REFRESHER DIVER COURSE

GOLIATH IN THE GULF. WEEKI WACHEE DIVING! HOW TO MAKE AN ALUMINUM SCUBA TANK! HOW TO MAKE A STEEL SCUBA TANK!

Robert Malone went fishing for shrimp and pulled in a surprise: a 27-pound Maine lobster that could never be viewed as shrimpy.
The beast, caught in the vicinity of Rockland, Maine, was dubbed Rocky, reports the Associated Press. Of course, the size of the lobster's fearsome claws also bring to mind the meaty fists of that boxer named Balboa.

Malone opted to donate the nearly 40-inch-long crustacean to the Maine State Aquarium in Boothbay Harbor, the AP says. That's pretty magnanimous -- depending on how you look at it.
Lobster prices aren't what they once were, having fallen along with the economy around 2008. But they were above $3.30 a pound in 2010, and the Maine lobster industry is bubbling over what looks to be a record haul in 2011, the new site says.
And, as the AP reported last year, the harvest in 2010 was one to exclaim over, with 93.4 million pounds valued at $308 million.
By the pound, Rocky should be a valuable lobster. But this crustacean's size could indicate a long life. And geezer lobsters don't make great eating.
Times Food Editor Russ Parsons on Thursday said he would avoid making dinner out of Rocky.
"The generally accepted wisdom on lobsters is that any time you get above, say, 3 pounds, bigger is certainly not better," Parsons said. "These are old beasts and they tend to be tough. An aquarium is almost certainly its highest and best use. Preferably a very large aquarium."
ALSO: 

If you think that meeting a great white is bad while scuba diving, then you think twice… specially if you go SCUBA DIVING in Florida… because … well, you never know what kind of Gator you will find.

Hello new marine life! hello PADI Gator Specialty.

This is from TheLivingSea.com. (check it out cool site)

As I cruised along the sand, from the hazy distance I could see a dark shadow,” Ruda writes. “Not being able to discern its shape too well, I thought to myself, ‘Holy cow! That’s a huge stingray.’”

Ruda said when he got closer, he couldn’t believe his eyes.

“This creature was so out of place that I thought it was nothing more than a well-planned out hoax by my good friends,” he said. I took a photo from a distance in case it wasn't a hoax so I would have some kind of proof. As I approached closer I looked carefully at its mouth for the tell-tale sign of what I thought it was -- a salt water crocodile (in 60 feet of water!). But I could tell it wasn't a crocodile. It was, in fact, a 5 - 6 foot American alligator. Its eyes were closed and it did not move so I was almost certain this was one heck of a joke my friends were playing on me. I mean, no one can expect to see an alligator miles out in the ocean. So I approached within inches of it to get some pictures you know to play along with the joke. But suddenly its eyes opened and it moved its legs. Oh my goodness!! I could not believe this gator was the REAL thing.

FUN FACTS & SCUBA TRIVIA

(click on the stick scubaman above)

<>THOUGH Cousteau is given credit for the invention of SCUBA, Leonardo da Vinci had drawn up plans for a leather scuba suit about 300 years earlier.

<>EVER wonder why everything appears blue in underwater pictures and movies? The water above divers filters all the red and yellow light, making everything appear to have a blue hue. *Diving with an artificial light source will allow you to see true color under water.

<>IF you decide you really like to dive, it is possible to get married underwater!

<>HUMANS kill close to 100 million sharks per year, while the number of shark attacks of humans resulting in death is only 8-12 per year.

<>THE world record for longest dive is 69 days and 19 minutes and is held by Richard Presley. He completed this dive in 1992 in an deep-water module at Key Largo, Florida.

<>OVER 90% of all volcanic activity happens in the ocean!

<>SCIENTIST estimate that up to 80% of all life on earth is found under the ocean surface.

<>THE largest living organism on earth is Australia’s Great Barrier Reef. It has a larger surface area than all of England!

<>THE Blue Whale is the largest known animal on the planet, with a heart the size of a small car.

<>FISH can change sex during their lives, and some even have both male and female sex organs. Intrigued? Come explore the ocean with us to see for yourself, and bring a friend!