Are you concerned about your dive trip to Ko Lanta following news reports about flooding in Thailand?

As many of you may have seen in the domestic and international news Thailand has been effected over the past few weeks by extreme flooding and weather. The severity od this situation is very unusual and is the worst that Bangkok and surrounding areas have experienced in decades.

There have been some dramatic scenes in many areas of the country, with provinces effected including those to the North, Bangkok, and the lower central plains. Obviously our thoughts go out to all those effected.

Ko Lanta is fortunately unaffected throughout this time. In fact the monsoon winds have changed quite early this year and we are experiencing high season conditions.

The weather on Lanta has been hot, sunny and clear for the last 2 weeks and is beautiful once more. The dive boats on the island are operating as normal again already, and we are happy to report our boats are departing and returning from Kantiang Bay already. Diving conditions are highly favourable with flat and calm seas. Just this last week at Hin Muang with a whaleshark and manta ray were spotted together. Glasssfish and the predating trevallies abound at Ko Haa, and even the ornate ghost pipefish and frogfish are making an early return to the lagoon area.

We are also happy to report that guests and visitors coming to or from Lanta to Krabi have had no problems with their transfers or journeys.

Should you have any concerns which are not addressed here, please contact us and we would be happy to provide you the “on-the-ground” reports.

As part of our continuing efforts to offer both exceptional service, and anticipate the requirements of our divers, Scubafish have been busy throughout the low season and are delighted to announce exciting new developments for the upcoming 2011-12 High Season!

Scubafish are delighted to have been awarded a TripAdvisor Certificate of Excellence 2011. TripAdvisor awards this certificate to businesses who consistently receive excellent ratings, and great feedback from the people who matter the most, customers. Scubafish are proud to possess a top-ranking 5 rating on TripAdvisor, thanks to the reviews of our guests.

We are very proud of our staff-team and reputation, and strive to ensure that your experience with us is as enjoyable and relaxed as possible. We believe that word of mouth and unbiased reviews & recommendations, are the most accurate and trusted feedback sought by fellow travellers looking for that special experience. If you feel the same, perhaps you would consider writing a short review or adding your opinion about our services below

Phi Phi Promotion – June Only!

Scubafish are happy to announce the following hugely-discounted packages to guests arriving from Koh Phi Phi throughout the month of June.

This year Petpailin have decided to run their passenger ferry service between Ko Lanta and Koh Phi Phi during the low season months. Petpailin ferries depart for Ko Lanta at 11:30am daily from Koh Phi Phi. You should be able to purchase a ticket for between 300-350THB per person.

We are offering Special 3 Night Accommodation + 2-Day Fun Diving Packages for June Only. You merely need to choose your budget, and get in touch! We will even arrange a free transfer from the Pier in Lanta to Scubafish to complete your paperwork, and sort out equipment sizes before transferring you to your chosen resort!
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Scubafish are happy to announce special offers for divers throughout May. Whether you’re a seasoned diver or are looking to learn you’re bound to find something to tempt you with packages for any budget…
 

Deals for Certified Divers: 4 Nights Accommodation plus 3 Days Diving (6 dives)*

Luxury Package:
Phra Nang Lanta Resort

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• Beachfront Studio: 1 diver- 27,500 THB, 2 divers – 37,400 THB

Mid-Range Package:
Baan Laanta Resort & Spa -

• Sea View Villa: 1 diver – 19,100 THB, 2 divers – 29,000 THB
• Pool View Villa: 1 diver – 17,500 THB, 2 divers – 27,400 THB

Narima Resort -

• Seafront Bungalow (A-Row): 1 diver – 17,100 THB, 2 divers – 28,600 THB
• Superior Bungalow (C-Row): 1 diver - 13,632 THB, 2 divers – 24,320 THB

Budget Package:
Cashewnut Tree Bungalows -

• New Painted Bungalow: 1 diver – 11,200 THB, 2 divers – 21,100 THB.

NITROX SPECIALTY CERTIFICATION – JUST 5,500THB EXTRA!

