Unique Dive Expeditions launches Blackwater diving in 2014
Photo material of the first test dives proves uniqueness of the dive
Koror/Duesseldorf, January 18, 2014 – Unique Dive Expeditions, which has become famous in less than a year for its dive expeditions based on the lunar cycles in Palau showcasing mass spawning of bump head parrot fish and red snappers, is adding another rare dive opportunity to its portfolio.
The blackwater dive starts late in the evening and brings a small group of maximum six divers to the Eastern barrier reef of Palau that drops off to thousand meters there. As the name suggests, the divers enter the water with no ambient light available. A line tied off the boat takes the group down to a depth of twelve meters where lights attached to a bar attract the marine life and offer amazing photo opportunities.
Many of the species appear to be local reef fish in the their early juvenile phase though there were also lots of invertebrates which have yet to be identified. The team of Unique Dive Expeditions is working closely with other scientists around the world to identify them and find out if they are not yet described species.
Paul Collins, marine biologist and one of the founders for Unique Dive Expeditions explains how the product has been developed and what his initial reaction was: “Based upon the request of a renowned photographer who had done blackwater diving in other areas and wanted to see what Palau had to offer in this regards, we attached lights to a drop bar, used GPS data to mark the thousand meter contour line, hopped into the water and waited… Honestly, this is not for the faint-hearted. The tension is always high before we role off the boat and make our descent down. It is inky black and there is always the thoughts of what else is out there and may have been attracted to the lights. But after a few minutes the apprehension has subsided and the magical nature of the event takes over. An hour later we ascent and it always feels like we have only been there for 10 minutes!”
For further information, please contact the European representative of Sam’s Tours at samstours [at] tourism-unlimited.com or by phone: +49-89-673 78 619
For more information on Sam’s Tours, please visit:
www.samstours.com
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Title: Blackwater diving | Ctenophore
Text: Ctenophore are commonly known as comb jellies
Image credit: © Richard Barnden
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Title: Blackwater diving | Pteropod
Text: Pteropoda are free-swimming pelagic sea snails or sea slugs
Image credit: © Richard Barnden
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