Experience A Nautical Adventure As You View A Beautiful Abundance Of Corals

Explorer the underwater world of the Great Barrier Reef in air-conditioned comfort on our Semi-Submarine… without even getting wet! Seated below water level, passengers are treated to a divers view of the coral reef and marine life with informative commentary by the crew and see the lively fish feeding. This vessel seats 27 passengers and cruises for 30 minutes. Don’t miss this exciting tour during your time at Green Island.

However, these so-called single corals are not the reef-builders responsible for the large Caribbean reefs that form critical habitat for various species, while also performing other important roles in nature.

"While single corals may have the chance to survive … it would be very different from the coral reefs we know today and that we depend on today," said Adina Paytan, a study researcher with the University of California, Santa Cruz, who presented her research here Wednesday (Dec. 7) at the annual meeting of the American Geophysical Union.

Paytanand her colleagues found three species of solitary corals growing in the relatively acidic waters flowing from natural springs along the coast of Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula. Because of its chemical properties, this water was thought to be inhospitable to corals. Submarine excursions allow tourists to see coral formations and exotic fish without having to snorkel or dive.

Submarines can accommodate up to 45 people and dive to a depth of 70ft. The bigger ones are operated by two pilots and have large reinforced glass windows.

Egypt's Red Sea resorts, especially Sharm el-Sheikh, are well known for their white sand beaches and rich underwater life.

But in December 2010, a spate of shark attacks killed one German woman and injured four other tourists, forcing the closure of Sharm el-Sheikh's beaches for several weeks.

More than a million Britons visited Egypt last year, despite the political violence which rocked the country.

The biggest danger posed to tourists in the Sinai is terrorism – there have been three bomb attacks on the peninsula since 2004, with British nationals killed or injured in each.

The most recent occurred in April 2006 in the resort town of Dahab, which is less developed than Sharm el-Sheikh and popular with backpackers.

Green Sea Turtle Has Been Endangered By Numerous Natural And Human Created Reasons

One very interesting fact about Green Sea Turtles is that they have been around for so long that their ancestors were present when dinosaurs evolved and became extinct. This means that they have been in existence for about 150 million years. There was a time when millions of Green Sea Turtles could be found around the world. At present, there are less than 200,000 mature females in existence.
The Green Sea Turtle is the largest hard-shelled sea turtle in the world. It ranges in length from 2 to 6 feet with males averaging a little larger than females. Adult females weigh on average 200 kg and males weigh just a little more. Their carapace can be olive green, brown, or black, depending on geographic location. Their plastron is yellow.

They are called Green Sea Turtles because of the color of their flesh. Their limbs, which are flattened and flipper-like, are used for swimming. Green Sea Turtle hatchlings weigh less than 30 grams and are 5 to 10 centimeters in length. They are black on top and white on the bottom.

Green Sea Turtles can be found in the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Basically, Green Sea Turtles can be found throughout the world’s oceans save for areas in which the temperature falls below 20 degrees Celsius. Green Sea Turtles are quite sensitive to both heat and cold and prefer the warmer parts of the seas. In the Atlantic, some Green Sea Turtles have been spotted as far north as Canada. The Caribbean is the most popular choice for nesting sites for Green Sea Turtles. Many nesting sites have also been identified in the U.S. Virgin Islands, Costa Rica, Aves Island and Puerto Rico.

In the Pacific, some Green Sea Turtles have been spotted as far north as Alaska and as far south as Chile. Popular nesting grounds in the Pacific include areas in Southeast Asia, Mexico, Australia, the South Pacific, the Hawaiian Islands and even Madagascar.

In contrast to other sea turtles, Green Sea Turtles are the only sea turtles that are herbivorous creatures. This means that they do not consume meat in their diet. However, this distinction only applies when the juvenile Green Sea Turtle grows into an adult. A Green Sea Turtle is generally considered a juvenile when it is less than eight to 10 inches in length. It takes about three years before a Green Sea Turtle grows up to eight inches in length. During the time from when it is a hatchling up to the time it becomes more mature, the diet of the Green Sea Turtle slowly shifts from a more carnivorous one to a more herbivorous one.

Adult Green Sea Turtles often consume sea grasses, mangrove leaves and algae. Juvenile sea green turtles, on the other hand, commonly include invertebrates such as jellyfish, crayfish, squids, crabs, crustaceans, shrimp, worms, snails, cuttlefish and sponges in their diet. The jaws of Green Sea Turtles are fashioned in such a way that makes it easy for them to tear their food. The head of a Green Sea Turtle is also markedly smaller compared to other sea turtles. This could be because there is no need for the Green Sea Turtle to expand its jaw to eat bigger creatures, compared to other sea turtles. Ironically, despite having a smaller head, the Green Sea Turtle is nonetheless the largest among all sea turtles.

The Green Sea Turtle near some rocks The Green Sea Turtle prefers to feed in relatively shallow waters. It is not uncommon for a Green Sea Turtle to swim through thousands of kilometres to search for food. Given that algae and sea grasses are not very filling foods, the Green Sea Turtle consumes large amounts of both each day.