* Please Note: Certified Diver Packages do not include Equipment Rental (250 THB per day), Long Distance Surcharges (1000 THB to Hin Daeng & Hin Muang) nor Optional Third Dives (950 THB)

Deals for Beginners (Learn to Dive) – 5 Nights Accommodation plus PADI Open Water Course

Luxury Package:
Phra Nang Lanta Resort -

• Beachfront Studio: 1 diver 37,000 THB, 2 divers 52,000 THB

Mid-Range Package:
Baan Laanta Resort & Spa -

• Sea View Villa: 1 diver – 26,500 THB, 2 divers – 41,500 THB
• Pool View Villa: 1 diver – 24,500 THB, 2 divers – 39,500 THB

Narima Resort-

• Seafront Bungalow (A-Row): 1 diver – 24,400 THB, 2 divers – 40,000 THB
• Superior Bungalow (C-Row): 1 diver - 20,665 THB, 2 divers – 35,650 THB

Budget Package:
Cashewnut Tree Bungalows-

• New Painted Bungalow: 1 diver – 16,625 THB, 2 divers – 31,625 THB.

We are also happy to arrange transfers to and from Krabi Airport on your behalf. Please email for availability, reservations and queries.

On Sunday 24th April, 2011 at 10:00, Kim McMenemy (an instructor here at Scubafish), will scuba dive a half-marathon (13.1 miles) in the White Rock Resort Pool (Ko Lanta, Thailand), stopping merely to swap scuba tanks and remain hydrated. Kim seeks to raise important funds and is asking you to help by making a donation or sponsoring this effort.

Sixty percent of the money raised will go to the victims of the March 11, 2011 Japanese Earthquake and Tsunami via organisations such as Shelterbox; the remaining forty percent will be divided between Project AWARE (an organization that acts to conserve underwater environments), Local Lanta Community Projects (Kim and Scubafish are enthusiastic supporters of the local community), and victims of the recent landslides and floods in Krabi, Thailand.
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Banded Sea Krait Facts:

• There are around 50 types of Sea Krait and all belong to the Cobra family
• The average Sea Krait grows to about 2 meters long with the largest growing up to 3 meters
• They have flattened tails to swim fast and have flaps over their nostrils that close when they are underwater
• With no gills they need to surface for air, but can stay down as deep as 100 meters for up to an hour
• Sea Kraits are highly poisonous but with small heads and tiny fangs they would struggle to bite through a wetsuit or skin
• Sea Kraits go on land to lay their eggs

Banded Sea Krait – What are they?

Banded Sea Kraits are a species of sea snake that mainly live in tropical Indo-Pacific oceanic waters. They are venomous but generally not aggressive and therefore do not necessarily pose a danger to divers.  Amphibious Sea Kraits are characterised by a feature that is clearly to aid them in swimming efficiently and fast, a broad paddle-like tail.  This tail is much different to snakes that purely inhabit on land and shows how Sea Kraits have evolved to live in our oceans. Although Sea Kraits have evolved to live in underwater environments, they are ‘amphibious’ which means they are adapted for living on land as well as water for laying their eggs etc as opposed to other true Sea Snakes that bear their young in water and so are ‘aquatic’ Sea Snakes. A Sea Kraits heart is located mid-body to enable blood pressure to be stable throughout its length which is very important when diving deep. Sea Kraits have extra large lungs to help them stay underwater for extended periods of time which is helped by nostrils that seal shut but they still need to surface every so often to breathe. Unlike Eels, Sea Kraits are reptiles and have scales. Sea Kraits have developed specialised ventral scales for crawling on land which allows them to come ashore every 10 – 14 days to digest food, shed their skin or lay eggs.

If you’re thinking of diving during Christmas and New Year 2010-11 – you’ll be pleased to know that we’re open and running dive trips everyday over the next few weeks – you can even dive on New Year’s Day!

There are a few changes to our usual schedule and we plan to leave a little later on New Year’s Day – to give everyone a chance to recover from the celebrations the night before!

