGM of the NZUA at 

Nelson was dominated by 

the ever-frightening spectre of 

Conservation, and as a result, 

the sporting section suffered 

with the ban of spearing butterfish, 

marblefish and kelpfish in 

the Bay of Plenty Competitions. 

Legislation-wise we have 

seen a reduction in crays to 

individuals plus no speared 

fish being permitted to be sold. 

Conservation. NO. Legislation 

YES. The only effect of the reduction 

in crayfish is that the professional 

crayfisherman will be able 

to catch more as we catch less. 

This isn’t conservation, it’s persecution. 

What else is coming? 

Total sanctuaries, a complete ban 

on cray, limits on fish. Where will 

it end? Is spearfishing all that 

bad, so damaging and needing 

more restrictions? Well overseas 

the picture isn’t so bright: from 

a good spearfishing ground to 

a barren wasteland is the scene 

around Sydney nowadays. In 

New Caledonia fishing was 

plentiful literally straight out 

from the main waterfront. Now 

it’s a big trip up and down the 

reef to find unfished spots. This 

is a common story throughout the 

diving world, the Mediterranean 

being a classic example. 

Divers are roving further afield 


to find their diving valhallas. Who 

is to blame, scuba divers, competitions, 

other types of fishermen, 

(nets, lines, etc) or just plain 

ordinary spearfishing? And the 

sixty-four dollar question: speared 

out or scared out? 

One thing is sure, before conservationists 

rise in arms and totally ban 

competitions, we must consider 

what is happening here at home. 

There is a tremendous difference 

between New Zealand fish habitats 

and those overseas. 

It appears when these fish are 

caught, they don’t regenerate. Here 

in Wellington in particular, and 

this is the only place that I can 

speak of with confidence, a lot of 

our fish are not rock dwellers but 

move up and down the coast, at 

times completely leaving the area. 

This I feel is mainly as a result 

of our tremendous food carrying 

currents that flow up and down 

NZ’s coastline. 

Please don’t forget: 

(1) I am talking strictly Wellington 

conditions. 

(2) I am referring to generally 

speared fish, including competition 

fish. 

Here the most commonly speared 

fish are butterfish, whose habits 

are most definitely not one of a 

fish that inhabits the same area 

all the year. They move in and 

out with tides, up and down the 

coast and sometimes disappear 

completely. I’ve seen them tame, 

stupid and then so damn scared 

you can hardly get near them all in 

the same area at different times of 

the season. 

There’s a point off Lyall Bay called 

Phillips Point and I reckon it’s 

been hit more times by spearfishermen 

than any other spot I know. 

I’ve seen 20-30 divers around the 

chain any fine summer day not 

to mention after work and club 

swims, yet at the right time and 

tide the area is good for one dozen 

good (4lb & over) butterfish. 

A second choice for me and usually 

easier speared fishes, the blue 

moki definitely move off an area if 

they’ve been heavily hit. But why? 

Moki are quite definitely a moving 

fish and are netted and trawled 

…Apparently, our ardent conservationists don’t know about 

this happening. Who can say what is affected by completely 

denuding the unpolluted coast of paua. What happens 

when it is gone? It won’t be long… 

quite deeply. Last season blue moki 

seemed fairly scarce at the Kapiti. 

Why? Because of too many divers, 

or was it that the feed wasn’t as 

good as previous years? Given a 

good rest up Moki tend to eventually 

reappear in their favourite 

spots. 

Kingies. Well they come, they go, 

anyone shot a kingie-spot dead yet? 

Now we come to the tricky ones: 

…One of the big problems of competition is that we are all 

so bloody proud of what we catch… 

crays and paua: these are the two 

fish that licensed skindivers (not 

spearfishermen) can legally take 

and sell. It’s a fact that down here 

our coast is being legally stripped 

of paua and there appears to be no 

effort made to conserve them at 

all. Apparently, our ardent conservationists 

don’t know about this 

happening. Who can say what is 

effected by completely denuding 

the unpolluted coast of paua. What 

happens when it is gone? It won’t 

be long. Crayfishing: well, that is 

a well thrashed out subject. Let’s 

just say generally people in glass 

houses shouldn’t throw stones 

and the powers that be, must be 

grateful to be able to kick a little 

outfit like us to suit expediency 

and politics. 

“Competitions” is the ugly word: 

“mass slaughter”, the very thing 

that people are trying to and have 

commenced, pressurizing. One 

of the big problems of competition 

is that we are all so bloody 

proud of what we catch, that 

everybody sees it and says what a 

terrible waste. But what about the 

hundreds of divers in and out of 

clubs that frequent the coast every 

weekend? Who knows, or sees 

what they catch, whether good, or 

just wasted. But everybody knows 

when 120 NZ top divers spear tons 

of fish in two days at Tairua at the 

Nationals and the cry is “what a 

waste. Ban em”. 

Conservation. Sure, lets conserve, 

but let’s know what we’re to 

conserve, obviously nothing can be 

allowed to be wiped out before the 

start is made. Maybe we can transplant 

the paua? 

…the crux of the matter 

is research into breeding, 

habitat, currents etc… 

However, the crux of the matter 

is research into breeding, habitat, 

currents etc first. Who should do 

it? Obviously, those that scream the 

loudest and mainly the industry 

that needs the commodity long 

term. By the way, what is the 

point of new rules and laws when 

the existing ones aren’t being 

adequately policed now? Let’s 

not fool ourselves. I’m not going 

to burst into print with a rod that 

could be used to hit us (the spearfishermen) 

with later. Still, it’s a 

fact that nearly all sections of the 

fishing community don’t observe 

all the rules now. Why bring in 

more? Let’s not rush stupidly 

into silly decisions, but study, 

analyse and above all, protect this 

wonderful underwater world of 

ours. 

