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Meeting Shaun the Sheep
One of our Christmas traditions is to sit down together and watch an Aardman Animations film. Shaun the Sheep has become an instant hit with all of us, and even more so, when images of his namesake nudibranch started to appear online. However, for some years now, we have looked, but never found these tiny, elusive nudis. Until now…
On a recent trip diving in the Philippines with Magic Oceans Dive Resort, our guide seemed perplexed that we had not seen one before. He promised to find us one on the very next dive and, perfectly on-cue, we were both excited to see him signalling to us within minutes of getting in the water. We approached carefully, as we were in a sea-grass area with a sandy bottom, and peered at the portion of greenery that he was aiming his pointer at. Neither of us could see a thing and signalled that we were perplexed. He pointed more carefully at a tiny speck of what looked like fluff, and gave the two-fingered signal for nudibranch. We looked more closely and more carefully – could this be the Shaun the Sheep, that elusive nudibranch? Yes! But, it was tiny and we had no idea that they were that minuscule!
Pointer to demonstrate how small they are
Our guide left us to work out how to go about photographing our new subject, while he looked for more. Soon he was back to say he had found two more. How he found any of them is a complete mystery to us. We also now have even greater respect for anyone who has ever taken a shot of this subject! We are not getting any younger, and the Shaun the Sheep nudibranch is made for young, sharp eyes. We were delighted to get a couple of decent photos from the dive.
There is something amazing about finding a species you have always wanted to see. Especially one that looks so much like an animated character you know and love. So, we were delighted to add this to our amazing list of dives on this trip. These tiny nudibranchs are only around 2mm in size, but along with their cute looks, are also quite amazing in another way: they can photosynthesize! The algae they feed on contains chloroplasts and these are assimilated into their own cells in a process called kleptoplasty. These are truly “solar-powered” nudibranches!
Image courtesy of Aardman Animations
We would like to thank Aardman Animations for allowing us to use one of their images of Shaun the Sheep to show you why the nudibranch has been given this name. The resemblance is uncanny!
Equipment Used:
Nikon D800; Nauticam housing; INON Z-240 strobes
Olympus OMD EM-1 mkII: Nauticam housing; INON Z-240 strobes; Nauticam CMC 2 macro lens
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For a week at the end of February I was invited to sample the diving with Orca Dive Club based at the Breakers Diving and Surfing Lodge by courtesy of SOMABAY.
Somabay covers an entire peninsula and is home to several resorts as well as residential compounds. Somabay caters for scuba diving as well as many other sports, including windsurfing, golf, sailing, go-carting, horse riding and many other activities.
All the activities are of a world-class standard and any or all of these can be booked directly from The Breakers.
I took Easyjet from Bristol (UK) to Hurghada. Easyjet are not by any means my favourite airline but the flight was cheap and direct (except for the surprise extra £48 I was charged at the gate for my carry-on bag).
I was met at Hurghada airport by a driver and car and taken to the Breakers 28 miles (45Kilomaters) south along the coast. Once at the hotel I was too late for an evening meal and so a basic meal was delivered to my room. That and a beer from the fridge and I was fast asleep.
Early the next morning after breakfast I arrived for my rep meeting at the Orca Dive Center for 8.00am. I was immediately made to feel welcome, and after brief introductions I got some dive gear from the store, had a chat with my dive guide Mohamed and got ready to try the house reef situated at the end of a very long wooded pier where all diving gear and divers are taken out by buggies.
Once at the end of the pier, a helping hand from staff makes sure your gear is set and then it’s a short walk to the very end where you can either climb down a ladder of simply jump in the water next to the reef. The house reef extends both north and south giving a very easy and safe dive with plenty to see. At this time of the year the water temperature was a constant 22 degrees Centigrade and there was little or no current, so there were no issues in swimming back to the pier.
Quite a few divers were in dry or semi-dry suits, but being from the UK and used to the cold I found a 3mm wetsuit with a 3mm neoprene vest quite comfortable. Even after 50 years of diving I still find that first dive of a trip slightly nerving until I am actually underwater and then all becomes relaxed and I ease into auto diving mode. There was plenty to see with many of the Red Sea favourites along the way.
After the dive and a buggy ride back to the hotel for a very good buffet lunch I was back in the water, once again on the house reef for an afternoon dive.
Check in for part 2 tomorrow when Jeff gets on a day boat and dives a few of the off-shore reefs.
Book your next Red Sea dive adventure with SOMABAY! For more information, visit www.somabay.com.
Stay at the Breakers Diving & Surfing Lodge when you visit! For more information, visit www.thebreakers-somabay.com.
Find out more about ORCA Dive Clubs at SOMABAY at www.orca-diveclubs.com/en/soma-bay-en.
In an interview recorded exclusively for Scubaverse.com, Jeff Goodman interviews Jeremy Higson from Sea to Sky about the itineraries the tour operator offers in Oman.
For more information about diving in Oman, contact Sea to Sky now:
Email: hello@mysetaosky.co.uk
WhatsApp: + 39 379 236 7138
Website: www.myseatosky.co.uk
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