Dive at Bare Island, La Perouse, NSW on Saturday 20 February 2021

Dive Details

Location

Logged dive number

1879

Date

Saturday 20 February 2021

Time

8:21am - 10:29am

Buddy

Mandy Durand

Seas

Negligible current and light surge

Visibility

2 to 4 metres

Duration

127 minutes

Surface interval

22:35 (hh:mm)

Maximum depth

17.2 m

Average depth

12.5 m

Water temperature

19.6°C

Dive Profile from Citizen Hyper Aqualand

Tides at Botany Bay AEDT

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

High

3:06am

1.41m

Low

9:40am

0.74m

High

3:24pm

1.15m

Low

9:22pm

0.71m

Details

Mandy and I were back at Bare Island today. With the large easterly swell and the tides, Kurnell was not really a viable option. We also wanted to look for more seahorses. Based on the seahorses we saw yesterday and the ones I'd seen two weeks ago, there were at least two more individuals to be found.

The western side of the island was almost calm enough for entry but due to it being so close to low tide, even small waves made it difficult. Instead, we waded out through the "pool" and surface swam around the corner. We lined up the flagpoles and descended. The water was a bit green and milky. We ended up over the kelp so we headed west until we cleared the kelp and then turned SSW. We kept a bearing of between 200 and 210° until we hit the wall. We dropped over the wall and landed right on the rock where the seahorses were yesterday. The visibility was only around 3 metres and it was milky and green like it had been on our way to the wall. The water temperature was between 20 and 21°C. There was negligible current and surge.

I swam to straight to the sea tulips where we'd seen a male and female seahorse yesterday. I spotted a female. She was the same one we saw yesterday. We looked around for the male but could not see him.

Female Pot-bellied Seahorse, Hippocampus abdominalis. 16.5m.

We went over to the wall to look for seahorses there. Yesterday we'd seen a female on the wall but two weeks ago I'd seen a male who we didn't see yesterday. I came up empty looking on the ledge but Mandy found the male from two weeks ago below the ledge. While she was photographing him, he swam up to the ledge. I was hoping he'd lead us to a female but he didn't.

Male Pot-bellied Seahorse, Hippocampus abdominalis. 15.2m.

I went back to the rock to try to find the male we saw yesterday. I spotted him in different sea tulips a couple of metres from the sea tulips yesterday. I took some photographs and went to look for Mandy. She'd spotted a male that I hadn't seen before low down on the rock. While she was photographing him I spotted the yellow female who had been on the wall yesterday. That made 5 seahorse at this location: two we hadn't seen yesterday and one of those I'd not seen before. I took Mandy to see the other male I'd found.

Male Pot-bellied Seahorse, Hippocampus abdominalis. 16.1m.

Female Pot-bellied Seahorse, Hippocampus abdominalis. 16.6m.

Male Pot-bellied Seahorse, Hippocampus abdominalis. 16.7m.

Female Pot-bellied Seahorse, Hippocampus abdominalis. 16.8m.

Male Pot-bellied Seahorse, Hippocampus abdominalis. 17.1m.

We headed north along the wall. We were hoping to find the small male seahorse that Mandy had spotted yesterday and had named Moonshine. I had forgotten yesterday to thoroughly check for landmarks so I was clueless to his location other than between the seahorses we'd just seen and the rock where seahorses had been last year. I was ahead of Mandy when I detected the flash from her camera. I swam back. She'd spotted Moonshine. This time I checked the landmarks.

Male Pot-bellied Seahorse, Hippocampus abdominalis, ("Moonshine"). 15.5m.

Male Pot-bellied Seahorse, Hippocampus abdominalis, ("Moonshine"). 15.7m.

We continued north to the end of the wall. I was checking the sea tulips along the way, especially on the rock where the seahorses were last year. At the end of the wall I started to look for pygmy pipehorses and was pleasantly surprised to find a tiny juvenile. I took some photographs and pointed it out to Mandy.

I continued while Mandy was photographing the pygmy hoping to find more. I went very slowly so I wouldn't get too far ahead as the visibility was not great. When Mandy caught up we headed west along the reef. I continued to look for pygmies and also checked under the ledges for Sawtooth Pipefish. All I found was a nudibranch.

We swam past the gutter and continued west along the reef to the rock with the orange finger sponges. I spotted the male seahorse in the same sponge he was in yesterday. While I was photographing him, Mandy found the female in the other sponge. We also photographed the basket star.

Male Pot-bellied Seahorse, Hippocampus abdominalis. 16.3m.

Female Pot-bellied Seahorse, Hippocampus abdominalis. 16.1m.

I only had a few minutes of NDL left so we headed north towards the main reef. We arrived right at the SW corner and continued north to the north side of the reef. I looked in the usual spots for Sawtooth Pipefish but could not see any. I saw three in one spot yesterday.

We headed east along the reef towards the caves. I looked in the other spot we've seen Sawtooth Pipefish but I couldn't see them. While Mandy was looking under the same ledge I could see two through a hole in the top of the ledge. Her lights were lighting them up. After Mandy finished I looked under the ledge and could see them now.

We headed past the caves and briefly went to some of the isolated rocks before heading back to the main reef at the base of the slope. I looked on the Ship Rock for pygmies but could not see any. Yesterday was the first time in a few years that I have not seen any pygmies on that rock and today was the second.

We swam slowly up the slope looking for pygmies on the way. When we got to the rocks covered with purple sea tulips, I went straight to the spot we'd seen the seahorses yesterday. They were both in almost the same spots as yesterday although they had swapped with each other. I got some photographs until Mandy caught up.

Male Pot-bellied Seahorse, Hippocampus abdominalis. 8.8m.

Female Pot-bellied Seahorse, Hippocampus abdominalis. 8.8m.

Female Pot-bellied Seahorse, Hippocampus abdominalis. 8.9m.

Male Pot-bellied Seahorse, Hippocampus abdominalis. 8.7m.

I left Mandy with the seahorses and swam to the top of the slope. I swam along in front of the boulders until I reached the rock where I spotted three pygmy pipehorses 2 weeks ago. I bumped into Nico and Lena just before the rock. I spotted the large male and female pygmies. I pointed them out to Nico and Lena. While I was photographing the pygmies, Mandy swam up. I pointed the pygmies out to her. The female pygmy swam up into the water column and drifted over the rock. She came down near another male. This was probably the other male I found 2 weeks ago.

We headed along in front of the boulders, over the outboard motor and along in front of the island, doing our safety stop along the way. We swam over the kelp and got out on the northern side of the island.

Camera gear

Camera

Nikon D500

Lens

Nikon AF-S Micro Nikkor 60mm f/2.8G ED

Housing

Ikelite 6812.5

Lens port

Ikelite Flat Port 5502.41

Strobe(s)

2 x Ikelite SubStrobe DS161