Ken Kurtis
Contributor
D-Day, World Ocean Day, and more
(please scroll down for details)
I hope you observed the 77th anniversary of D-Day appropriately . . .
NORMANDY - I visited Normandy for a day in 2017 as part of a week in Paris. Very moving. And amazing to stand on the beach on a sunny day, and look back towards the cliffs where the Germans were entrenched and waiting, and trying to imagine what it was like to be standing on that beach with gunfire and carnage seemingly non-stop. The first wave of troops at Omaha Beach saw 50% of them killed. If you'd like to see some of the pix from our trip (scroll down for Normandy), here's a link: NORMANDY (AS WELL AS PARIS).
WORLD OCEAN DAY IS TUESDAY - The is a day when we try - worldwide - to raise awareness about ocean concerns and other related issues. The Aquarium of the Pacific will be having events in-house as well as on-line. Be sure to check out their FaceBook and Tik-Tok pages for more info and some videos along with some live-streams. And you can find out more about the event overall by clicking here: WORLD OCEAN DAY 2021.
NEW GALAPAGOS TURTLE SPECIES - Thanks to Alan Wald for alerting us to the discovery of a new species of Galapagos tortoise. "New" may be too strong a word but it's a species thought to have gone extinct. The species hadn't been sighted since 1906. The female's been moved to a tortoise breeding center on Santa Cruz Island (in the Galapagos, not the Channel Islands). When we visited the Galapagos in 1996, we went to the Darwin Research Station and saw Lonesome George, the last of the Pinta Island tortoises. He died in 2012. But it's exciting to think there may be species out there thought gone but who are still around. Read more about the find here: GALAPAGOS TORTOISE FOUND.
SUCCESS FIGHTING CORAL DISEASE - In other good news, scientists have discovered a novel way to fight Stony Coral Tissue Loss Disease (SCTLD), which in very simple terms, is an infection of corals that basically dissolves them. But it seems that by creating a paste out of amoxicillin and spreading that on affected corals, it halts the spread of the disease. This is especially significant news for the Caribbean because SCTLD has been chronic and spreading. Read more about this break-through here: FIGHTING STONY CORAL DISEASE.
ZOOM SEEKERS REMINDER - Not this Tuesday, but NEXT Tuesday, June 15. Marty Snyderman will be our speaker. (Hey look!!! I got it right for once!!!) I'll send out the Zoom link next week in TWARS.
I got a late jump tonight so this will be short and sweet. Have a great week and let's go diving soon!!!
- Ken
(please scroll down for details)
I hope you observed the 77th anniversary of D-Day appropriately . . .
NORMANDY - I visited Normandy for a day in 2017 as part of a week in Paris. Very moving. And amazing to stand on the beach on a sunny day, and look back towards the cliffs where the Germans were entrenched and waiting, and trying to imagine what it was like to be standing on that beach with gunfire and carnage seemingly non-stop. The first wave of troops at Omaha Beach saw 50% of them killed. If you'd like to see some of the pix from our trip (scroll down for Normandy), here's a link: NORMANDY (AS WELL AS PARIS).
WORLD OCEAN DAY IS TUESDAY - The is a day when we try - worldwide - to raise awareness about ocean concerns and other related issues. The Aquarium of the Pacific will be having events in-house as well as on-line. Be sure to check out their FaceBook and Tik-Tok pages for more info and some videos along with some live-streams. And you can find out more about the event overall by clicking here: WORLD OCEAN DAY 2021.
NEW GALAPAGOS TURTLE SPECIES - Thanks to Alan Wald for alerting us to the discovery of a new species of Galapagos tortoise. "New" may be too strong a word but it's a species thought to have gone extinct. The species hadn't been sighted since 1906. The female's been moved to a tortoise breeding center on Santa Cruz Island (in the Galapagos, not the Channel Islands). When we visited the Galapagos in 1996, we went to the Darwin Research Station and saw Lonesome George, the last of the Pinta Island tortoises. He died in 2012. But it's exciting to think there may be species out there thought gone but who are still around. Read more about the find here: GALAPAGOS TORTOISE FOUND.
SUCCESS FIGHTING CORAL DISEASE - In other good news, scientists have discovered a novel way to fight Stony Coral Tissue Loss Disease (SCTLD), which in very simple terms, is an infection of corals that basically dissolves them. But it seems that by creating a paste out of amoxicillin and spreading that on affected corals, it halts the spread of the disease. This is especially significant news for the Caribbean because SCTLD has been chronic and spreading. Read more about this break-through here: FIGHTING STONY CORAL DISEASE.
ZOOM SEEKERS REMINDER - Not this Tuesday, but NEXT Tuesday, June 15. Marty Snyderman will be our speaker. (Hey look!!! I got it right for once!!!) I'll send out the Zoom link next week in TWARS.
I got a late jump tonight so this will be short and sweet. Have a great week and let's go diving soon!!!
- Ken
