Night time diving gives a novel alternative to marvel at a number of the ocean’s most mysterious secrets and techniques. As darkness falls above the water, the world beneath it transforms. Acquainted faces go into hiding and new ones emerge. Feeding and mating patterns change, and hues fade away and psychedelic patterns illuminate the water.
Night time dives can actually get your coronary heart pumping, particularly your first one. However they are often extremely peaceable too. As you descend, the sounds of the day disappear, the load lifts out of your shoulders, and a serene stillness takes over.
Right here, we’ll inform you every thing you want to learn about evening diving. Whether or not you’ve logged heaps of evening dives already or are about to take your first plunge – we’ve bought you coated!
Is evening diving harmful?
General, evening diving may be very protected! Like all kinds of diving, although, evening diving comes with inherent dangers. Though these dangers will range from web site to web site, listed below are some key hazards related to evening diving.
Restricted Visibility
Similar to on land, while you’re underwater, the darkness makes finishing up abnormal duties difficult. In fact, you’ll have a dive torch with you, but it surely’s not the identical as having your typical imaginative and prescient. The diminished visibility can disorientate divers and pose difficulties when it comes to navigating, discovering your dive buddy, and recognizing upcoming hazards.
Chilly Water
Water can really feel cooler at evening than it does through the day. To keep away from the danger of hypothermia, at all times be sure that your publicity swimsuit is acceptable for evening diving.
In some areas, you may want so as to add a pair of gloves or a hood to your swimsuit. In others, you might need to change from a wetsuit to a drysuit. It’s additionally a good suggestion to take a thermos of sizzling water with you on the boat, and a few dry layers for after the dive.
Marine Life
At evening, divers could also be much less conscious of their environment than through the day. Because of this you want to be additional cautious to keep away from contact with marine life. Not solely can this harm the underwater world, however some species, like urchins and stinging corals, are notably hazardous.
Additionally, some marine species could also be extra energetic or territorial at evening than within the day, probably posing a further threat.
Psychological Components
One of many largest dangers to a diver at evening is actually different divers… together with themselves! Nerves can generally get the higher of individuals throughout an evening dive, and this may result in poor determination making. This may be harmful for divers and their buddies, so it’s particularly vital to examine in together with your buddy earlier than the dive to see how they’re feeling.
In the end, there are some further dangers related to evening diving in contrast with day diving. Nevertheless, as for all diving, by diving inside your limits and following security protocols, the danger of accident or harm is drastically diminished.
What certification do I have to go evening diving?
There’s no exhausting and quick rule in terms of evening diving certification. Necessities are inclined to range amongst tour operators. In the event you’re pretty new to the world of scuba, they might insist that you just endure an evening dive speciality course. Nevertheless, if you happen to’re an skilled scuba diver, an in-depth briefing will likely be greater than ample, with out the necessity so that you can have an additional certification.
Even in case you are new to scuba diving, some tour operators could allow you to dive at evening with none formal coaching. Whether or not or not this can be a good thought will rely in your private consolation degree, and the attentiveness of your evening diving information.
In brief, you’ll be able to evening dive with no evening diving speciality course, however some further coaching will make you extra comfy which is able to solely make your expertise higher!
The excellent news is that evening dive programs are pretty straightforward to return by. Many worldwide diving businesses, together with PADI, NAUI, SSI and SDI/TDI, supply evening dive specialties. Alternatively, it could be potential to include an evening dive as a part of one other coaching course, such because the PADI Superior Open Water Diver course.
Though the content material differs barely from course to course, evening dive specialties purpose to mitigate the dangers related to scuba diving at evening. On all programs, you’ll study specialised methods to navigate in the dead of night, keep shut buddy contact, talk within the darkness… and rather more!
Night time diving alerts
Similar to while you dive through the day, while you dive at evening it’s important that you just’re in a position to sign to your dive buddies. Due to the shortage of sunshine, divers usually use a mix of each hand and lightweight alerts to speak at evening.
To catch your buddy’s consideration you may give them a faucet or make a noise, like gently banging in your tank. You may also shine your dive mild forwards and backwards – this normally works nicely if you happen to can shine it on the underside.
After getting their consideration, you should use common hand alerts whereas shining a torch in your hand from above so your buddy can see it. Some alerts will have to be tailored to 1 handed variations, although. Simply watch out to not shine the sunshine in your buddy’s eyes by mistake – it’s not good (or protected) to be quickly blinded underwater!
Alternatively, you should use your torch to attract shapes on the seabed or different surfaces. A few of the most typical evening diving alerts are:
“Okay”
To different divers – transfer your torch in a big round motion on the bottom. To the boat – maintain your mild above your head, pointing downwards, whereas making the standard ‘okay’ form together with your arms.
“I’ve an issue”
Quick, side-to-side, horizontal actions.
