HBDiveGirl
Contributor
- Messages
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Except for the eager pod of dolphin that pinged us all and chased the fish away...
... Reef Check's first SoCal survey of 2008 was a smooth and sunny success.
Nearly a dozen excited volunteer divers met in the gazebo overlooking the Cove, with huge grins, looking down onto translucent glassy water and dolphins! We could do this! No waves, clear looking water... wooo-Hoooooo!!!!.
We made the plans and distributed the data sheets so the teams could get down to the fun business of surveying.
I'd sort of forgotten about the dolphins as we began the loooong surface swim over GLASSY water under a broiling sun... when a pod of a dozen dolphin burst through the water, chasing fish and splashing it up. When they came with in 10 feet of us on the surface, Rafael and I quickly descended to peer hard through the aquamarine waters looking for these 300lb-plus animals. The 10-12 visibility showed us a school of small calico bass blasting right for us a top speed... They were a BLUR!!.... and then the school split, :scared: with 1/2 going to our right and the rest going to our left! My head and ears were vibrating with the echo location from the dolphin. The fish blasted by again... full-speed blurs of brown and silver!!!! Although we didn't see the dolphin underwater, they were all around us, and glittery fish scales rained slowly down.
We turned and rolled deep... well, horizontally "deep".....within the the Malaga Cove kelp forest to begin our survey.
Sun rays danced through the kelp, dappling the velvety algae of the reef.
Wavy top snails crowded out Kellet's Whelks, while purple urchins were jammed into deep crevices.
The surge was frisky, but the visibility improved to 15+ feet.
But... very few fish. Hmmmmm... Dolphins hunting... few fish... Hmmmmm...
It was a beautiful day on the Malaga Cove Reef!!
The team completed the entire survey (Six 30-meter Core Transects and twelve 30-meter Fish-Only Transects) in only two dives!! Fantastic!!! Now, THIS is the way to run a survey!
[It took 4 weeks and many trips to complete this survey last year, as we were repeatedly frustrated by high surf and opaque water. I like 2008 much, MUCH better.
]
Shameless commercial plug for a great cause: Becoming a Volunteer diver for Reef Check California is a wonderful way to learn more about the rocky reefs in your own back yard. Certifications classes are held each year (Link Here) for interested divers.
If you want to check us out in action, watch this SoCal Subforum for announcements of upcoming surveys in LA, OC, and SD. Only currently certified RCCA-Divers may collect RCCA data, but local divers are always welcome to dive along with us and learn more about Reef Check.
The third year of Reef Check California has gotten off to a great start, thanks to today's wonderful team: Bridget, John M., Ken L., Erika H., Mark D., Mike S., Rafael C., Liz S., Kevin S., Ted S., Phil.
See you at the next survey!
~~~~~
Claudette
__________________
Nearly a dozen excited volunteer divers met in the gazebo overlooking the Cove, with huge grins, looking down onto translucent glassy water and dolphins! We could do this! No waves, clear looking water... wooo-Hoooooo!!!!.
We made the plans and distributed the data sheets so the teams could get down to the fun business of surveying.
I'd sort of forgotten about the dolphins as we began the loooong surface swim over GLASSY water under a broiling sun... when a pod of a dozen dolphin burst through the water, chasing fish and splashing it up. When they came with in 10 feet of us on the surface, Rafael and I quickly descended to peer hard through the aquamarine waters looking for these 300lb-plus animals. The 10-12 visibility showed us a school of small calico bass blasting right for us a top speed... They were a BLUR!!.... and then the school split, :scared: with 1/2 going to our right and the rest going to our left! My head and ears were vibrating with the echo location from the dolphin. The fish blasted by again... full-speed blurs of brown and silver!!!! Although we didn't see the dolphin underwater, they were all around us, and glittery fish scales rained slowly down.
We turned and rolled deep... well, horizontally "deep".....within the the Malaga Cove kelp forest to begin our survey.
Sun rays danced through the kelp, dappling the velvety algae of the reef.
Wavy top snails crowded out Kellet's Whelks, while purple urchins were jammed into deep crevices.
The surge was frisky, but the visibility improved to 15+ feet.
But... very few fish. Hmmmmm... Dolphins hunting... few fish... Hmmmmm...
It was a beautiful day on the Malaga Cove Reef!!
The team completed the entire survey (Six 30-meter Core Transects and twelve 30-meter Fish-Only Transects) in only two dives!! Fantastic!!! Now, THIS is the way to run a survey!
[It took 4 weeks and many trips to complete this survey last year, as we were repeatedly frustrated by high surf and opaque water. I like 2008 much, MUCH better.
Shameless commercial plug for a great cause: Becoming a Volunteer diver for Reef Check California is a wonderful way to learn more about the rocky reefs in your own back yard. Certifications classes are held each year (Link Here) for interested divers.
If you want to check us out in action, watch this SoCal Subforum for announcements of upcoming surveys in LA, OC, and SD. Only currently certified RCCA-Divers may collect RCCA data, but local divers are always welcome to dive along with us and learn more about Reef Check.
The third year of Reef Check California has gotten off to a great start, thanks to today's wonderful team: Bridget, John M., Ken L., Erika H., Mark D., Mike S., Rafael C., Liz S., Kevin S., Ted S., Phil.
See you at the next survey!
~~~~~
Claudette
__________________