Please take a look at our Christmas and New Year diving schedule (changes to the usual schedule are in BOLD):

• 20/12/10 – Monday – Koh Haa / Hin Daeng / Hin Muang
• 21/12/10 – Tuesday – Ko Haa / Ko Phi Phi
• 22/12/10 – Wednesday – Ko Haa / Hin Daeng / Hin Muang
• 23/12/10 – Thursday – Ko Haa / Ko Rok
• 24/12/10 – Friday – Ko Haa / Ko Phi Phi
• 25/12/10 – Saturday – Ko Haa / Hin Daeng / Hin Muang
• 26/12/10 – Sunday – Ko Haa / Ko Rok
• 27/12/10 – Monday – Ko Haa / Hin Daeng / Hin Muang
• 28/12/10 – Tuesday – Ko Haa / King Cruiser Wreck
• 29/12/10 – Wednesday – Ko Haa / Hin Daeng / Hin Muang
• 30/12/10 – Thursday – Ko Haa / Ko Rok
• 31/12/10 – Friday – Ko Haa / Hin Daeng / Hin Muang
• 01/01/11 – Saturday – Ko Haa / Ko Haa Night Dive – LATE DEPARTURE 12:00pm
• 02/01/11 – Sunday – Ko Haa / Ko Rok
• 03/01/11 – Monday – Ko Haa / Hin Daeng / Hin Muang
• 04/12/11 – Tuesday – Ko Haa / King Cruiser Wreck

If you’re interested in any of the above trips, please do not hesitate to call or pop into the shop for more information. We look forward to seeing you soon to celebrate with us!

Celebrate the festive season underwater!! …and bring in the new year with some deep sea adventures!

Manta Ray Facts:

• Mantas can be huge, growing up to 25 feet in length and weigh as much as 5,000 pounds.
• Manta Rays are known to engage in the process of migrating.
• A protective mucus membrane covers a manta ray and can be lost if they are touched by humans.
• The Manta Ray has the largest brain to body ratio of all sharks and rays on Earth.
• Manta Rays can live up to 20 years old.
• A very close relative of the shark. Ironically, sharks as well as whales are their main predators. They are also closely related to the stingray but they don’t have a stinger.
• Manta rays regularly display amazing aerobatic maneuvers for divers.
• The Manta Ray is actually classified as a fish. It is also one of the largest and it continues to be one that we know the least about.
• They don’t have a skeleton that is made from bone but from cartilage.
• The smallest species of Manta Ray is the Mobula Diabolis only growing to about 2 feet in length.
• The Manta Ray is only surpassed in size in the marine world by sharks and whales.
• The open fins of a Manta Ray can be more than 20 feet in length.
• While the Manta Ray has many rows of sharp teeth, they aren’t used for eating. Instead they have a filtering system.
• The Manta Ray doesn’t have a nose.
• The name Manta means blanket in Spanish, and the fact that this creature looks like a blanket as it moves in the water is part of the namesake.
• The mouth of the Manta Ray is located on the top of the head instead of on the bottom.
• They are the only jawed vertebrates that also have limbs.

Manta Ray – What are they?

The manta ray is a large ray in the family Mobulidae and  is the largest species of the rays. The largest known specimen was more than 7.6 metres (25 ft) across, with a weight of about 2,300 kilograms (5,100 lb). Manta rays are broader across than they are long, and they have distinctive fins near their faces which resemble horns, which also gives them the name ‘devil rays’. These fins are an ingenious tool which the mantas use to sweep in prey. Manta rays are filter feeders, living on plankton. They are very good swimmers, using huge fins, similar to wings to elegantly glide through the water and steer themselves with their whip-like tails. Some species can even jump totally out of the water. The manta ray is ovoviviparous, which means that the females incubate their eggs in their bodies. Typically only one manta ray baby hatches at a time, and newborn manta rays are already around four feet wide. Although it might be tempting to imagine grabbing on and hitching a ride with these fast swimmers, people should avoid handling manta rays, as they can hurt them or damage the mucus membranes which protect the body from infection. Manta rays are located throughout tropical waters of the world, typically around coral reefs which means that many visitors to these regions come into contact with manta rays. The famous Thailand dive sites of Hin Daeng and Hin Muang are considered to be among the top 10 dives sites in the world for spotting manta rays which is why we run 3 trips a week to this amazing site on our luxury cruiser ‘Ja Ru Pat‘.

How to work out the sex of a manta ray

Seashorse Facts:

• The seahorse species ranges in size from .6 inches (smaller than a thumbnail) to little over one foot (14 inches).
• They can rotate their eyes 360°, each independent of the other.
• They have no teeth and no stomach.
• When released, seahorse babies are fully formed, having grown inside their father’s pouch.
• The only species in the entire animal kingdom to do so, the male seahorse bears the young.
• Voracious eaters, seahorses consume an average of 3000 plankton, brine shrimp, and other microscopic marine life each day. By the time a seahorse is two weeks old, its appetite is “adult.”
• Most seahorses use camouflage to blend in with their surroundings.
• Because of their upright position, seahorses are not the best swimmers. As a result, they spend most of their time stationary, anchored to vegetation.

