Dive Details

Location

Logged dive number

1750

Date

Saturday 22 February 2020

Time

9:48am - 11:00am

Buddy

Dani Pica

Seas

Slight current and some surge

Visibility

2 to 4 metres

Duration

71 minutes

Surface interval

Maximum depth

13.9 m

Average depth

10.7 m

Water temperature

22.1°C

Dive Profile from Citizen Hyper Aqualand

Tides at Botany Bay AEDT

Note that tides at dive site may vary from above location.

Low

2:09am

0.54m

High

8:39am

1.73m

Low

3:15pm

0.38m

High

9:10pm

1.36m

Details

Today I would be taking Dani for her first dive in Sydney. Dani is doing a post doctorate degree at Ancora University, Italy, and has been looking at stylasterid corals from Lizard Island and in the Australian Museum's collection. We'd missed a few opportunities to dive while I had a cold and then the conditions were bad. I was hopeful the conditions had improved enough after the storm.

Dani needed to hire a wetsuit so we had to stop at Scubathlon on the way and as they only open at 8am, we'd have to dive after high tide. We arrived at The Steps around 9am. There was a group from Scubathlon there as well, plus another group from Abyss arrived as we were getting ready. From the cars parked I knew that PJ and George were in the water.

We geared up and walked down. Aaron and the group from Scubathlon were just getting in when PJ, George, Nyrelle and Michael were getting out. George told me about a Red-fingered Anglerfish near the basket star and Nyrelle said she'd spent most of the dive looking for the seahorses to no avail.

We jumped in, putting our fins on in the water. When we were ready we descended to the edge of the boulders. The visibility wasn't too bad considering the past few weeks and that it was more than an hour after high tide: around 4 metres. The water temperature was over 22°C. There was some surge but the current was barely noticeable.

We swam around over the rocks in front of the entry/exit. I was hoping to find an anglerfish but didn't. Dani spotted a nudibranch and got very excited. I pointed out the small colony of Coscinaraea mcneilli, one of the few species of stony corals found in Sydney. It wasn't something that Dani was studying but interesting nonetheless.

I led us to the sand line and then we turned right and headed towards Little Big Rock. We hadn't gone very far when I came across "Teardrop", the male Weedy Seadragon. This was the first time since the storm that I'd seen him and I was so relieved that he not only survived but was still around the area, albeit 20 metre or so to the north-west from where he usually hung out. I took some photographs and let Dani have a go.

We continued to the rocks where the Pot-bellied Seahorses had been in late 2018. On the way I spotted an octopus. I looked around on the rocks for anglerfishes but found none. I was also hopeful that the seahorses from behind Little Big Rock might turn up.

We followed the sand line to Pipefishes Hollow. I looked in and was pleased to see one of the Upside-down Pipefish. There was too much particulate matter in the water to get any photographs. I pointed out the hole to Dani and she saw the pipefish, too.

We headed up the reef to Di's Rock and then swam along the top of the reef towards where the Pot-bellied Seahorses had been before the storm. We caught up to the Scubathlon group and Aaron indicated he'd seen 2 anglerfish back 5 metres or so. They had been on the underside of rocks. We made our way back to Di's Rock and I was looking more carefully for anglerfish as we went. I didn't find any before we reached Di's Rock so we turned again and headed towards where we'd left Aaron. I checked out the rocks along the way and spotted a grey Red-fingered Anglerfish on the side of the large high rock with sea tulips. I took some photographs and pointed it out to Dani.

We swam on to the rock with the large green sponge. I looked for pygmies on the rock but could not find any. I did a quick swim around the rock where the seahorses had been but as the others had found, the seahorses are gone.

We headed off towards the basket star. I hadn't gone far when I spotted a yellow Red-fingered Anglerfish. I took photographs and showed Dani.

We swam on a little farther and bumped into the Scubathlon group coming back I took one of them to the yellow anglerfish. Dani indicated she had around 120 bar remaining.

We continued on to the basket star. I looked around the area for the anglerfish that George had told me about but could not find it. I took some photographs of the basket star and then pointed it out to Dani. I had another look for the anglerfish before heading down to Diversity Rock.

I looked on Diversity Rock for pygmies but found none. We headed across to the long rock between Diversity Rock and the sand line. I looked for the pair of pygmies I'd seen last Sunday and spotted the whiteish male (IL2020021601). I took some photographs and showed Dani. I looked for the female but could not find her.

I wasn't sure what the current or visibility would do so I decided we'd turn around now and head back towards the exit. We swam up via the basket star and I had another look for George's anglerfish as well as pygmy pipehorses. As we were leaving the rocks near the basket star I spotted a Zebra Lionfish. As they are a tropical species we don't see them all that often. This one was quite large for the time of the year and so must have settled in December.

We swam back via the yellow anglerfish and I took some more photographs. I had another look for the seahorses and we continued along the top of the reef. We also visited the grey anglerfish.

By the time we reached the area of Di's Rock, the visibility had dropped to around 2 metres, perhaps less, and I couldn't even find Di's Rock. I led Dani to the sand line as it would be easier to navigate along the sand line. I was hoping we'd go past Pipefishes Hole but we missed it.

We followed the sand line to the rock where the seahorses had been in late 2018 and then headed over the help to the boulders. We ascended to 5 metres hear the Plesiastrea colonies and then headed to Split Rock. We finished our safety stops and then swam underwater to the exit. On the way to the exit I noticed that the rocks were almost bare. Most of the algae had been torn off.

I swam in onto the platform on my knees and Dani came in behind me. I took off my fins between waves and stood up. I walked out, put my camera and fins down and came back to help Dani out.