Dive Details

Location

Date

Saturday 4 August 2018

Time

12:48pm - 2:29pm

Details

My second dive of the day (and 5th for the last 4 days) would allow me to spend more time near The Steps looking for things I missed on the previous dive. I was particularly keen to try to find missing pygmy pipehorses and the salmon red-fingered anglerfish.

I got in at The Steps and surface swam out. I descended and swam to the kelp and sand line. The visibility was still 5 to 10 metres and there was barely any current. The water temperature was around 16°C. I turned right and headed towards Big Rock.

I stayed on the sand line until I got to the rock with the orange red-fingered anglerfish with one dark eye. The anglerfish was still in the same spot it had been on the previous dive.

I continued along the sand line until I got to the rock with the sea tulips where a couple of pygmy pipehorses had been. I spent quite a bit of time searching the rock but was not able to find the pygmy pipehorses.

I swam past Di's Rock and a number of other sponge covered rocks looking for anglerfishes. I got to the large rock behind Little Big Rock and looked for the pygmy pipehorses there. The male (IL2018072002) was still near the top of the north face and the female (IL2018072001) was still on the purple sponge on the north face.

I headed down to Little Big Rock and looked around for the salmon red-fingered anglerfish again. I couldn't find it on Little Big Rock or the nearby rocks. On the rock to the south-east of Little Big Rock I found the male pygmy pipehorse (IL2018072501) but I couldn't find the female.

I had another look around the area for the salmon anglerfish. I went quite high up from Little Big Rock to the east of the large rock where the pygmies are. I was surprised to see the large yellow red-fingered anglerfish there. I haven't seen this anglerfish in months but have been actively looking for it. I had heard it was closer to The Steps but here it was.

I headed closer to Diversity Rock to see the juvenile orange painted anglerfish. At first I couldn't find it when I was looking where I'd seen it only 90 minutes earlier. I was worried about other divers that I'd seen in the area. Eventually I found it again.

I looked on Diversity Rock for pygmy pipehorses but found none. I couldn't even find the juvenile I'd found on the previous dive.

I swam past the Basket Star and bumped into Nick who had just come from The Leap. I took him along to see the yellow anglerfish before heading back towards Big Rock.

I found the one-eyed White's seahorse on her rock. She'd move from where I'd seen her on the previous dive. I then searched around the area for anglerfishes before coming back to the seahorse.

I swam back to Diversity Rock and had another look for the juvenile pygmy pipehorse. After not finding it I checked out the juvenile orange painted anglerfish again.

As I was swimming along the sand line towards Little Big Rock I saw the comb wrasse that has been in the area for months.

On the rock just before Little Big Rock I found the male pygmy pipehorse (IL2018072501) again but not the female.

I had another look in the area for the salmon anglerfish without success. I checked out the large yellow anglerfish before heading over to see the pygmy pipehorses on the large rock behind Little Big Rock. The female (IL2018072001) was still low on the purple sponge and the male at the top of the face.

I swam past Di's Rock to the rock with sea tulips where the pygmy pipehorses had been. Another search proved unsuccessful and I have to assume the pygmies are gone.

I followed the sand line to the orange anglerfish with a dark eye before heading to the boulders. I ascended to 5 metres and started my safety stop while swimming to Split Rock. I finished by safety stop and swam underwater to the exit.

Seas

Slight

Visibility

5 to 10

Duration

101 minutes

Maximum depth

14.0 m

Average depth

11.4 m

Water temperature

16°C

Dive Profile from Garmin Descent Mk1

Tides at Botany Bay AEST

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

High

12:38am

1.45m

Low

7:07am

0.50m

High

1:33pm

1.45m

Low

7:35pm

0.68m