So, I leave you still with the 

question. Conservation, is it really 

necessary? 

You give the answer. 


Sandager’s wrasse 

~Coris sandeyeri 

The Sandager’s wrasse is one 

of around 30 labrid (or large 

family of fish) species that have 

been found in New Zealand with 

over 500 wrasse and related 

species known worldwide. This is 

arguably the most colourful and 

charismatic wrasse in our waters, 

with the large males displaying 

gaudy purple and yellow colours. 

Like all labrids, Sandager’s exhibits 

strong sexual dimorphism, with 

the males not only being far more 

colourful than the cream and 

fawn coloured females, but also 

considerably larger, some reaching 

almost half a metre long. 

Another quite remarkable trait 

shared by all labrids is the ability 

to change sex. All Sandager’s 

begin life as females, with some 

changing later to become males, a 

life history strategy termed protogynous 

hermaphroditism. 

The male vigorously defends both 

Juvenile 

SPECIESFOCUS 

his territory and his 

harem of females. 

The young “attendant” 

yellow-striped 

juveniles also hang 

around this territory. 

These young 

females regularly 

serve as cleanerfish 

for other fish 

species, and it is a 

common sight to see 

them being chased 

and pestered by 

legions of demoiselles 

or trevally looking for a 

parasite clean. 

The interesting name of the 

Sandager’s wrasse has its origin 

with a former lighthouse keeper. 

Andreas Fleming Stewart Sandager 

who was the lighthouse keeper on 

the Mokohinau Islands in the 19th 

Century. Being a fond naturalist, 

it was he who first collected a 

specimen of the wrasse which, 

after being described all the 

way back in 1884, was 

named in his honour. 

By Paul Caiger 

Male Sandager’s 

edge. However, they have also been 

known to eat nesting fish eggs, 

such as those of demoiselles and 

triplefins. 

They are also very attracted to 

divers, and will readily take food 

from anyone willing to offer it. 

Another distinctive trait is that 

they spend the night buried in the 

sand, covered in a small coating of 

mucous, rising out of the sand as 

day breaks. 

Sandager’s Wrasse 

main diet consists of 

small invertebrates 

such as brittlestars 

and shellfish that 

live in the shell and 

sand on the reefs 

Female Sandager’s 

1 

2 

3 

4 

~Coris sandeyeri 

Named for the former Mokohinau Islands’ 

lighthouse keeper, Andreas Sandager 

Exhibit extreme sexual dimorphism, in size and 

in particular colouration. 

Males defend a territory and harem of females. 

All Sandager’s start life as females, and some 

change sex. 

5 

6 

7 

8 

Sleep under the sand each night. 

Eat mostly small invertebrates and fish eggs. 

Very diver positive! 

Wrasse is derived from the old Celtic word for 

“old hag”. 


By Annika Andresen 

DIVEMEDICINE 

Scuba diving after a concussion 

It’s safe to say 2020 wasn’t the 

year anyone was expecting. 

To add to the mix, I got a 

concussion from a surfing 

accident last year and have 

just been cleared to dive. It’s 

been a long (and at times, really 

frustrating) recovery as I learnt 

how to let myself rest. One of 

my biggest questions was “how 

would it affect my diving?” So 

I thought I would share my 

journey with you. 

Surfing along the coast resulted 

in my concussion / Image - Josh 

Fretwell 

The first weekend out after 

Covid 19 restrictions eased last 

year an awesome east coast 

swell arrived and we headed 

north to catch some waves. 

I will be the first to admit they 

were quite steep, bigger than I 

Where my head made contact with my board 

The impact broke the fiberglass on the rail 

above and below. 

Surfing along the coast resulted in my concussion 

was used to. As I stood up on my 

first wave, I fell forward over my 

board and into the water. The 

water slammed my head into 

the seafloor below, catching the 

sandy bottom beneath my chin. 

At the same time the rail of the 

board hit the back of my head, 

breaking the fibreglass. 

Despite this I was 

relaxed, knowing 

I could hold my 

breath for a couple 

of minutes. I thought 

‘ouch that hurt’ then 

waited patiently for 

the wave to pass 

before coming to 

the surface. As 

I stood up I felt 

slightly dizzy but 

nothing to put 

me off. I signalled 

to my boyfriend 

to keep an eye on me and I 

went back out to catch the 

next wave. An hour later, we 

returned to the beach for a 

hot shower and headed home. 

It wasn’t until I woke the next 

morning I realised something 

was wrong. 

It felt like the worst hangover. 

My head felt like it was in a 

clamp crushing my brain. The 

room was spinning around 

and I struggled to walk, using 

the walls for support. Later 

that day, one of my best 

friends, Marion, urged me to 

go to A&E where the doctors 

diagnosed a concussion. 

After a week off work, 

the vertigo and the clamp 

Photo: Josh Fretwell 

crushing stopped, but I still had 

a constant headache and found 

my heartrate was all over the 

place. I walked to the top of 

my driveway and my heartrate 

peaked at 180bpm. I realised 

this wasn’t going to be an 

overnight fix. 

What is a concussion? 

A concussion is a type of 

traumatic brain injury caused by 

a bump, blow, or jolt to the head 

or a hit to the body that causes 

the head and brain to move 

rapidly back and forth. The 

sudden movement can cause 

the brain to bounce around 

or twist in the skull, creating 

chemical changes in the brain 

and sometimes stretching and 

damaging brain cells. 