“Consideration”
Transfer your torch up and down.
However keep in mind, alerts can range, so ensure you hear fastidiously throughout your dive briefing. It’s additionally a good suggestion to run by alerts together with your buddy earlier than the dive.
What can I see when scuba diving at evening?
And now for the enjoyable half – exploring a brand new underwater world! Right here’s a few of what you may get to see while evening diving.
You may see a brand new species
Most of the species you’ll be conversant in from daytime diving will go into hiding at evening, however others will take their place. Species which can be extra energetic at evening are mentioned to be nocturnal. Nocturnal marine creatures embrace some kinds of shark, like nurse sharks and reefs sharks. Crustaceans, like crabs and lobster, are additionally nocturnal, as are many cephalopods – together with cuttlefish and squid.
However why is that this? Usually, marine species adapt their exercise primarily based on which species they wish to encounter (i.e. prey, potential mates) or keep away from (e.g. predators).
As an illustration, when sharks hunt through the day, they forged a shadow beneath them that may alert their prey to their presence. But at evening, there is no such thing as a shadow, which supplies them a bonus.
What’s extra, the darkish colouring of a shark’s dorsal aspect (the highest aspect) lets them mix into their environment at evening. This makes them seem much less apparent to animals which can be swimming above them.
In the event you’re questioning whether or not the darkness makes it exhausting for sharks to identify their prey – the reply isn’t any. Sharks have finely tuned senses of odor and electroreception. This electroreception allows sharks to detect electrical alerts generated by the motion of different species. As a result of these senses don’t rely on daylight, sharks can use them to hunt at evening.
On the flip aspect, shrimp want to forage at evening in order that they will keep away from their daytime predators. Equally, some fish species launch their eggs (generally known as spawning) at evening in order that they’re much less more likely to be consumed by egg eaters.
You may see the identical species… appearing in another way
Even while you do spot a well-recognized species throughout an evening dive, you may discover it appearing surprisingly.
As an illustration, a number of parrotfish species produce a protecting mucus bubble at evening. The bubble utterly surrounds the parrotfish, a bit like a sleeping bag, and protects it from pesky parasites whereas it sleeps. Scientists suppose that the bubble can also masks the scent of the parrotfish, defending it from predators.
Night time diving bioluminescence
Bioluminescence is mild that’s produced by a dwelling organism by a chemical response – and it’s one of many coolest issues to see on an evening dive.
There are many the explanation why organisms use bioluminescence. As an illustration, the firefly squid makes use of its mild to entice and detect small fish. Because the squid rise to the floor to feed, their lights can kind spectacular constellation-like patterns within the shallows.
Bioluminescence will also be used for defence. For instance, sure species of jellyfish produce intense bursts of sunshine when threatened. This could startle or confuse predators, giving the jellyfish time to flee. But for different animals, equivalent to Antarctic krill, the precise motive for bioluminescence stays unknown.
Some of the frequent types of evening diving bioluminescence is produced by a sure sort of single-celled algae (generally known as dinoflagellates). These organisms emit vibrant blue mild when disturbed – you’ll be able to typically spot them simply by waving your arms within the shallows at evening.
The place are the most effective locations to go evening diving?
Able to get going in your subsequent evening dive? We don’t blame you! In case you want any journey inspiration, we’ve picked out a couple of of the world’s greatest locations to nighttime dive.
Kona, Hawaii
Even by day scuba diving with manta rays is a serene expertise… so wait till you strive it at evening! There are many locations the place you’ll be able to dive with mantas, however Kona Hawaii is a agency favorite for evening excursions with our beloved mild giants. It’s additionally famend for blackwater diving!
Maaya Thila, Maldives
The Maldives is one other excellent place for evening diving (or any form of diving, actually). One web site that’s particularly good for evening diving is Maaya Thila. Teeming with marine life, this spot is a good one if you happen to’re eager to get a glimpse of some vigorous reef shark motion.
Raja Ampat, Indonesia
If bioluminescence is your factor, then you definitely’re going to like an evening dive journey to Raja Ampat, Indonesia. It’s identified for its cephalopods, which incorporates squids and cuttlefish, and plenty of them are bioluminescent. There’s additionally loads of bioluminescent plankton floating round within the shallows, which makes for a stunning post-dive dip.
Purple Sea, Egypt
This may not sound like an apparent evening dive vacation spot, however the Purple Sea is house to a number of the world’s greatest wreck dives. Exploring these, even from the skin, below the duvet of darkness is an eerie but fascinating expertise.
Have you ever been evening diving but? Share this submit with a buddy who must make the leap into darker waters with you!
In regards to the Writer
Rose has spent the previous few years dwelling in Europe, the Seychelles and Kenya, working as a dive teacher, author and conservationist. She’s again within the UK in the mean time and is slowly acclimatising to cooler waters!
