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Janet Abbott, from the Underwater Research Group (URG), recounts some of her diving experiences. Janet grew up inland in England in a small village 25 miles from the sea. The only time she saw the sea was on annual holidays to the seaside. She was never given swimming lessons and learnt by herself using an old inner tube from a car tyre. She emigrated to Australia in 1980. Diving never entered her thoughts until 1997 when a friend of a friend invited her on a holiday, with diving being a large component of it. Not being a very good swimmer she took herself to the local swimming pool every day for a month to practice the 200m swim necessary to pass the Open Water diving qualification. Successfully completing the Open Water and Advance courses at the end of 1997 before going on the tropical holiday in early 1998.
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| She joined URG in September 1998 and it wasn’t long before she was doing recreational dives from the club boat out of Sydney Harbour. The URG had received funding to do a biodiversity study in Port Hacking but she wasn’t sure how she could help as the only fish she could identify at that time was the Blue Groper.
URG suggested she record the benthic life (bottom dwellers such as nudibranchs, urchins, crabs etc.) a crash course in benthic life meant she was of use. While doing a Grey Nurse Shark count with URG at Magic Point, Maroubra for NSW Fisheries she fell in love with a Clown Toby, which stayed with her the whole time she was counting. A Clown Toby (see below) is about 10cm long with three horizontal lines across its body (black, white, black) green upper body with blue speckles and lines. In following years she participated in other citizen science projects.
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These have ranged across the Harbour Keepers program instigated by National Parks; searching and recording the invasive sea grass Caulerpa Taxafolia; a biodiversity study of The North Harbour Aquatic Reserve;a searching for Weedy Sea Dragons, and collecting and counting rubbish. Being part of the citizen science surveys has been a privilege, the data collected will help the scientist get a bigger, better picture of what is underwater, and how best to manage for future generations.
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| The Clown Toby … a little fish with a generously kind personality? The URG has members from all walks of life, sharing their love and knowledge of the creatures that live in the sea. Janet has made many friendships along the way, sharing many of the Sydney dive sites and trips away.
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Diving holidays have taken her to places she had never dreamed of going to. Fiji,to see Bull sharks and Tiger sharks in a controlled feeding operation. Manta rays and Manderin fish in Palau. Minky whales in far North Queensland.To Osprey Reef, PNG, Vanuatu,The Solomons, North Sulawesi, New Caledonia, The Cook Islands, Chuuk Lagoon, Indonesia,Lord Howe and Lady Elliot Island. All wonderful destinations with amazing marine life and so many friendly people.
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| Wobbygong shark, Even these bottom dwellers can be misreported in the media as Great Whites! She feels calm and relaxed under water, never feeling threatened. Given all she has done since joining URG, her diving experiences have left a high watermark.
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Janet Abbott was interviewed by Ruby Vincent for AQOB. Janet supplied all images. Summary text by Victor Barry, July 2018.
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