The following months I felt like 

I had a constant hangover. The 

biggest shock was my initial 

assessment at the physio. The 

first test, walk across the room 

and on your way, pick up a pen 

on the ground. Easy, right? As 

Photo: Cole Johnston 


Practicing my eye tracking with a pen 

soon as I tried to pick up the pen, I instantly fell 

over. The second test has the patient follow the 

doctor’s pen with my eyes. Also easy, right? My 

physio said I was blinking constantly as I tried to 

follow the pen. 

Practicing my eye tracking with a pen 

I found I had lost all my balance, eye tracking 

was difficult, and the ability to process information 

decreased significantly. I couldn’t articulate 

my thoughts and had trouble speaking, my 

hearing was impacted as I couldn’t tolerate any 

loud sounds or multiple people speaking, and I 

wasn’t able to regulate my heartrate. Being in a 

car at night when it was raining was my worst 

nightmare - moving bright lights and fast window 

wipers were not a good combination. 

To assist my recovery, the team at APM gave 

me some fancy earplugs, blue light glasses and 

exercises to do. The hardest part was to get the 

balance right between rest and activity. I eased 

back into work starting with two hours, then four 

hours, slowly getting to half days in schools. Loud 

classrooms and VR headsets proved challenging. I 

also found afternoon naps to be amazing! 

Four months after the injury I was able to work a 

One very happy diver 

full day and my headaches were by then intermittent, 

only increasing if I did too much exercise or 

didn’t get enough rest. So now I wanted to see if 

I was able to get back in the water. This had been 

the longest time out of the water since I learned to 

dive in 2013. 

Implications of scuba diving after a 

concussion 

I am no doctor and really had no idea about the 

risks associated with scuba diving after a concussion 

so I reached out to Simon Mitchell to hear his 

thoughts. 

Simon (a regular columnist for Dive Pacific) is an 

incredible physician specialising in occupational 

medicine, hyperbaric medicine and anaesthesiology 

as well as hugely respected in the diving 

community around the world. I felt so honoured 

that he emailed back and agreed to catch up. 

Trying not to be a fan girl, I was grateful for my 

facemask hiding my massive smile as I met Simon 

outside Auckland Hospital. 

I had not lost consciousness or experienced any 

amnesia and therefore my concussion was classified 

as mild. Injuries with a loss of consciousness 

for 30mins to 24hours or a skull fracture are 

considered moderate; severe concussions include 

loss of consciousness or amnesia for more than 

24hours, subdural hematoma or brain contusion. 

Simon discussed one of the major risks for scuba 

diving after a concussion - an increased risk of 

seizures. The risk varies greatly according to the 

severity of the traumatic brain injury. 

Though a mild concussion still increases the risk 

of a seizure to a small degree, Simon acknowledged 

no one can ever guarantee there will be 

no problems. I accepted this unknown degree of 

increased risk with Simon advising some cautions 

to help me ease back into diving. 

The first was to understand which 

gas I was breathing. Increased partial 

pressures of oxygen can be known to 

increase the risk of seizures and therefore, 

instead of diving nitrox, diving 

with Air, 21% oxygen while I eased back 

into diving was highly recommended. 

Avoiding physical exertion and task 

loading on dives was also suggested, like 

avoid swimming into a strong current, or 

any activities that would raise my heart 

rate. Simon’s last piece of advice was not 

to push depth and for the first couple of 

months stick to open water dives (above 

18m). 

But this meant I could dive again!!! And I 

was very, very excited. 


KEEPING DIVERS SAFE 

AROUND THE WORLD 

Back to basics 

Being cleared to dive, I eagerly called up a couple 

of friends and asked if they would be happy to 

join me for my first dive back. We chose Goat 

Island, New Zealand’s first marine reserve and 

where my open water course was held. 

We hit a maximum depth of 5m for an hour 

chasing fish, looking for crayfish and following 

Steph’s trusty navigation. It was so good to get 

back in the water, just in time for summer. 

Finishing my first dive since the concussion 

It has been several months since that first dive. 

The second week of my holidays was spent in 

my favourite place up north in sunny Tutukaka 

where I went diving as much as I could, sticking 

to Simon’s advice and slowly increasing my 

depth. 

For the first couple of months I limited myself 

to a maximum depth of 18m avoiding physical 

exertion, then slowly increasing the depth limit 

to 30m. I have been making sure I drink plenty 

of water and allow for more rest and sleep than 

usual before and after diving. 

Then, I completed four dives as a test to see how 

I would be after a full weekend of diving at the 

Mokohinau Islands. The longest was 71 mins. 

We had bronze whaler sharks, pilot whales, 

dolphins, a baby octopus, a little blue cod and 

hundreds of schooling koheru, a silver and 

yellow bait fish. My excitement and smile didn’t 

change the whole weekend. My next step is to 

start diving with nitrox then work towards more 

technical diving. 

So here I wanted to share my experience and 

some of the cautions around scuba diving after 

a concussion. If you have had a traumatic brain 

injury, be sure to seek medical advice and clearance 

before returning back to diving. 

Annika Andresen is a BLAKE Senior 

Environmental Educator and member of the 

NZUA Board 

https://www.annikaandresen.com/ 

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INCIDENTINSIGHTS WITH THE DIVERS ALERT NETWORK (DANAP] 

By DAN World 

The risk of a cold shoulder: 

DCS and hypothermia 

A cold shoulder, or a cold anything, is no laughing matter. 

