The Antarctic Dive Guide

Acknowledgements 5
A brief history of diving in Antarctica 6
The continent of Antarctica 9
Diving in Antarctica
Planning your visit 12
The practicalities 17
What to expect 23
Leopard Seals
- a scientific perspective 26
- a diver's perspective 32
The Sea Leopard Project 34
Underwater photography and videography in Antarctica 35
Other ways to capture the underwater realm of Antarctica 42
Common benthic life of the Antarctic Peninsula & South Georgia 44
Echinoderms (including sea stars, sea cucumbers, brittle stars and sea urchins) 44
Gastropods (including limpets and nudibranchs) 45
Ascidians (including tunicates and salps) 46
Worms 47
Fishes (including notothenids) 47
Cnidarians (including anemones, hydroids, jellyfish and soft corals) 50
Sponges 51
Algae 51
Sea spiders 52
Natural product chemistry from Antarctic marine organisms 53
THE DIVE SITES (see below for full list) 58
Guidance for visitors to the Antarctic 124
Marine Wildlife Watching Guidelines 126
Glossary 134
Photo credits 141
Suggested further reading 143
About the author 143
About the other contributors 144
THE DIVE SITES 58
How to use this guide 58
Key to icons used in the guide 58
DIVE SITES OF THE ANTARCTIC PENINSULA 59
1Elephant Island, Point Wild 60
2Tay Head 62
3Paulet Island 64
4Bald Head, Crystal Hill 66
5Cape Well-met 68
6Cecilia Island and Barrientos Island (Aitcho Islands) 70
Deception Island 72
7Sewing Machine Needles (Deception Island) 73
8Neptune's Bellows (Deception Island) 74
9Whaler's Bay (Deception Island) 75
10Mikkelsen Harbor 76
11Hydruga Rocks 78
12Enterprise Islands - Governøren Wreck 80
13Orne Harbor 82
14Cuverville Island 84
15Neko Harbor 86
16Paradise Harbor - 'The Shag Wall' 88
17Port Lockroy (British Base A) 90
18Janus Island, Arthur Harbor - Bahia Pariso 92
19Booth Island 96
20Pléneau Island 98
21Petermann Island 100
22Prospect Point (British Base J) - Perch Island 102
23Détaille Island (British Base W) 104
24Stonington Island (British Base E) 106
DIVE SITES OF SOUTH GEORGIA 109
25Cooper Bay 112
26Godthul 114
27Grytviken, Cumberland East Bay 116
28Hercules Bay 118
29Prion Island 120
30Albatross Island 120
31Elsehul 122