The expedition undertaken by Oceana from the pacific to the Mediterranean is still on course.

What is the " Oceana Ranger " ?

The " Oceana Ranger " is a Ketch catamaran of 23.5 metres long and 10.5 metres wide, one of the largest in the world, with two masts for sailing with the wind and two back-up engines. It has a motor-driven autonomy of 1,000 miles and a capacity of between the to fourteen crew members made up of the captain, sailors, divers and marine biologists.

And what is it for ?

The " Oceana Ranger " plays a fundamental role for the team os researchers from Oceana. With the catamaran, the organisation can tackle a large number of its documentation projects, take samples, evaluate the damages to the marine environment, compile scientific information, etc. Built in 1986, its previous owners used it as a hospital ship for the inhabitants of Micronesia. Now, as Oceana's vessel, the first one the organisation has had at its disposal, its objective will be to protect the species that inhabit the ecosystems of our much-threatened oceans.

Equipment

The catamaran has benn equipped with a portable laboratory for collecting samples ans analysing environmental parameters and technical equipment for photographic and video documentation, both underwater and on the surface.

The crew

The crew of the " Oceana Ranger " is made up of different teams of marine biologists and divers as well as photographers and videographers who alternate on board to document the scientific work carried out by the organisation.

FIRST TRANSOCEANIC EXPEDITION

• More than 10,000 nautical miles.
• A five-month journey.
• Team of marine biologists on board.
• Underwater film crew on board.

Objetive of the voyage

To document and film the diversity, wealth and importance of underwater life and the threats being faced by ecosystems that are fundamental to understanding the dynamics of the oceans.

Final destination

From the Pacific Ocean off the west coast of America to the Mediterranean Sea and its operational base in Majorca.

The instigator of the venture

The transoceanic expedition was an ambitious project headed up by Xavier Pastor, the Director of Oceana in Europe. The first international organisation for the defence on the marine environment embarked on the venture barely one year after opening its offices in Europe, with the aim of demonstrating tl the general public the important role played by the oceans in the survival of our Planet. Along with Pastor on the expedition's coodination team were Carlos Pérez, in charge of Logistics, and Ricardo Aguilar, Oceana's Director of Research and Projects.

Ports of call

During its journey towards the Mediterranean, the catamaran sailed across areas of recognised scientific importance to study their marine biodiversity: from Los Angeles ir crossed the North American Pacific waters to Cocos Island, Golfo Dulce and Coiba ( off Costa Rica and Panama ). Here, it was envisaged that the members of the expedition would make contact with the team from the MarViva Foundation, a civilian coastguard project designed in 2002 by some of the people who today work for Oceana, headed up by Xavier Pastor. Later, the " Oceana Ranger " crossed the Panama Canal and, heading for the Caribbean Sea, stopped off on the coast of Florida. From Miami, the Oceana catamaran set off on the last part of its voyage: towards Bermuda and the Sargasso Sea, the Bahamas, the Azores, Gibraltar and finally the Balearic Islands.

THE VOYAGE AND ITS RESEARCH ROUTES

Route 1

Central-American pacific: from San Lucas to the Panama Canal

3,522 nautical miles.

Golfito ( Costa Rica )

Base of the MarViva fleet

Golfito lies to the south of Costa Rica, close to the border with Panama. It is a " sub-gulf " within another larger one known as Golfo Dulce. In Costa Rica there is another gulf known as the " Gulf of Nicoya " which traditionally has benn regarded as a " bottomless pit " in terms of the abundance of fish. But Nicoya is in the final throes of exhaustion, according to researchers in Costa Rica, who give it around three more years before its definitive collapse. The Nicoya situation is a deplorable example of fisheries management, and Golfito may well be following the same course: a huge marina, fundamentally geared towards sports fishing, has already been approved. These tourist activities, together with the increase in industrial fishing activity caused by the collapse of the Nicoya Gulf fishery, may rapidly endanger Golfo Dulce and its resources.

 

Golfito is the operational base of the fleet of the private foundation, MarViva. Here, MarViva is developing a surveillance plan for protected marine areas, by means of agreements with governmental authorities that allow them to patrol alongside the park rangers, providing them with boats and personnel from the Foundation.

Cocos Island ( Costa Rica )

SOS for sharks

Lying 300 nautical miles to the south-west of Golfo Dulce, this constitutes the largest marine environmental treasure of the people of Costa Rica. It is a spot that gives rise to considerable controversy amongst fishermen and environmentalists. The fishermen ( longliners, trawlers, seiners, etc. ) fish illegally in the protected waters, mainly seeking out tuna and shark fins ( an illegal activity in Costa Rica ) with the added impact of causing dolphin deaths.