Sinus barotrauma can be very unpleasan 

By Divers Alert Network’s Matías Nochetto, M.D. 

Some degree of uncomfortable 

cold is normal for 

all but the luckiest divers so 

recognising when the cold is 

too much can be tough. It can 

happen with a too-thin wetsuit 

on a dive in the Bahamas, or 

with a flooded drysuit during 

an ice dive. Shivering your way 

through a dive can be a learning 

experience but failing to cancel 

or adjust your dive plan when 

the conditions become too 

dangerous for the equipment 

you have can put you on a fast 

track to the chamber. 

Hypothermia and the resulting 

changes in the way the 

body handles fluids and gas 

exchange can significantly 

increase your risk of DCS (and 

that’s in addition to the hazards 

posed by the condition itself). 

Ending up cold through no fault 

of your own is always possible, 

but it’s up to you to plan your 

exposure protection and what 

you’ll do should it fail for each 

dive. To do this you need to 

become intimately familiar 

with the signs and symptoms 

of hypothermia, brush up on 

your knowledge and know 

when to end a dive before an 

injury occurs. 

Know the basics 

It’s difficult to get certified in 

most locations without some 

exposure to the concept of 

hypothermia. The result of a 

drop in core body temperature, 

hypothermia can happen 

when your body is exposed to 

a sufficiently cold environment 

for a sufficient period. It will 

take much longer for this to 

occur in warm water than an 

ice bath, but both situations can 

lead to hypothermic divers. 

A typical adult maintains a core 

temperature of about 36.5°C 

– 37.5°C. About half of women 

will run slightly cooler but it’s a 

useful universal approximation. 

As a diver’s core temperature 

drops below 35°C, hypothermia 

will begin to set in and the body 

will begin to lose function. 

To keep warm, the diver’s 

body will begin to shunt blood 

to their core, causing initial 

symptoms that typically include 

shivering, dizziness, nausea 

and feelings of hunger. If that 

core temperature continues 

dropping, most individuals will 

stop shivering at about 30°C and 

their pupils will dilate. At 28°C 

their muscles will become rigid, 

and the risk of serious cardiac 

complications becomes considerable. 

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These symptoms worsen as core 

temperature continues to drop, 

so it’s vital that individuals 

suffering from hypothermia be 

identified and brought to qualified 

medical care as rapidly as 

possible. 

Once significant symptoms 

of hypothermia have begun 

to appear, the risk of medical 

complications becomes 

significantly greater, and 

treatment requires more 

than gentle re-warming. Note 

that many people suffering 

from hypothermia will not 

recognise their symptoms 

until they are pointed out, 

and the confusion caused by 

the condition can result in 

impaired decision making or 

lapses in judgement. Cases 

like this are more common in 

mountaineering incidents, in 

which climbers suffer from 

“paradoxical undressing” and 

shed their clothing in extreme 

DANAP.org 


arctic temperatures due to a perceived (and 

incorrect) sensation of heat, often resulting in 

injury or death. 

Plan your dive; dive your plan 

Hypothermia isn’t something unpreventable. 

In fact, it’s rare to see a situation in which 

hypothermia could not have been prevented 

with adequate planning and forethought. 

Stop to consider your exposure protection, 

heat sources (during and after diving) and a 

well-thought-out emergency plan for when 

a drysuit floods, or when a dive lasts longer 

than expected, or a diver starts showing 

symptoms of hypothermia. If the weather is 

a little blustery, consider bringing hot water 

to make a warm drink and fill your wetsuit 

between dives. 

KEEPING DIVERS SAFE 

AROUND THE WORLD 

Keep an eye on how you feel before a dive. 

If you or a buddy begins shivering before or 

during a dive it’s wise to terminate the dive as 

quickly as reasonably possible. This is more 

complicated than it sounds for divers with 

significant decompression obligations, or 

those exploring overhead environments, but 

the increase in decompression stress posed 

by hypothermia poses a significant hazard to 

these divers in particular. 

Wherever your diving brings you, respond to 

cold conditions with additional conservatism 

in your diving. Remember the dive site will 

always be there for warmer days in the future. 

For more information on hypothermia and 

diving, visit DAN.org/Health 

If you experience mild difficulty equalising 

at the beginning of a dive, chances are the 

increased mucus production and swelling 

of mucous membrane may make equalising 

even more difficult near the end of the dive. 

Remember you can always abort a descent; 

aborting an ascent is a lot more problematic. 

For more diving health and safety articles 

DANinsider.org for weekly posts discussing 

recent incidents, and diving health and safety 

content. 

Visit: daninsider.org and follow us on Facebook 

by searching DAN World. 

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+ 24/7 Emergency Medical Services 

+ Emergency Medical Evacuation 

Assistance 

+ Membership & Assistance Coverage 

+ First Aid Training 

+ Online Dive Safety Resources 

Need more information? Send DAN World an 

email info@danap.org or call +61-3-9886 9166 

DANAP.ORG 


GEARBAG 

Weird and wonderful: Nauticam’s EMWL 

In the “WTF” category, we introduce Nauticam’s EMWL – 

Extended Macro Wide Lens. Essentially it’s a “bugeye”; the 

best way to describe it is a super macro lens with a wide 

field of view. It allows you to shoot macro and wide angle 

and combine them for truly a unique shooting style. 

Built to work with both stills and video, the EMWL is 

a wet lens so it can be attached and removed underwater. 

