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Next Dive Club Outing:

Memorial Day Weekend

Sat. May 24 - 26 Russian Gulch group site, Mendocino Coast

* BCD Abalone Cookoff! *

 

Who could ever forget the 1st year of the Cook-Off? 2002:

Great Chefs at the Salt Point Campground

1st place- Sweet and Sour ab by Curt

2nd was a tie - Surf and Turf By Fred and Kung Pao ab by Carol.

Pete came in third with Sesame ab although he used all his major ingredients for Saturday night's dinner so

possibly he could have done better if he hadn't been so generous.

Fourth place was tied with Roy's Breaded Fried ab, Pricille's Baked ab, Bonnie Roe's Vegetarian ab and Jeans pelagic ab (fish).

 

 

Seen a monkey loose in your subdivision?

LAKELAND -- A pack of 15 monkeys have escaped from a wildlife facility in Polk County, sparking a massive search for the animals, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

When Fish and Wildlife spokesman Gary Morse answered his phone today, he immediately knew the topic.

"The monkey business," he said. "As far as I know, there are several teams out looking for this group of monkeys."

The monkeys, called Patas monkeys, are harmless to humans.

Apparently, the monkeys jumped off their home on an island at the wildlife area and swam across a pond, something they are not supposed to be able to do, Morse said. A group of patases in Naples has lived on one side of a moat for decades, never venturing into the water, Salisbury said. The same is true for colonies in European zoos, he said. "I guess these guys living in Puerto Rico learned how to swim."

What to do if you see the missing Patas monkeys?

Don't approach them. Call the Fish and Wildlife's hotline: 1-888-404-3922.

Oceanic Creates Custom Wetsuit for African Penguin Named Pierre!

Pierre, a venerable 25 years old at the Stienhart Aquarium, was going bald, which left him with an embarrassingly exposed, pale pink behind.

Pierre is an African penguin, a species accustomed to temperate climates. The birds are nicknamed Jackass penguins because they make sounds similar to braying donkeys, quite startling the first time you hear it in an aquarium.

Schaller's first tried a heat lamp to keep Pierre warm. Then she got another idea: If wetsuits help humans frolic in the chilly Pacific, why not whip up one in a slightly smaller size?
Staff at Oceanic Worldwide, a supplier of dive gear based in San Leandro, were enthusiastic about the idea of making a real penguin suit.

"We were really excited to do it," said Teo Tertel, company marketing specialist. "We heard most of these penguins only live to 20, and our little buddy there was already 25. Anything we could do to help them we were all for it."

One concern was that the other penguins would reject Pierre in his new duds, but in fact, they accepted his sleek new look.

Pierre was outfitted with the suit about six weeks ago. Since then, he's gained weight, grown back feathers on his hind parts and is his again acting like his feisty, alpha-male self.

With his plumage restored, Pierre is being weaned off the suit, taking more and more dips in the buff.
There are no plans to make him a matching surf board.