Robert’s Ramblings

On yet another heartbreaking beach walk, I came upon many pipefish, weedy whiting, and tubemouths washed up and dehydrating in the sun. This one, identified by Janine Baker, is a tubemouth (Siphonognathus argyrophanes).

Tubemouths are almost impossible to see in their natural habitat when diving among seagrass beds. Perhaps I’ve captured them before, but never an image worth sharing.

This is not the place I would have chosen for my first image of a tubemouth, and I am sad to share it in this way.


#Beach #Death #SouthAustralia #GulfStVincent #AlgalBloom #Coastline #FishKill #Tubemouth #SiphonognathusArgyrophanes #Odacid

No underwater images this trip, as my camera gear is all back in Ireland, so the vista of our little boat off Troubridge Point, anchored on the wreck of the Clan Ranald, will frame my post.

Yesterday, the universe brought tide, wind, weather, and opportunity all together at the same time. Despite early rain and ominous clouds, Jennifer and I motored out from Edithburgh and made the 18 km trip around the coast to the site of the wreck of the SS Clan Ranald in perfect sea-going conditions.

Despite our smooth run out, I was dreading this dive.

The day before was my first dive under Edithburgh Jetty since the algal bloom, and what I experienced left me devastated. My once beautiful undersea world, a world of life, colour, sound, and movement, was all but dead. Colour had turned to grey. The crackling sound of benthic life was barely audible. Ascidians, soft corals, sessile scallops, and algae were gone or dead, and not a single living fish remained under the entire jetty.

As I descended on The Clan, the green, murky water was uninviting, and I had to will myself to keep descending. Twenty metres is not deep, but with only 2–3 metres of visibility, it felt like an eternity. Finally, dark shapes loomed around me, and the bottom lurched from nowhere to greet me. I have never been so delighted to see a common sweep swim out of the gloom to greet its unexpected visitor.

The wreck was clearly not healthy, but there was still plenty of life. The large schools of yellowtail whiting were absent. There were no bullseyes hovering under ledges, and most of the colour was gone. Again, the poor visibility and minimal light did not help. What delighted me, however, were three large blue grouper that followed me the entire dive, fleeting glimpses of sizeable queen and red snapper hovering at a safe distance, a foxfish or two, and a few longsnout boarfish.

There were gulf gurnard perch all over the wreck, cowfish, zebrafish, bluethroat wrasse, and leatherjackets. I eventually found bullseyes hiding deep inside the wreck structure. Of particular note was that most fish appeared to be mature adults, with only fleeting glimpses of juveniles.

I surfaced from yesterday’s dive mostly relieved, but still sad to see one of South Australia’s most revered dives in such a poor state. It is always a privilege to dive on the wreck of the SS Clan Ranald, and despite its condition, it remains a very special dive.

I pray it survives this environmental disaster, and I long for its recovery.


#scuba #diving #wrecks #aerial #SouthAustralia #GulfStVincent #TroubridgePoint #ClanRanald #algalbloom #coastline

I finally got back out on the water in Adelaide after a long hiatus. I’m looking forward with both anticipation and dread to my first dive in the gulf since the algal bloom extended its toxic grip.

While out beyond West Beach, I encountered a small pod of dolphins. One showed off by breaching with delight, another circled my boat and eyed me intently, while a more solitary dolphin kept its distance until I left.

I hope seeing them is a sign of healthier times ahead.

#Adelaide #westbeach #ocean #dolphin #lonely #sea #calm

Something beautiful to end the week. At the base of Torc Mountain, in Killarney National Park, lies the stunning cascade of Torc Waterfall.

So often, photographs of waterfalls use long exposures, creating ethereal, otherworldly movement. But if you’ve ever stood beside even a modest waterfall, “ethereal” or “otherworldly” are the last words you’d think of.

Waterfalls are noisy, dramatic beasts. My wife even calls them “crispy.” Their movements are violent and unrelenting, full of chaos and energy. The continuous roar of a large waterfall can be so overwhelming it becomes almost unbearable after a while.

Here’s a crispy look at Torc Waterfall.


