Google’s Street View, part of Google Maps, has gone underwater with the addition of several underwater panoramas to the service:

Today we’re adding the very first underwater panoramic images to Google Maps, the next step in our quest to provide people with the most comprehensive, accurate and usable map of the world. With these vibrant and stunning photos you don’t have to be a scuba diver—or even know how to swim—to explore and experience six of the ocean’s most incredible living coral reefs. Now, anyone can become the next virtual Jacques Cousteau and dive with sea turtles, fish and manta rays in Australia, the Philippines and Hawaii.

The panoramic images were collected by Google’s partner, The Catlin Seaview Survey. The full collection of underwater panoramas is available to view here.

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This year, over 200 grant applications were received, requesting a total of over US$ 5.5 Million of grant aid from the Save Our Seas Foundation in year 2013-2014. 53 of all these applications were successfully passed through to Stage 2.  These figures do not take into account projects that are already receiving funds from the Foundation; some of these Principal Investigators will be invited to apply for continued funding next year.

The open invitation for researchers to apply to SOSF for funds also stressed the Foundation’s interest in supporting research that will contribute towards the conservation and management of whale sharks and mobulid rays (Manta and Mobula species) besides research on other shark and ray species. The Foundation received over 40 applications for funding in these categories. There were also many applications for hammerhead and white sharks, and sawfishes, and numerous interesting projects in other research areas. Many applicants proposed work in developing regions, where much needs to be done to improve our knowledge of shark and ray populations and the threats they face. The Foundation also received a large number of applications for research and awareness projects.

It was extremely difficult to narrow the application list…

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In conjunction with the 1000 Kids One Message event, the 2012 Children’s Painting Competition, part of OceanNEnvironment’s public awareness campaign, invites entries for the 2012 Celebrate the Sea’s Children’s Art competition. Children aged between 7 and 15, have until 28th October 2012 to enter this international competition (now in its 11th year). Participants will be required to submit a painting on an A3 sized art paper – the theme is the ‘Beauty of Sharks’ - the painting should promote a greater affection for sharks.  Children are encouraged to use art to give sharks a friendlier image. Why are sharks important? What if our oceans are without sharks?

The top 100 finalists from the ‘The Beauty of Sharks’  round will be invited to participate in the Premier Round on 29th December 2012 at Resorts World Sentosa - the brand new Marine Life Park. The top 100 paintings from the Beauty of Sharks’  round will be display at the Marine Life Park. The Winner of the ‘The Beauty of Sharks’ round artwork will be turned into a special edition poster to promote the conservation of sharks in South East Asia. The Grand Prize for the Premier round the overall winner will be…

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Ron Taylor, the Australian marine conservation pioneer who helped film some of the heart-stopping, iconic underwater footage in the movie Jaws, has died. He was 78.

Wildlife conservationists led the tributes for Taylor, who died at a private hospital in Sydney yesterday.

He had battled myeloid leukaemia for two years, the ABC reported.

“Today is a very sad day, Ron Taylor, long-time Australian shark conservationist has passed away,” the Australian Anti Shark Finning Alliance wrote on Twitter.

Ron Taylor was a former champion spearfisherman and avid diver, who turned to conserving and filming marine life after an underwater epiphany. “I just thought, ‘What am I doing down here killing these poor, defenceless marine creatures?’ he told the ABC in 2005. “So I just packed up, went home - didn’t even weigh my fish in - and never went back to another spearfishing competition.

Later, Taylor and his wife, Valerie, spent years filming great white sharks and trying to persuade a wary public that the much-feared creatures were beautiful animals worthy of respect. In 2003, Taylor was named a Member of the Order of Australia, one of Australia’s highest civilian honors, for his conservation work. Valerie received the same honor in…

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Hong Kong (CNN)—Cathay Pacific, the world’s largest carrier of air cargo, will stop shipping unsustainably sourced shark products in a move marine conservation groups haracterized as a big step forward in efforts to protect the animals.

“We believe that we now have compelling evidence that the majority of shark fishing is incompatible with our position on Sustainable Development,” Cathay Pacific said in a statement.

“Due to the vulnerable nature of sharks, their rapidly declining population, and the impacts of overfishing for their parts and products, our carriage of these is inconsistent with our commitment to sustainable development,” the airline said.

The ban will apply to Cathay Pacific and its subsidiary Dragonair, both major players in the transport of air cargo to Hong Kong and China. Shark’s fin soup remains a popular delicacy for weddings and banquets within China. In order to obtain these fins, fishermen catch sharks, cut off their fins and throw the sharks back into the water to die.

Save Our Seas Foundation congratulates Cathay Pacific on this decision!

Read more at: http://edition.cnn.com/2012/09/05/business/cathay-pacific-sharks-ban/index.html

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This year, the Save Our Seas Funds the ‘Academies by the Sea”, a two-week marine education programmes for secondary schol

The Academies will develop the knowledge of marine life in Seychelles, their habitats and conservation, and introduce participants to the techniques researchers use to study them. The courses are based around learning in the marine environment with presentations and practical sessions in our Academy by the Sea at Beau Vallon and field work in a number of coastal areas around Mahe.

Organization is in the capable hands of the Marine Conservation Society of the Seychelles. This ‘Summer Camp’ programme is designed to encourage students to find out more about the marine world and become involved in local marine conservation projects. The costs of the Academies are covered by the Save Our Seas Foundation which also award 12 scholarship grants to cover the food and transport costs for 12 lucky students on each phase.

In order to be in with a chance to win a scholarship the children had to draw or write an essay under the theme of “Conserving Seychelles Marine Life”.  Judging was a joint effort between SOSF and MCSS.

Save Our Seas Educator Paul Millar from…

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Write this down in your diary!

On September 8th, 2012, you can learn all about Mediterranean Great White Sharks during the British Science Festival

Visit Macduff Marine Aquarium to get up close to some fishy friends from the Moray Firth. A fish feeding show at 14.00 will be followed by a guest talk from Les Noble,l a Save Our Seas Supported Scientist, at 15.00. Learn all about white sharks in the Mediterranean, where they come from, how they got there, and how endangered they are.

Venue: Macduff Marine Aquarium, AB44 1SL

Organised by: University of Aberdeen and Macduff Marine Aquarium More info at: http://www.britishscienceassociation.org/web/BritishScienceFestival/index.htm

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