It is important to note the importance of the effect of the eating habits of Green Sea Turtles on our environment. Due to their regular consumption of algae and sea grasses, succession occurs in reefs and space is freed up for settlement of other organisms in the area. Their absence in the food cycle would cause great disruption to our world. Without the consumption of sea grass by Green Sea Turtles, sea grass beds would become less productive, grow tall and become choked by sediments, which in turn would obscure sunshine and promote disease. Sea grass consumed by Green Sea Turtles is also easily digested and converted into recycled nutrients which are helpful to other plants and animals.

One cause of death for Green Sea Turtles is wrongful or mistaken consumption of food. Given that they are herbivorous, Green Sea Turtles have often mistaken objects such as debris, balloons and other plastic material pieces as food. Many Green Sea Turtles have become ill or have died as a result of human recklessness and irresponsibility. Now that we are aware of the grave implications of our actions, what is important is that we take action and try to rectify the mistakes we have made, that we might save and prolong the life of this beautiful creature. We must take the measures necessary to turn things around and save these beautiful creatures that inhabited this earth long before we did.

On The Way Of Extinction - The Hawksbill Sea Turtle

Sea Turtles are a joy to see when you are fortunate enough to spend time among them in the ocean. The Hawksbill turtle is one of several that you are likely to encounter and are usually found in the waters of Thailand, Fiji and Malaysia.

Baby Turtles are hatched from eggs that their mother has buried in the sand. Once they break out of their eggs they instinctively head for the sea, experts believe they are guided by the moonlight. For many years these creatures could not be found in their natural habitat at a young age. However, recently they were located in the Atlantic Ocean. The fledgling turtles were enjoying a diet of sargassum weed and small animals that were hiding among the weeds. A young sea turtle is at risk from a variety of predators such as seabirds, fish and crabs, once they make it to adulthood their risk of falling victim to predators other than humans is low.

The Hawksbill sea turtle is at risk for extinction and are too often poached for their beautiful shell. The turtles found in the Atlantic and Pacific oceans are subspecies of the sea turtle. The body shape is flat and they have arms that work as flippers allowing them to move easily through the water. The shell of a Hawksbill turtle will vary in color depending upon the temperature of the water they are in. The turtles are occasionally found in the open ocean, but prefer shallower areas such as coral reefs and inlets.

The diet of the Hawksbill sea turtle often includes tunicates, jellyfish and squid. The turtle is able to use their strong jaws to cut through the flesh of these creatures. The turtle's favorite meal is the sponge and part of their reduced numbers in nature is due to lack of the Hawksbill's preferred food.

The sexual maturity of the Hawksbill sea turtle is not known. However, once they are able to reproduce they will do so every 2-3 years. The turtles mate in lagoon areas that aren't very deep and the female turtle will make her way out of the water and dig a nest for her eggs in the sand. When her nest is deep enough she will then cover her eggs. This activity will take the turtle about 1-3 hours to accomplish.

The Hawksbill sea turtle differs from other types of sea turtles. The 5 characteristics that are different include claws on their flippers, a long beak designed mouth, a scale on their shell, four pairs of rib bones and their head has two pairs of scales on the front. The turtle's mouth is able to reach into small areas of coral reefs to locate food and their overall length varies from.62 to 1.14 m. The Hawksbill usually weighs around 80 kg.

The Hawksbill turtle can live to be 32 years old and they are thought to be the most tropical of the species. The animals nesting areas are difficult to locate because they change where they mate, this has been a challenge for advocates who are trying to keep them protected.

The Maldives Islands is known for its plentiful sea life including the Hawksbill sea turtle. The turtle is able to find its favorite sponges to eat and the islands offer perfect nesting locations for the female turtles. Saving these creatures is vital to the fragile marine ecosystem and those who kill them for their shells need to be stopped. The Hawksbill sea turtle is an amazing animal that has fought to survive and the human race should be working to prevent their extinction.

The Hawksbill sea turtle (Eretmochelys imbricata) which once was found in abundance around the world is now on the way of extinction. The reasons behind their declination are many. Different human created and natural forces are working behind the reduction in their quantity. One of the greatest threats to their existence is the loss of coral reefs which is the habitat for Hawksbill turtles. Coral reefs are being destructed and degraded due to reckless human activities.

Human activities can affect coral reef communities in both ways gradually and catastrophically. We, humans are doing everything for our better and comfortable living without thinking about the impact of our activities on the environment. We are building more and more factories, cars, engines to meet the rapidly increasing demand of us. And to build new things we are destroying the forests and filling out the water sources. These are polluting the environment. We are burning more and more fossil fuels to run these things which is producing huge amount of Carbon-Di-Oxide every day. As the number of trees is decreasing at an alarming rate, this additional carbon is not being absorbed by anything, it is prevailing in the earth's environment.

Carbon-Di-Oxide prevents the heat from being radiated and the temperature of the earth is increasing day by day. Recently evidences have been found about the impact of global warming caused by human on coral reef communities. Climate change is affecting the corals by causing diseases frequently which can destroy the whole community of corals. As the hawksbill sea turtles depend on coral reefs for food and habitat their declination will cause severe threat to the existence of hawksbill turtles.

Excessive harvesting of the hawksbill sea turtles is the primary reason behind the declination of them. They are being harvested for their beautiful shell even since the Egyptian era. Shell of Hawksbill turtles are of great economic value. It is used in producing cosmetics, oils, perfumes and other products. In the north Caribbean islands, hawksbill turtles are harvested for their carapace which is often used to produce clips, jewelry, combs and many other ornaments.