Dive Details

Location

Date

Saturday 10 February 2018

Time

1:36pm - 3:17pm

Details

I decided to dive The Monument for my mandatory dive. It had been almost 2 weeks since I'd last dived there and I was hoping I could still find all the red-fingered anglerfish. High tide was around noon so I didn't get to the car park until around 1pm. It was nearly full and there were many divers gearing up to go in. I overheard part of a briefing where the person mentioned swimming up to the weedy seadragons spending a few minutes and swimming back. It seemed a bit odd as you can't guarantee that weedy seadragons will stay put. Anyway, these divers were getting in before me and wouldn't be in the water long so it was unlikely I'd see them.

I geared up and walked to the water. I got in at the protected area about one third of the way to The Steps. It was calm as I waded our to the dropoff. Once I was ready I descended and swam at around 30° to the sand line. There was a lot of kelp around the sand line. Visibility was around 3 metres and water temperature was around 22°C. There was only gentle surge and a slight current. I turned left and headed towards the point.

I followed the sand line to Block Rock and then swam all around the surrounding rocks looking for anglerfishes and seahorses. As I got to the wall I noticed a lot of divers. Then I saw a weighted line on the sand going up to a safety sausage I'd seen from the surface. Finally I saw two juvenile weedy seadragons in the kelp. I guess that's what the person had been talking about.

I continued my way along the wall. I was looking for the orange red-fingered anglerfish. I looked high and low but still couldn't find it. After I'd seen the last diver head back towards the point I went back along the wall to the juvenile weedy seadragons. I found them both amongst the kelp. After photographing them I headed back along the wall looking for the orange red-fingered anglerfish.

At the end of the wall I went up over the wall to where the orange painted anglerfish used to be. I was hoping to see the pygmy pipehorse I'd seen on the previous dive. I looked all around the rock but could not see it.

I headed down to Carijoa Rock and looked for pygmy pipehorses and anglerfishes but found none. I then swam up to Slope Rock and the adjacent rock where I found Dama's red male pygmy pipehorse. It was in the same spot it has been for weeks. I looked around the surrounding rocks for other pygmy pipehorses but found none.

I continued along the reef to Split Rock and then looked on the next rock for the pygmy pipehorses Mike and I had seen before. I looked over the rock and could not find a single pygmy pipehorse. I then checked the rock where the white female pygmy pipehorse used to be and was relieved to find a cryptic female and a brown male pygmy pipehorse.

I followed the reef towards the point. I looked in all the usual spots for anglerfishes and pygmy pipehorses but found none. Have they all gone or am I losing my eye for finding them? I couldn't even find the white pygmy pipehorse I'd seen on the last dive.

I swam along the wall to the point. I looked very carefully for the white red-fingered anglerfish but could not find it. I then swam up around the point to the large rock where the large orange red-fingered anglerfish used to hang out underneath. As I approached the rock I spotted the smaller bright orange red-fingered anglerfish on top of the rock. I then looked on the underhang but could not find the large orange red-fingered anglerfish. I also checked out the surrounding rock but still with no success.

I swam over the sand to the rock where "Sunshine", the female pot-bellied seahorse, lives. I found her on the white honeycomb sponge in the gap between the two rocks. There is still no sign of any males.

I swam back to the big rock where the large orange red-fingered anglerfish used to be and had one more look before heading east towards the exit. I checked out some of the rocks before heading along the wall. I spotted a medium giant cuttlefish in a crevice.

I ascended to 5 metres while heading south-east and started my safety stop. I surfaced just out from the little bay area before swimming in on the surface and then wading out once it was shallow.

Seas

Slight

Visibility

3 to 5 metres

Duration

101 minutes

Maximum depth

12.7 m

Average depth

10.1 m

Water temperature

21.7°C

Dive Profile from Citizen Hyper Aqualand

Tides at Botany Bay AEDT

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

High

5:23am

1.45m

Low

12:08pm

0.65m

High

5:54pm

1.16m

Low

11:34pm

0.65m