Want to switch it out for a smaller macro lens like the 

Nauticam SMC or CMC? No problem. 

The lens is modular, comprised of three parts – Focusing 

Unit, Relay Module and Objective Lens. It’s optimised to 

work with specific cameras and macro lenses (and being 

tested on more). 

standard with 14 glass elements in 10 

groups. The EMWL Objective Lenses 

generate an inverted image, making it 

appear upside down. The Relay Lens 

corrects the inverted image and relays 

the image back to the focusing unit and 

sensor. It is 150mm in length and only 

62mm at its widest point. 

This allows the front of the EMWL to be 

placed extremely close to your subject 

while keeping the bulk of the camera 

system and the photographer at an 

extended distance. It also opens up 

creative possibilities for videographers to 

shoot motion shots in tight spaces. 

Note: It is possible to use the EMWL without the 

relay lens if you do not need the extended working 

distance, but you will want a camera or monitor that 

can correct for the inverted image in the EVF or LCD. 

See more here: https://bit.ly/3dLEhIa 

Objective lenses 

Focusing units 

The focusing unit is the part that is connected closest to 

your port, it is designed with 6 glass elements in 3 groups 

and attaches via Bayonet. Four focusing units were custom 

designed optically to work with the recommended primary 

lenses. 

See more here: https://bit.ly/3wI53JW 

Relay lens 

The next piece that attaches to the front of the focusing 

unit is the Relay Lens. It was designed to the highest 

The final piece that attaches to the front of the Relay Lens 

is the Objective Lens. There are three different versions 

with varying degrees of angle-of-view. You would choose 

one based on the look, subject or type of image you would 

like to produce. You can shoot these just like you would 

any other lens, but the real magic happens when you 

get up close to your subject. The 130° and 100° objective 

lenses will focus as close as the front element and the 60° 

objective lens can focus as close as 15mm. You could fill up 

most of the frame with a nudibranch and still have room 

for a diver in the background! 

See more here: https://bit.ly/3uy3bBK 

Want to read more? Head here for an overview. 

tinyurl.com/4y6yufra 

Trade enquiries welcome. 

Ph:09 521 0684 Email: info@seatech.co.nz 

www.seatech.co.nz 


CLEAN SEAS. BEST PRACTICE. HOME SAFE. 


GEARBAG 

C-Researcher 3 submarine wins Red Dot Design Award again 

Dutch submersible manufacturer U-Boat Worx has 

announced their new “C-Researcher 3” submersible 

has won a second Red Dot Product Design Award. The 

international assessed “Red Dot Product Design Award” 

has a 60 year history. This year products from 60 countries 

were evaluated in a stringent process lasting several days. 

The C-Researcher 3 is the deepest diving (full acrylic 

sphere) submersible ever produced. Built to explore the 

deep sea in air-conditioned comfort, it can safely dive 

to 1,140 metres allowing adventurers to explore hidden 

shipwrecks, search for new aquatic species, or simply enjoy 

the breath taking underwater marine environment. 

The full acrylic sphere is optically perfect, colourless and 

distortion-free creating a crystal-clear field of vision. The 

widest range of vision is created, including downward 

view, meaning explorers can enjoy the most immersive 

experience possible. Moreover, all external tools such 

as robotic manipulator arms can be easily observed, for 

efficient and accurate control. 

A dual climate-control system keeps passengers 

comfortable both in warm Caribbean waters 

or in freezing Arctic waters. The battery system 

claims a 350% increase of battery capacity 

compared to traditional submersibles with 

stronger electrical thrust, extended mission 

time, additional lighting and travel time 

halved between the surface and ocean floor. 

Passengers can even board without getting 

their feet wet. 

“Winning a Red Dot Product Design Award 

for the second consecutive year in a row is a 

crowning achievement for our company,” said 

Bert Houtman, Founder and Chairman of U-Boat 

Worx. 

The first C-Researcher 3-1140 was installed 

aboard M/Y Game Changer last month with a 

further 10 deliveries scheduled for 2021. 

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TUBEWORM 

BOOK REVIEW 

Coastlines: a gift to keep on giving 

- By Gillian and Darryl Torckler 

Published by David Bateman $29.99 Available online at: Batemanbooks.co.nz 

In picking up such a book as 

this I long for the days when 

they were really really big, taking 

up most of a coffee table top. 

With such lovely, lush photos 

on a grand scale you could look 

all over them, discovering ever 

more enchanting detail. But for 

that sort of experience these 

days we need to get out more, to 

photo exhibitions and the like, an 

experience which is certainly still, 

very much on offer. 

Though Darryl is surely one 

of New Zealand’s pre-eminent 

underwater photographers, here 

his finely honed work is mostly 

above water with text commentary 

from Gillian. 

Of course Coastlines is a book you 

will want to give as a gift, so next 

time you’re in a book shop, get 

a copy and put it away. Or shop 

online for sending overseas and 

making someone envious. Or 

give it to family or friend nearby, 

so you can take another peek 

whenever you visit them. 

- Gilbert Peterson 

Salvamar, a ripping deep water yarn 

- By Dominic Miller 

Available direct from the author at: dmncmiller@yahoo.co.uk 

Price approx. $30 + postage. Or on Kindle for about $9 

Salvamar, a biographical novel 

and rollicking tale of verve 

and adventure traverses some of 

the colourful life of the author’s 

uncle, Brian. 

Brian was late to take up deep 

water diving, though still a 

pioneer back in the early days of 

commercial saturation diving, 

between 1970 and 1984. Back 

then risk was way up, and those 

on the surface monitoring divers 

below, not always to be relied 

upon. 