#Waterfall #Nature #TorcWaterfall #KillarneyNationalPark #Killarney #Ireland

Skellig Michael is a dramatic, steep prominence of red sandstone rock protruding from the ocean 12 kilometres off the coast of County Kerry, Ireland.

Unless you’ve seen it up close, it’s hard to describe just how imposing this island really is. While on our surface break between dives, I decided to try and create an image as visually imposing as the experience of being here.

In the distance you can see Little Skellig, with the Kerry cliffs on the horizon behind. Far below, our dive boat, our lifeline home, patiently awaits my return before we head down under the waves again, to a completely different but equally awe-inspiring underwater experience.


#SkelligMichael #TinyPlanetPhotography #IrelandTravel #WildAtlanticWay #AerialPhotography #DronePhotography #TravelIreland #UnderwaterAdventure #IrishIslands #EpicLandscapes #blackandwhite #monchrome #creative

Two weeks ago, dead fish began appearing in the River Blackwater along a 40 km stretch between Banteer and Killavullen. Initial estimates suggested 400–500 dead, with early speculation pointing to a natural algal or fungal cause.

Today, two weeks later, that number has grown to 40–50 thousand, and investigations have ruled out natural causes. Instead, the official report describes it only as ‘some irritant’ being introduced into the environment.

I’m sorry, but in what universe is it acceptable to explain away 50,000 dead fish as simply the result of ‘an irritant’?

Someone knows what happened. But I suspect most of the community that lives beside, and depends on, this part of the Blackwater may never be told.


#RiverBlackwater #EnvironmentalCrisis #WaterPollution #FishKill #SaveOurRivers #EcologicalDisaster #ProtectNature #CleanWaterNow #EnvironmentalJustice #PollutionAwareness

I probably could not have staged this image even if I had tried. At the moment I was about to hand my camera up to another diver in the boat, I took the shot. Instead of capturing what I had planned, the camera focused on the inside of the dome and here is the result.

At first, I was going to discard it, but the more I mulled it over, the more its abstract nature grew on me, and I decided to share it anyway.

I could have claimed I’d planned it from the start, but really, I could never have pulled it off without an accidental helping hand.


#UnderwaterPhotography #AbstractPhotography #DiveLife #HappyAccidents #OceanArt #PhotographyJourney #BehindTheLens #DivingPhotography #CreativeShots #UnplannedMagic #lensblur #scuba #diving

If you ever find yourself with a spare couple of hours in Killaloe or Ballina, it’s worth the effort to walk the Tountinna Loop and enjoy the incredible view from the Ballina Hilltop Lookout of Lough Derg and the surrounding Irish countryside.

Or you can simply drive to the top, as we did. Still, the drive is not for the faint-hearted, as the road is only as wide as a single car.

It’s very nerve-wracking rounding a blind corner and finding yourself heading straight into an oncoming vehicle travelling in the other direction. What happens next is a battle of wills as to who will relent and reverse backwards to the last possible passing point. This happens often on Irish country roads, and I am now quite used to it.

Anyhow, back to the view. To the left and south, at the base of Lough Derg on the River Shannon, are the twin towns of Killaloe and Ballina. Lough Derg, Ireland’s third-largest lake, stretches to the north covering an area of 118 square kilometres as it touches the counties of Tipperary (where we are standing), Galway, and Clare.

Enjoy the view.


#aerial #dji #drone #loughderg #killaloe #ballina, #TountinnaLoop #ireland #RiverShannon

A sunset on beautiful Rossnowlagh beach is always a wonderful experience. Whether a solitary personal moment, or shared.

This time not all eyes on sunset were mine.


#aerial #dji #drone #flyby #goldenhour #rossnowlagh #sunset

Exploring the swim-through tunnels of Cuas Gorm, beneath Puffin Island, reveals all kinds of critters that prefer the dark, or those simply taking refuge until nightfall.

Normally shy and skittish, this lobster seemed perfectly at home as my bright lights pierced its shadowy den. I managed to bring my lens within a few centimetres of that imposing claw, and all I received in return was a slow, deliberate, warning wave.

You’d be a little unsettled too if you had a claw that massive to wield in your defence. I suppose size really does matter.


#puffinisland #scuba #diving #kerry #underwater #lobster #claw #ireland #crustacean #homarusgammarus #CuasGorm