Save the Cheerleader Save the Whales, Diver with spear in his head and other odd news

Heroes hottie Hayden Panettiere came face to face with sharks while Down Under to rally support from Australians for the “Save the Whales Again!” petition at SocialVibe.com.

Hayden will be delivering the petition to the International Whaling Commission at their meeting this June in Madeira.

“This is the easiest way for people to make a big difference in our fight against commercial whaling and the Japanese dolphin drive hunts. All we need people to do is go to sign the petition," she told the Insider website.

The goal is to stop all commercial whaling and lethal scientific research whaling by Japan, Norway, Iceland, and to enforce the current global whaling moratorium.



Three time Olympian and ex NBA basketballer, Luc Longley, won the auction to name a new species of shrimp.

He beat 48 others and paid a whopping AU $3,600.00 for the privilege after the Australian Marine Conservation hit upon the fundraising idea.

While Luc has not yet come up with a name he said: "I haven't decided on the name yet, but it doesn't really matter. What really matters is that we need to protect our oceans.

"Discoveries like this new deep sea species remind us of how little we know about our oceans and how much we need to protect them."

Despite my earlier blog suggesting some had more money than they knew what to do with, all credit to Luc for dipping into his pocket and shelling out a huge chuck of cash for such a good cause.

And finally.......
A little at odds with the previous story, but the pics are amazing.

A Brazilian diver was taken to hospital with a spear stuck in his head after a diving accident.



Doctors had to surgically remove the spear from Emerson de Oliveira Abreu's brain after it
apparently ricocheted off a rock and entered his head just above his left eye while out hunting, the Associated Press reported. Check out their video below.

Drop Zone Tahiti Premiere's at Divefest

PADI has announced it will premiere the movie Drop Zone Tahiti at Divefest in Cornwall on Friday May 15.

The movie follows the exploits of professional surfers and divers Holly Beck, Alex Gray and Cheyne Magnusson on a "unique journey both above and below the surface" as they explore coral reefs, dive with sharks and surf the world’s heaviest waves of Teahupoo.

It is hoped the movie, sponsored by Bodyglove will help bring younger people into the sport.

Check out the trailer below and a making of at the bottom.

Trailer One


Trailer Two


Making of

Swimming Fish Can Generate Elctricity - April Fools

The best story of the day, featured in today Daily Telegraph, told how harnessing the power of swimming fish could hold the key to generating electricity to power Britain's homes.

The paper reported Government scientists claiming that installing networks of electric prongs along the riverbed, the energy from of fish migrating upstream could be captured and fed into the National Grid.

The report on project, codenamed 'Finetics', suggested a typical salmon could generate enough electricity to make 18 cuppas.

While it's quite believable Government scientists would waste money researching such a barmy scheme, the giveaways were researcher Dr Andrea POOL, green technology boffin Gavin ROACH and said the trials would be monitored by the Université de Poisson d'Avril in Paris (Poisson D' Avril is actually a French April Fools Day tradition, which involves kids attempting to attach a paper fish to a victim's back without being noticed).

Even though it's rubbish, I loved the quote: "Initially, we looked at working with sheep and cattle as well as fish but it quickly became apparent that the energy-generating potential of fish far outweighed that of slow-moving grazing stocks."

On a serious non-diving point, read the story linked to from the page about Kosovo survivor Dren Caka. It makes shocking reading. Having been there with the British Army, the country has a special hold on me and it worth remembering the horrors of that conflict.

Name that Shrimp 2

Quick update to a previous blog about an auction to name a new species of shrimp.
A total of 49 people bid for the opportunity and the winner paid a whopping AU $3,600.00. Some people obviously have more money than they know what to do with.
Oh well, at least that cash will be used on marine conservation initiatives.

U-Boat found in the North Sea

A father and son team have helped find the location of a U-boat lost at the bottom of the ocean for almost 100 years.

Iain Easingwood, who runs diving firm Marine Quest with his father, Jim found the sunken U-40 vessel in good condition 70m (210ft) beneath the sea, 40 miles off the coast of Eyemouth and miles from where she was recorded as going down.

Torpedoed on June 23, 1915 in a cunning - some say dirty - ambush during World War I, she even has her attack periscope still raised.

The discovery, initially scanning a five mile box in the North Sea using hydrographic sonar in December, was a 15-year labour of love for the pair. They were finally able to dive on the wreck, listed as a war grave, earlier this month and footage was given to the BBC



Now her story has resurfaced thanks the Marine Quest, the discovery has served as a reminder of the early years of submarine warfare involving fishing trawlers.

The U-40 was part of a fleet being used in an unrestricted warfare campaign targeting merchant ships bring crucial supplies to British shores.

The crew had surfaced to target what they thought was a fishing trawler out in the North Sea. But unbeknown to them it was a decoy - what later became knows as Q-ships. For being towed below the trawler Taranaki was the British sub HMS C-24. After receiving word from the trawler captain by a phone line linking the two, the C-24 slipped the line, surfaced suddenly and scored a direct hit with a single torpedo.

Of the 32 on board, only the commander, Gerhardt Furbringer, and two others escaped. The other 29 perished. Germany later labelled the tactic a dirty trick but it helped ease the pressure on merchant shipping and it was only ever successfully used once more.

The Distinguished Service Cross awarded to C-24 Captain Frederick Henry Taylor.

The story featured in the Times Online, in Berwiskshire Today, and Ian was also interviewed on BBC Radio's Today programme.