Brian’s story begins with him 

trying to reclaim his boat from 

Spanish Customs in the dead of 

night, in unfamiliar waters. Then 

we go back in time as he begins 

his career as a saturation diver 

working at depths up to 300m 

under North Sea oil rigs and in 


the South Atlantic. In one near 

fatal incident Brian is mistakenly 

fed air on his Heliox line 

at 240m… More than once a 

dive buddy fails to make it. 

Nearing retirement at age 40, 

Brian comes across a newly 

discovered, century old 

wreck in the English Channel 

and begins an attempt to 

salvage it. But funds are 

running out. 

Author Dominic Miller says 

Salvamar was written in close 

consultation with former diving 

colleagues, dive supervisors, 

salvage experts and Brian’s dive 

log books. One of these shows his 

deepest dive was 290m in Brazil. 

Salvamar, named after the central 

character’s salvage business 

venture, is certainly a ripping 

yarn with quite a lot of dive tech 

talk, eerie feelings of what it 

might be like in trouble underwater, 

working out of a deep 

water ‘bell’ for weeks and weeks, 

and enduring decompression for 

hours and hours. 

Despite what purists might see as 

some rough and ready passages, 

there’s a lot to admire and enjoy 

in Salvamar and you are sure to 

find yourself caught up in the 

adventure. 

- Gilbert Peterson 

P A C I F I C 


P A C I F I C 



P A C I F I C 


DIGITALIMAGING 

Hans Weichselbaum www.digital-image.co.nz 

Everybody is into taking photos nowadays, but did 

you know that you have control over what is going 

to be sharp and prominent in your shots, making 

your image stand out against a blurred back- or 

What is this ‘Depth of Field’? 

Depth of field (DoF) is the zone 

of acceptable sharpness within a 

photo. It is the distance between 

the nearest and the farthest 

objects that are in acceptably 

sharp focus. 

We will come to this ‘acceptably 

sharp focus’ right away, but for the 

moment you need to remember 

that there is, strictly speaking, 

only one plane at 

a certain distance 

from your lens, 

which will come out 

in absolutely sharp 

focus in your photo. 

foreground? Learning about Depth of Field and how 

to apply it will take your photography to the next 

level. 

Factors affecting the DoF 

With all that physics out of the 

way, we now can concentrate on 

photography again. For a given 

circle of confusion the DoF is 

determined by: 

1. Distance to subject 

2. Focal length of the lens 

3. Lens aperture 

sensor. However, strictly speaking 

this is not correct and we’ll 

discuss that later. 

Before we go into the various 

ways of influencing the DoF, let’s 

first look at how this DoF affects 

our images. 

There are times when you want 

everything in your photo to look 

At the precise focus 

distance a point 

object will produce a 

point image on your 

camera’s sensor. A 

point object not in 

the precise focus 

distance will produce 

a blur spot, roughly 

shaped like a circle. 

Our eyes have a 

limited resolving 

power and if that 

blur spot is sufficiently 

small, then 

the object will 

appear in focus. In 

photography this 

blur spot is called 

the ‘circle of confusion’. 

The acceptable 

circle of confusion 

will depend on 

how we view the final image. In 

general, a circle of confusion of 

0.25mm is acceptable for an image 

viewed from 25cm away. Images 1 

and 2 illustrate this principle with 

a simple convex lens. 

Image 1 Defining the Circle of Confusion 

Image 2 DoF and the Circle of Confusion 

You will also hear that the size of 

the camera sensor has an effect 

on the DoF, with a larger sensor 

(for example, a full-frame 35mm 

sensor) giving you a more shallow 

DoF than a tiny phone camera 

tack sharp. Think of a landscape 

photo or a product shot for a 

catalogue. A real estate photographer 

will aim for that kind of 

look. 




Contrast this with an artistic shot where only the 

flower bouquet on the table is in focus and the rest of 

the room appears out of focus. The viewer’s eye will 

be drawn to the one object which appears sharp and 

in focus. Portrait photography is the prime example 

where you want to eliminate a distracting background. 

In photography we call this a shallow depth of field. 

The effect of distance to subject and the focal length 

on the DoF are interrelated, so I’ll discuss them 

together. The closer you get to your subject the more 

shallow the DoF will get. And a longer lens (telephoto 

lens) will also give you a more narrow DoF than a 

shorter (wide angle) lens. 

…There are times when you want everything in your 

photo to look tack sharp. Think of a landscape photo... 

Contrast this where only the flower bouquet on the 

table is in focus and the rest of the room appears out of 

focus. The viewer’s eye will be drawn to the one object 

which appears sharp and in focus… 

For example, if your subject is 10 metres away, using 

a focal length of 50mm at f/5.6, your DoF would range 

from 6.1 to 28.1m, which gives a total of 22m. This goes 

down to 3.3m if you use a 100mm lens. If you double 

the focal length and the distance, then your subject 

will be roughly the same size, but your DoF will shrink 

as well. 

Image 3 Affect of aperture on DoF 

page from a book, shot at an angle with the focus on 

the middle of the page, using a 100mm 

lens. 

In other words, if you want a wide DoF 

you need to stop down your lens (to a high 

f-stop number) and vice versa. (Keep in 

mind that very high f-stop numbers, f/16 

or more, will reduce overall sharpness due 

to diffraction!). 

