Page 300 - French Polynesia

orals - Normally appearing as unique naths with an array of microscopic barbs, better understand each other in the silence
then entangle and immobilize it with mu- and darkness of the underwater. Be very
C rock formations during the day corals careful and attentive towards your diver-
blossom into beautiful flower-like organ- cus extruded from glands. Their prey moves buddies. Do not separate from each other.
Keep close to one another. Besides, take
isms at night as their slender tentacles inward along their arms to their mouth, care not to aim your lantern light directly
to someone’s eyes. It’ll strongly bother your
reach out for nourishment from the sea. A which is located the central disk of their buddy and blind him for a short while. Now
two words concerning descending into the
macro photographer’s dream is capturing body. Their main predators are fish and water and ascending back to the surface.
While descending at night keep very close
the ornately colored outreaching coral blos- other invertebrates such as crabs. Like most to your buddy or buddies, if you are diving
with a group. Most dive masters would
soms. Approach them slowly and quietly as echinoderms including sea stars, their limbs advise you to descend in vertical position.
You’ll easily avoid obstacles in this way.
even the slightest sound will cause them grow back when severed. Keep your flashlight brightly switched on
and aimed downwards to see where you are
to instantly retract into their tubes, which C heck the equipment fully before diving diving. Be careful not to damage the coral.
protects them from potential predators. and take several dive lights with you. The same I can say about ascending. Keep
Coral polyps outreach to feed on worms close to one another and keep your light
upwards.
and plankton as normally elusive fish lie You just can’t do without them, especially if

dormant at night and can be more closely there is no moon that night. Get a primary

observed and photographed. Look for Bas- and a secondary light with you. You never

ket Stars on your night dives know what may happen, so it’ll be safer to

R arely seen during the day Basket Stars have at least two dive lights with you. If you
resemble a balled up wad of straw; but are a professional diver and it’s not your
first night dive, it’ll be great to turn off the

at night they begin their majestic dance light for some time and enjoy the darkness

with their symbiotic partner as they grow of the underwater world.

and sway in the currents to feed. Orienting B efore entering the water elaborate
themselves perpendicular to the current, signals among the group members to
they capture zooplankton such as chaetog-