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Yearly Archives: 2013
Freediving World Champion Yasemin Dalkilic Visits Aquarius

When World Champion Freediver, Yasemin Dalkilic dove on the Aquarius habitat late last summer, it’s future looked less than bright. But since the video was produced, Aquarius has been able to secure some funding – enough to keep it treading water, at least for now.
Last year the US government cut funding for Aquarius from $5 million to zero.  The only underwater habitat in the world performing scientific research, Aquarius has been on Conch Reef off Key Largo Florida for 22 years. And now she is a magnificent living reef in her own right. At only sixty feet deep, the dive is not a stretch for the 9 time World Champion Freediver, Yasmine.  Beginning with a charming little girl’s fantasy of living underwater, Yasemin takes us on a tour of Aquarius. …

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CITES does RIGHT!

Huge news on the shark and manta front!

Yesterday, the CITES plenary accepted the committee recommendations to place five species of sharks and two species of mantas on Appendix II of the CITES treaty. Additionally, one species of saw fish was moved to Appendix I.

It may sound like a bureaucratic procedure — and it is — but the ramifications are huge. The sharks have been under relentless pressure from the fin and meat trade which is taking a significant toll on their population levels.

Now, as species listed under Appendix II, the trade of these shark species will be regulated, marking a first important step to allow these majestic animals to return to healthy population levels. Not all the CITES treaty members were behind the measure.…

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Photo of the Day ~ CITES stands up for sharks and rays!

In a dramatic Plenary session, trade restrictions were adopted today for ALL five species of sharks (Oceanic Whitetip, Porbeagle, Smooth, Scalloped & Great Hammerhead) and two mantas (Giant and Reef Manta Rays) proposed! Success of listing proposals means their international trade must be legal and sustainable in 18 months.
Photo: (c) Shark Stanley…

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Young Explorer Series – Yoland Bosiger in the Cocos Islands

My safety stop is complete but something out of the corner of my eye distracts me. Still a couple of meters below me, our dive leader, Jaume Pericas is frantically pointing at something. At first I couldn’t work out what he was seeing. Had Jaume spent too much time underwater? Was he seeing an imaginary ghost of Moby Dick? Or did he simply want to ensure that I missed out on the scrambled eggs that so deliciously followed an early morning dive. It occurred to me that I could see something too but my mind was not registering. A dark silhouette seemed to cover the entire ocean floor as if revealing an ancient underwater city. But this was no fantasy, legend or mythical beast – this shadow was alive!…

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Photo of the Day ~ Blanket Octopus

Normally we might expect males to be larger than females, but when it comes to blanket octopi, females can reach up to six feet while males are at most an inch or two long. The males have a specially modified third right arm which stores sperm, known as a hectocotylus. During mating, this arm detaches itself and crawls into the mantle of the female to fertilize her eggs. Weird but true! 
Photo Credit: Unknown…

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Pacific Warriors: We’re not drowning. We are fighting.

There is global war underway. This war is being fought to reduce carbon in the atmosphere.

The Carbon War Room was set up by Ocean Elder Sir Richard Branson and was established to harness the power of entrepreneurs to unlock gigaton-scale, market driven solutions to climate change. President José María Figueres has explained that their war effort is necessary because “there is no Planet B.”

People are fighting this global war on many fronts and in many ways. Nowhere is the need for lowering our carbon emissions more obvious than in the Pacific island countries where the carbon emissions are tiny, but the impact from carbon driven climate change is most serious and already resulting in climate refugees and climate-driven evacuation plans across the Pacific region.…

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San Francisco International Ocean Film Festival features Mission Blue Partners

Now through Sunday, and in it's 10th year, The San Francisco Ocean Film Festival has added 'International' to it's well respected name. With 50 films created from all corners of the globe, the festival has truly raised the bar. Come by Pier 39 this weekend to catch a glimpse of an exciting lineup of ocean-related documentaries. With French explorer and environmentalist Jean-Michel Cousteau in attendance, the SF International Ocean Film Festival hopes to educate and entertain the public in greater numbers than ever before. We're proud that several of the films are by, or about Mission Blue Partners.

When Walter Marti called Mission Blue partners, Ocean Defenders Alliance to alert them about a huge derelict net at Isla Coronado in Northern Mexico, Kurt Lieber and his team went into action.…

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Bay Area Painter Celebrates Beauty of Marine Life to Support Conservation

"We live on the edge of giant, writhing oceans of life that continue to pump masses of much needed oxygen into the air we breath. Yet our life-filled seas face threatening hardships such as pollution, plastics, and overfishing."

– Cleo Vilett

“Leafy Sea Dragon” Oil on canvas, 24”x18” © Cleo Vilett 2008

In light of human-caused environmental challenges, artist Cleo Vilett invites her viewers to take a closer look. A painter, scientific illustrator and marine biologist by training, Vilett is a Bay Area native with a passion for the natural world. Through her work, she hopes “to bring attention to marine subjects as art while promoting conservation of the world’s oceans.”

“Large Jellies” Acrylic and resin on birch, 22”x10” © Cleo Vilett 2011

Vilett’s appreciation for the beauty of sea life began while earning a degree in marine biology.…

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Photo of the Day ~ We are not drowning, we are fighting!

March 2 was the '350 Pacific Warrior Day of Action' – which included not only the warrior dances in the 14 Pacific Islands nations – but also  solidarity from people around the world.  Stay tuned for more on this milestone event!

From 350 Pacific:

Pacific Islanders across 15 Pacific Island nations and territories came together in mass numbers on our islands, mobilising at prominent locations to perform our unique war challenges, songs, and dances. We carry a single message that will make our voice heard on climate change, and we want the world to listen.

Our Challenge to the World

"We, the people of the Pacific, spread over hundreds of islands stand united by the Pacific Ocean that connects us. Our Warrior dance and chants are to express ourselves and tell the world that we also exist.…

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