Congratulations to our TDEX prize winners! FiNS Celebrity Diver Khun “Plub” Sutida from our Dive Diary column made a guest appearance at the show to pick five lucky people who subscribed to FiNS at the recent Thai Travel & Dive Expo.

TDEX Prize Winners: Read more…

FiNS Contributor Alex Mustard recently visited Sabah, Malaysia, and sent us some thoughts from his trip. Read further for the first of three installments about his recent Sabah sojourn: Read more…

Researchers in Australia have recently published a stude in the Journal of Animal Ecology suggesting that whale shark numbers at the popular tourism destination Ningaloo Reef in Western Australia are declining. Read more…

The Fisheries Agency under the Council of Agriculture in Taiwan today officially announced a ban on fishing, trade and sale of whale sharks (Rhincodon typus) commencing in 2008.

Whale sharks are listed as Vulnerable on The IUCN Red List and protected under Appendix II of CITES.

The announcement follows the implementation of a catch-reporting system that was implemented by Taiwan in 2001. The national quota for total allowable whale shark catch has been gradually reduced from 80 in 2002, 65 in 2005, 60 in 2006 and 30 in 2007.

This is definitely a positive step toward protecting these gentle giants!

An interesting editorial on shark fin from China Daily, 21 May, page 4:

Say no to shark fin soup

We are no longer what we were. More and more of our daily choices are being felt in remote corners of the world.

This time, it is not our thirst for ore or oil. It is our obsession with shark fins. Read more…

Issue 6.3 of FiNS is out, so check your mailbox or your favourite newsstand.

This issue, FiNS Celebrity Diver Khun “Plub” Sutida takes the plunge, devoting herself to earning her Rescue Diver certification while enjoying the idyllic setting at Roach Reefs Resort in Sabah, Malaysia.

Also, our Gadget Guru busts a few myths about O-rings and camera flooding (and also manages to flood a couple more camera housings!).

And don’t miss the in-depth, personal stories from our contributors about three of the hottest diving destinations in the Asia-Pacific region: Bali, Palau and Sabah.

So grab your copy of FiNS now to enjoy these great stories and more, or download these PDF files for a quick preview.

JAKARTA, Indonesia (Associated Press) - An Indonesian fisherman hooked a rare coelacanth, a species once thought as extinct as dinosaurs, and briefly kept the “living fossil” alive in a quarantined pool.

Justinus Lahama caught the four-foot, 110-pound fish early Saturday off Sulawesi island near Bunaken National Marine Park, which has some of the highest marine biodiversity in the world.

The fish died 17 hours later, an extraordinary survival time, marine biologist Lucky Lumingas said Sunday.

“The fish should have died within two hours because this species only lives in deep, cold-sea environment,” he said. Lumingas works at the local Sam Ratulangi University, which plans to study the carcass.

The coelacanth (pronounced SEE-la-kanth) was believed to be extinct for 65 million years until one was found in 1938 off Africa’s coast, igniting worldwide interest. Several other specimens have since been discovered, including another off Sulawesi island in 1998.

The powerful predator is highly mobile with limb-like fins, and it gives birth to live young rather than laying eggs.

The European Union has had measures in place for several years to restrict the practice of shark finning. The Shark Alliance believes the measures are ineffective. Read more…

The Thailand Travel and Dive Expo starts in one week, going from 24 to 27 May at the Queen Sirikit Convention Center in Bangkok, which is located in the center of the city, with convenient access directly to the underground system. Last year, there were 80,000(!) visitors to the show, and the organisers are expecting a busy event next week too.

We’ll be there at booths P115-116, so please drop by to say hello. And if you subscribe or renew during the show, you’ll be eligible to win one of three spectacular dive trips to some of the most popular resorts and boats in Asia. See you at the show!

Prizes up for grabs include:

Tauch Terminal Resort & Spa, Bali (US$1700 value)

5D/ 4N super-deluxe accommodation including breakfast, airport transfers for 2 pax, 2 x 1 dive each at Liberty Wreck, Drop off, Coral garden, 2 x 1-hour spa treatment at the Tauch Terminal Resort & Spa Tulamben

Seaventures Dive Rig, Sabah (US$1100 value)

4D/ 3N package including diving, accommodation and airport transfers (Sipadan diving permits not included).

Mermaid Liveaboards, Phuket (US$898)

Eight-dive weekend liveaboard cruise to Hin Daeng, Hin Mouang, Koh Ha and Koh Phi Phi. Includes local transfers and onboard meals. Diving equipment, courses, Nitrox, and alcoholic beverages not included.

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