Other important factors 

There are apps for your phone or tablet which calculate 

the DoF for you when you input the distance to object, 

focal length and aperture. I used this for calculating 

the values shown in Table I. Some of these apps even 

let you set the size of the circle of confusion. Image 4 

shows you a screenshot. 

Table 1 DOF as Function of Focal Length and Subject Distance 

Full Frame Camera, f/5.6 

Keep in mind that the relationship between your 

subject and the background will have changed: a 

telephoto lens will give you a more narrow angle of 

view with less background around your subject. 

As we saw, the DoF goes down when 

you get closer to your subject. This 

becomes critical once you get into 

macro photography, where the DoF 

drops down into the millimetre range 

- often not enough to get your entire 

subject into focus. However, there 

are tricks were you take a number of 

Image 4 Example of a DoF calculator 

In short, the DoF shrinks when you get closer to your 

subject. Wide angle lenses give you a deeper DoF, 

whereas telephoto lenses give you a shallow DoF. 

Effect of aperture on DoF 

There is a lot you can do with distance and focal 

length to achieve your desired DoF. However, there is a 

third parameter you can control, the aperture or f stop, 

which is particularly useful when you are constrained 

with space or the perspective you want to achieve. 

The more you stop your lens down (use a higher 

f-stop) the more your DoF will increase. Conversely, 

if you shoot with your lens ‘wide open’, you achieve a 

shallow DoF. That’s one of the reasons photographers 

want a ‘fast’ lens for portrait shots. The following 

image gives you a good illustration of the effect of 

aperture at constant distance and focal length. It is a 

…There are apps for your phone or tablet 

which calculate the DoF for you when you 

input the distance to object, focal length 

and aperture. I used this for calculating the 

values shown in Table I … 




…The more you stop your lens down (use 

a higher f-stop) the more your DoF will 

increase. Conversely, if you shoot with your 

lens ‘wide open’, you achieve a shallow DoF… 

shots at different settings and combine them later into 

one image with sufficient DoF. 

From Table I it is apparent that the DoF is not evenly 

distributed - there is less area of sharpness in front 

and more behind the focal point, depending on how far 

away the object is. 

This brings us to the hyperfocal distance. When you 

focus to that point, then the DoF will extend all the 

way to infinity. A DoF calculator will give you that 

distance (see Image 4). As a rule of thumb, if you want 

everything in a landscape shot to be sharp, focus a 

third of the way into the scene. A wide angle lens and 

an aperture setting of around f/11 will maximise the 

DoF. 

You’ll often hear photographers raving about the 

‘bokeh’ of their pet lenses. This is a (very subjective) 

measure of how a particular lens renders the out-offocus 

part of an image which can be more, or less 

pleasing to the viewer. 

Professional photographers favour cameras with larger 

sensors and one of the reasons given is that a larger 

sensor allows for a more shallow DoF. However, when 

comparing cameras you need to take the ‘crop factor’ 

into account, not only for the effective focal length of 

the lens, but also for the aperture setting. And then 

you’ll find that there is no difference in DoF. But yes, 

in practice a larger sensor does make it easier to make 

your subject stand out against a blurred background. 

…There are apps for your phone or tablet 

which calculate the DoF for you when you 

input the distance to object, focal length and 

aperture. I used this for calculating the values 

shown in Table I… 

In practical photography it is not worth getting hung 

up about exactly how much DoF you will get in your 

pictures. However, it is important to know when you 

should aim for a shallow DoF or when you need a wide 

DoF, and then to adjust your photography to achieve 

the best results. This will add to the enjoyment and it 

will take your photography up a notch to a new level. 

______________________________________________ 

• The illustrations are from The Manual of Photography 

edited by Alan Horder. Focal Press Ltd, 1975. 


DIVE STORES / TRAVEL 

By region. To list your dive/sports stores contact Dive New Zealand for information. 

More information on Dive Stores, Clubs & Travel at www.DiveNewZealand.com 

NEW ZEALAND 

NORTHLAND 

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Dive Zone Bay of Islands Far North’s 

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Open 7 days! 5 Klinac Lane, State 

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www.divezoneboi.co.nz, 

info@divezoneboi.co.nz 

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www.info@northlanddive.com 

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Freephone: 0800 102 102 or 

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www.divenow.co.nz 

AUCKLAND / DISTRICTS 

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COROMANDEL / BAY OF PLENTY 

FREE 

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APPROVED 

BAUER 

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Pinnacles/Islands, Marine reserve or 

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Dive Zone Tauranga is Tauranga’s only 

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Centre offering everything from Open 

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equipment, gear servicing, air fills, dive 

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us at 213 Cameron Road, Tauranga, 

P: (07) 578 4050 

E: info@divezonetauranga.co.nz 

www.divezonetauranga.co.nz 

CENTRAL NORTH ISLAND 

Dive & Gas Gisborne's Mares and Atlantis dive 

gear stockist. A great product range, as well 

as other Scuba, spearfishing and snorkel gear. 

Plus we test and fill all Scuba Tanks. 

Kevin & Tracey Halverson, 

cnr Carnarvon St, and Childers Rd, Gisborne. 

P: 06 867 9662 E: diveandgas@gmail.com 

WELLINGTON / DISTRICTS 

Dive Wellington Become a Padi Dive 

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NZQA approved and eligible for student 

loans and allowances. Contact us for a 

course prospectus. Dive Wellington is an 

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E: dive@divewellington.co.nz 

P: 04 939 3483 www.divewellington. 

