TWARS (This Week at Reef Seekers) - March 10-17

[Ken Kurtis]

Oil, Chamber Eve, New Fish, & more (please scroll down for details)​

Congrats to the Oscar nominees & winners (there were a few of our divers amongst the crowd) . . . OIL SHEEN OFF OF HUNTINGTON BEACH - They're not really calling it a "spill" but a few days ago a mysterious oil sheen was spotted a few miles off of Huntington Beach. On top of that some of the oil has washed up along parts of the shoreline as well as formed tar balls. The Coast Guard has said that they've manged to round up a lot of the sheen but they also don't know definitively where it came from. There's suspicion it came from either the Ellen or Elly oil rigs, but Amplify, who owns/runs those rigs, says there's no indication that it came from any of their rigs or pipelines. Given the environmental damage oil can cause, there's really no such thing as a "small" spill, but this one seems to be relatively minor as these things go. We'll let you know if we hear anything further. NOW THAT'S A CAKE - I was in Palmdale Saturday evening MCing the annual banquet for the Antelope Valley Desert Divers, a club that not only is a major Chamber Day donor (they gave us another $10,000 Challenge check) but also one one with a very widespread and strong commitment to community service in both diving and non-diving areas. So they're a fun bunch to hang out with. But the highlight of the evening had to be the desserts they allowed their nine tables to choose from. There were some amazing cakes, but the MOST amazing one was the cake replica of the Casino Park dive area. The Casino was the cake part (the water and rocks might have been edible too) with the base being wood and the boats decorative. It was a very impressive creation as you can see below:​

REEF SEEKERS CH-EVE TABLE IS SOLD OUT - We're not sure why, but Chamber Eve tables are filling faster this year than in previous years. That includes our Reef Seekers table, which is now full. However, we've still got plenty of space at our virtual table ($95, plus you get a Ch-Eve t-shirt and a link to the live stream of the event) or we can arrange to seat you at someone else's table. You can sign up for these and all other event aspects through the website at www.chamberday.org. NEW FISH SPECIES SPOTTED AT SOCORRO - You've likely heard me say many times some variation of "You don't know what's out there if you don't go look." And the proof of that is in the announcement of the discovery of a new fish species at the Revillagigedo Islands, better known collectively as Socorro (which is really only the name of one of the main islands). The fish in question - pictured in various life phases below - was first spotted in 2013. Researchers returned to the island in 2022, found it again, documented it with pictures and tissue DNA samples, and have declared it previously unknown. It's been named Halichoeres sanchezi. I got all jazzed after seeing the pix and have combed back through my Socorro pix to see if perhaps I had already unknowingly documented the fish. (The big spot on the dorsal makes it a tempting photo target and something you'd notice as out-of-the-ordinary.) But, alas, I couldn't find anything in my archive. But it's truly amazing that there can be something new lurking in an area that's relatively regularly-visited by divers.​

And on that note, that'll do it for now. Have a great week, please support our Chamber, and let's go diving soon!!! - Ken​