Seahorse – What are they?

If you think of the word ‘seahorse’ your mind will most probably picture a 6ft tall black stallion galloping off into the deep blue. Unfortunately, in reality this is not the case but even still, this small once mythical sea creature  creates an air of mystery with the very mention of its name.

Dating back to the the Ancient Greek period, the Seahorse is of the genus Hippocampus, which literally means “horse sea monster”: hippos is “horse” and kampos is “sea monster” in Greek. Seahorses are named for their equine profile. Although they are bony fish, they do not have scales, but rather a thin skin stretched over a series of bony plates arranged in rings throughout their body. Seahorses have a coronet on their head, which is distinct to each individual, much like a human fingerprint. Seahorses swim upright which distinguishes them from the closely related pipefish but they swim very poorly by using a dorsal fin, which they rapidly flutter and pectoral fins, located behind their eyes, which they use to steer. Seahorses have no caudal fin. Male seahorses become pregnant, not the females. Born with pouches like a kangaroo’s, male seahorses are perfectly designed to carry and protect seahorse eggs and hatchlings until they’re ready to strike out on their own. Within days of releasing one brood, males become pregnant once again. Its a tough life to be a male seahorse.

There are nearly 50 species of seahorse which are mainly found in shallow tropical and temperate waters throughout the world. They prefer to live in sheltered areas such as seagrass beds, coral reefs or mangroves where they form territories, with males staying in about 1 square metre (11 sq ft) of their habitat while females range about one hundred times that area.

Our excellent dive sites including Ko Haa are a great place to see the ‘Yellow Tigertail Seahorse’ with our expert guides being able to spot these creatures amongst the vast walls of soft corals.

Diving with a Seahorse for the first time

While hearing other divers compare seahorse stories it is not hard to get a little frustrated after many dives and not seeing these tiny sea creatures with your own eyes. After all, seahorses always manage to stir up excitement amongst divers before a dive if the chance of a sighting is in order. Very similar in fact to the excitement divers feel before the chance of maybe seeing an ocean giant like a manta or whale shark which is pretty amazing when you consider the size difference between the two.

After many times visiting Thailand’s top dive sites I had made it my mission to find my first seahorse. I knew where to look, I knew the best places to find them, I knew what size, shape and colour they are in order to find one but had still never seen one. Without building up the knack of spotting them like the rest of our excellent Scubafish guides it can be a very challenging task. You eventually realise patience seems to be a very handy tool when trying to find them.

Following the proverb ‘All good things come to he who waits’ has finally paid off. Not so long ago while on a day trip to Ko Haa, the stunning 5 islands close to Southern Ko Lanta it was a very normal day aboard our luxury boat ‘Moskito’. With 5 staff members and around 14 guests all fun diving for the day we all mutually agreed to dive island #1 which has beautiful walls and the famous ‘chimney’ swim-through. We all agreed to search for seahorses for the first portion of our first dive. With a large search party consisting of staff and guests, all searching a section of wall for these beloved creatures  after around a good 20 minutes searching it finally happened. Out of the corner of my eye I saw a diver point and make a ‘riding a horse’ signal so straight away everyone knew one had finally been found.  By either fluke or a strategic search pattern one of our resident Swedish instructors was the winner of the ‘find a seahorse’ game by finding a nice specimen of yellow tigertail seahorse. One by one we all took turns in moving in to take a closer look. With my 3 fun divers holding onto me we all slowly moved our faces in toward the coral which is when we saw it. Sitting nice and pretty on a section of coral exactly as how I had imagined it to look. With its horse-like resemblance very clear and dorsal fin fluttering away you just stare at it with the same thoughts as the Ancient-Greeks all those years ago: Wow! What actually is it? Who designed it? You suddenly get a head full of questions but at the same time you are in awe of this inspiring creature.

With my seahorse sighting now complete I look forward to seeing many more of these stunning sea creatures with many more excited guests. Amazing!

Simon, UK, 06/12/10