From www.thecircumference.org!

The Experience - Diving in Blue Corner

by Kristin Cowles, Editor-in-Chief

Palau is a divers dream, with its fringing coral reefs and burgeoning marine life it's hard to beat. In a time where our oceans are being devastated beyond belief, Palau has managed to maintain some sanctity, and in 2009 with the help of pioneering dive shop Fish'n Fins, declared its waters a Shark Sanctuary.

Thanks to this, people who make the trek to Palau can enjoy an increasingly rare treat - sharks and other large fish that have been overfished in other areas of the world. Although you can see sharks on almost any dive here, perhaps the best place to spot these and other large pelagics is diving Blue Corner. Blue Corner is Palau's most famous dive site, and is continually in the running for the single best dive site in the world. Here at this current charged corner divers flock by the boat load to take in the high concentration of large marine life. Below the surface, a wild spectacle awaits. Drawn by the sharp change in current and depth, a Blue Corner dive parades a seemingly endless scene of sharks, tuna, barracuda and wrasse. Searching for a dive spot that flaunts these increasingly rare species on a more impressive stage may take a lifetime.

Blue Corner was first discovered by Francis Toribiong, Fish 'n Fins founder, just east of the Blue Holes dive site. Although it can be a difficult dive depending on the currents, it's one that you'll remember for the rest of your life. Diving Blue Corner essentially allows divers to pull up a seat and watch the show, by floating at the edge of the drop off suspended by a reef hook in the current. Your dive guide will help position each diver in a straight line so as to not disrupt the path of the sharks patrolling in front. After you've had your fill of the 10 - 20 large sharks that zoom by you, unhook and glide across the reef plateau through huge schools of bumphead parrotfish, jacks, barracuda, and the occasional wandering napoleon wrasse. And this is just your typical day diving Blue Corner. As if that weren't lucky enough, every now and then you may also see a hammerhead, whale shark, manta, marlin, sailfish or whale. Diving a place as extraordinary as Blue Corner will make you grow in awe and appreciation for its amazing sea life.

Trip or Treats: Palau Dive Diary Part Quattro

Trip or Treats: Palau Dive Diary Part Quattro

Did You Know? Jellyfish Lake

Ongeim’l Tketau (OTM), also known as Jellyfish Lake, is a 30 m deep basin filled with seawater indirectly connected by cracks and crevices to the lagoon. Typically the lake hosts 13 million golden jellyfish. While this is the only lake open to visitors, there are over 50 marine lakes in Palau, at least five of which contain golden jellyfish.

What are marine lakes? Marine lakes are isolated bodies of seawater, surrounded by land. All marine lakes retain connections to the ocean via channels through the encircling limestone rock. The number, size, and length of channels determine the degree to which water and organisms exchange between the lakes and the ocean. Each marine lake is unique in characteristics such as depth, size, shape and volume of the lake, number and positions of tunnels and vertical profiles of salinity, temperature, and dissolved oxygen. These and affect the types and amount of habitat, and therefore the numbers and kinds of marine species each lake supports. In fact, each lake is distinguished by a unique suite of habitats and species. Marine lakes occur in two main types: mixed and stratified. In mixed lakes, temperature, salinity, and the amount of dissolved oxygen do not change significantly with depth. The opposite is true in stratified lakes, and the deeper regions of these lakes lack oxygen and have high concentrations of hydrogen sulfide. Like most jellyfish lakes, OTM is stratified with the anoxic (oxygen-less) lower layer beginning at 12-14 m (40-45 ft). This transition is marked by a pink bacterial layer 1 meter thick.

Why call it Jellyfish Lake? Two species of jellyfish inhabit OTM: the golden jelly, Mastigias papua etpisoni, and the less common moon jelly, Aurelia. Fragile, transparent moon jellies are graceful swimmers that often hang suspended, unmoving in the water. These animals generally spend daylight hours 5m (15 ft) below the surface feeding on plankton. Golden jellies, in contrast, are a mutualistic union of jellyfish and microscopic algae. As in corals, the algae provide energy for themselves and the jellyfish by converting sunlight into sugars, some of which they share with their host. Golden jellies also acquire energy by capturing zooplankton with stinging cells located on their frilly oral arms. Like their ancestors in the lagoon (Mastigias papua), the sting of OTM’s Mastigias is mild and often undetectable. This has given rise to the myth that the jellies have lost their ability to sting due to isolation in a predator-free lake. However, you may feel their tingly sting if an oral arm comes in contact with sensitive skin like that around your mouth.

Is the lake really predator-free? The myth that the golden jellies lack predators is also discredited by the presence of the endemic white-sea anemone Entacmea medusivora (medusa-eating). Although immobile, these animals are capable of capturing and ingesting a passing jellyfish larger than themselves and can often be seen doing so on the rocky point 50 m from the dock. In fact, these anemones are likely responsible for the evolution of the remarkable, daily migration of the golden jellies

Join Us In Palau!

Join PADI Diving Society for nine adventurous days and eight magical nights in Palau at the Palau Royal Resort and enjoy five days of three-tank boat diving with PADI Five Star Dive Center Sam's Tours.

Your package will also include:

• Rock Island Tour with Jellyfish Lake
• Welcome Party
• Breakfast each morning
• Lunch each day
• Roundtrip airport transfers
• Daily hotel transfers
• Free Enriched Air Nitrox
• Special guests, including Sport Diver's Ty Sawyer

Reserve your space today by contacting your localPADI Dive Center or Resort or contact PADI Travel Network at 800 729 7234 (US and Canada) or +1 949 858 7234 ext. 2555 or ptn1@padi.com for more information.

Check it out!

Video taken during a 10 days trip around Palau....

http://vimeo.com/10030660

Micronesia’s natural beauty and remoteness makes it one of the richest locations in the ocean realm.

The islands of Micronesia are scattered over three million square miles of the North Pacific. Palau alone has more than 700 species of coral and more than 1,500 species of fish. Below the surface, divers experience a paradise of incredible walls, blue holes, breathtaking reefs and crystal caves. Vast numbers of pelagic predators, sharks, turtles, dolphins and many species of migratory fish gather at this unique crossroads where three of the world’s major currents converge. Palau is home to the famed Rock Islands, a collection of rounded, foliage-covered isles perfect for kayaking. The seas around Micronesia are dotted with the remains of more than 75 World War II military ships and Japanese seaplanes, making it not only a great dive destination for reefs, but also a haven for wreck and history buffs.

Palau has a number of liveaboard diving boats of various sizes and styles. Most of the vessels operate seven-night cruises that include unlimited scuba diving. Special 10- and 14-night excursions on liveaboard dive boats also operate at certain times of the year.

When to Go
You can dive year-round in Palau, although January, February and March offer lower humidity and slightly cooler temperatures.

Dive Conditions
Visibility ranges from 50 feet to more than 100 feet and water temperature varies slightly from about 78-82°F.

Check Out Palau's Giant Clams!

http://www.articlemarks.com/giant-clam-farming-palau/