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NZ Sea Adventures PADI 5 Star Instructor 

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Sales and Service of 

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DIVE STORES / TRAVEL / PRODUCTS / SERVICES 

SOUTH ISLAND 

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INTERNATIONAL DIVE 

OPERATORS AND RESORTS 

AUSTRALIA 

Pro Dive Cairns Offers the highest quality, best 

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dnz164 



FIJI 

Subsurface Fiji Visit Fiji for fun, relaxing 

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Very www.outergulfcharters.co.nz 

friendly, professional & experienced 

or phone local Instructors Julie 021 & 827 Dive 855 Masters. 

20 dive sites (10 to 20 minutes) including 5 wrecks 

(including 4 engine QANTAS Sandringham flying 

boat and 150 year old sailing ship Star of Russia) 




P: +678 27518 or email: 

dive@bigbluevanuatu.com 

www.bigbluevanuatu.com 

Fiordland Expeditions For your safety Vanuatu 17 has 

recompression facilities. 

Saltaway 55 

SeaTech 59 

TecFestNZ 

IFC&1 

On the seafront downtown Port Vila. 



Very friendly, professional & experienced 

local Instructors & Dive Masters. 

20 dive sites (10 to 20 minutes) including 5 wrecks 

(including 4 engine QANTAS Sandringham flying 





P: +678 27518 or email: 



For your safety Vanuatu has 


SPEAKERS/LECTURERS 

Available for talks to dive clubs etc. You can 

find full details on these speakers/lectures at 

www.DiveNewZealand.co.nz/dive-in-nz/diveshops/ 

Terry Brailsford Wreck diving for gold & 

treasure. Incl the Rothschild jewellery, search for 

General Grant. 

0274 958816, theadmiral@xtra.co.nz 

Tony Howell History and entertainment with lots 

of rare historical photos and illustrations – 12 

powerpoints in total. 45 mins –1 hr each. 

Contact me for topics. 04 233-8238, 

www.scubadiving.co.nz 

tony@scubadiving.co.nz 

Darren Shields Spearfishing titles,uw cameraman, 

author. Motivating/compelling/innovative/ 

inspiring/entertaining P: 09-4794231, 021839118, 

darren@wettie.co.nz 

Jamie Obern Technical instructor/cave diver, 

20+ years On the exp. seafront globally. downtown Photos/video: Port Vila. uw caves 

in • Mexico, Certified USA, dives UK, • Snorkel NZ, Australia. Tours • Techdive Training to NZ/ 

GUE Instructor NZ instructor. Level • Full P: 021 gear 614 hire 023, available • 

www.techdivenz.com Very friendly, professional jamie@techdivenz.com 

& experienced 

Dave Moran local Ching Instructors Dynasty & Dive porcelain Masters. from the 

Tek 20 Sing. dive sites P: Dive (10 to New 20 minutes) Zealand including 09-5215 wrecks 0684, 

E: (including divenz@DiveNewZealand.co.nz 

4 engine QANTAS Sandringham flying 


Samara Nicholas M.O.N.Z -Programme 


Director: Experiencing 

40m. 

Marine 

Free pickup 

Reserves 

from 

– Te 

Kura Moana: samara@emr.org.nz 


www.emr.org.nz www.facebook.com/emr.mtsct 

P: 09 4338205 or 0210362019 

P: +678 27518 

(field 

or 

only) 

email: 



Vanuatu For your 32&66 safety Vanuatu has 


Wakatobi 19 

ALPHABETICAL ORDER 


N E W Z E A L A N D ’ S O N L Y D I V E M A G A Z I N E 



www.divenewzealand.com 1 

DIVE NZ D165.in d 1 21/08/19 1:08 PM 

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February / March 2019 


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The richest marine ecosystem on Earth 

The no-brainer case for more, bigger marine reserves 

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hearts & minds for the sea 

Why isn't the NZ Government interested in Cook’s Endeavour? 

Meeting the unexpected in the Philippines 

NZ Underwater Hockey teams win gold 

Wildlife Photographer of Year finalists 


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• How to choose an underwater camera housing 

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SHADES OF COLOUR PHOTOGRAPHIC COMPETITION 

(A) Mark Blomfield 

Our Photo Competition 

is open again! 

We are looking for Advanced and 

Novice category photographers to send 

their entries for our next issue! Invite your 

dive buddies to have a go – especially if 

they’re new to underwater photography! 

It’s free to enter. 

(A) Sarah Ford 

We’re excited to have a chance to see what 

you’ve managed to shoot underwater in the 

last year! So if you’ve got local flora and fauna 

on file, send ’em our way! 

Limited to New Zealand and Australia only. Visit 

www.seatech.co.nz and click on Photo Competition 

for more information about how to enter! 

There are four gift vouchers up for 

grabs to spend at Sea Tech! 

ADVANCED 

N N N 

WINNER 

NOVICE 

N N N 

WINNER 

ADVANCED 

Highly 

Commended 

NOVICE 

Highly 

Commended 

(A) Dan Westerkamp 

Our judges and the team 

at Dive New Zealand/Dive 

Pacific magazine look forward to 

receiving your masterpieces by 

June 20 for the August/September 

2021 issue of the magazine. 

See: www.seatech.co.nz click 

on Photo Competition. 

(N) Graeme Lynam 

Sea Tech is the official New Zealand distributor of Ikelite, Fantasea, 

Recsea, Inon, Bigblue, Nauticam and other leading brands of underwater 

photographic equipment. 

Visit: www.seatech.co.nz or for personal service email: info@seatech.co.nz 



3.30pm “SS President Coolidge – Santo”

DIVE PACIFIC 177 - May/June/July 2021

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