In 2002, the MarViva Foundation fleet was designed and developed by people who today work at Oceana to fight against these activities in the marine parks of the Central-American Pacific, and illegal fishing was dealt a hevay blow thanks to the joint patrols carried our with the park rangers. But the illegal fishermen are developing new strategies to continue their activities outside the reach of the law. Hundreds of thousands of pieces of confiscated illegal fishing tackle are stored at Wafer Bay, one of the two bases of the park rangers on the island.

The presence of domesticated wild pigs and deer ( both species introduced by the crews of vessels which stopped occasionally to re-provision at the island ) is also damaging the corralliferous wealth of the bays: when their excrement is swept down to the sea by the rains and reaches the coral, it kills it off. Hammerhead sharks, reef sharks, dolphins and other marine fauna are all very common around Cocos Island.

Coiba Island ( Panama )

Illegal fishing, a major threat

Coiba Island lies 120 nautical miles to the south-east of Golfo Dulce ( Costa Rica ) and just 12 nautical miles from the nearby coast of Panama. Intensive illegal fishing activities have made Coiba a highly threatened protected area. The MarViva Foundation is undertaking work in this marine park along similar miles to Cocos Island. Coral reefs, humpback whales, pilot whales, killer whales, dolphins, sea turtles ( who lay their eggs on its beaches ), manta-rays, marlin and other sea creatures all from part of its natural wealth.

Panama Canal ( Panama )

Crossing the Canal

Route 2

The Caribbean: from the Panama Canal to the Bahamas

2,162 nautical miles

Gandoca - Manzanillo ( Costa Rica )

Preventing oil prospecting

To the south of the Caribbean coast of Costa Rica, close to the border with Panama, lies the protected area of Gandoca - Manzanillo. Here you can observe coral reefs just a few metres from the beaches and at depths of four metres. In this protected ares, the inhabitants are directly involved in managing the Park in cooperation with local authorities and environmental organisations. Just a few years ago, Gandoca and the whole surronding Caribbean coast were under threat from oil companies in their intention to start prospecting for oil in the area. The local inhabitants managed to put a stop to these activities, but they are not letting their guard down as they still fear new incursions.

 

Cayos Cochinos ( Hog Islands )

Coral reefs

Cayos Cochinos is a group of seamounts, some of which have emerged to form islands and cays to the north of Honduras: in total there are 65 islets ans cays as well as dozens of submerged peaks, known as " banks ". In these waters, some of the finest reefs in the Caribbean can be found, and they form part of the great Meso-American coral reef; here we can find brain and stag-horn corals, barrel sponges and a huge variety of fish and invertebrates: nudibranchs, sea horses, damselfish, butterflyfish, parrotfish, sharks, rays, etc.

In 1998, this ecosystem, which had already benn subjected to severe coral bleaching, was hit by Hurricane Match, causing serious damage. In addition, the endangered hawksbill turtles use some of these beaches to lay their eggs.

Key West ( Florida )

Polluting cruise ships

A very popular tourist area in which several scientific groups are carrying out studies on coral reefs. Here we could collect evidence of the damage caused by the anchors of huge cruise ships and the pollution they generate. Pollution from cruise ships is one of the campaigns on which Oceana has been working, with great success: it has managed to convince Royal Caribbean to commit to installing advanced waste water treatment systems. Key West is also an interesting place for finding hawksbill turtles ( Eretmochelys imbricata ).

Bahamas

A wildlife paradise

In the Bahamas it was also possible to document the environmental impact of cruise ship traffic. It is also an excellent spot for documenting wildlife, both on the surface ( seabirds, marine mammals, etc. ) and under the water. The Atlantic spotted dolphin ( Stenella frontalis ), humpback whales ( Megaptera novaeangliae ) and coral reefs offered other avenues for study and documentation in this region.

Route 3

Atlantic Ocean: from Bermuda to the Azores

2,840 nautical miles

 

Bermuda and the Sargasso Sea

The " lost year " of the sea turtles

This area is fundamental to the entire North Atlantic, although not many people know about it. It is an important spot for species such as sea turtles, where the young turtles recently born on the beaches of Georgia and Florida spend their " lost year ". In addition, crustaceans ( Portunidae ), the common dolphin ( Coryphaena hippurus ), triggerfish ( Balistes sp. ), nudibranchs and many other species can be found in the Sargasso Sea.

There is also a significant concentration of floating rubbish, the presence of vessels flying flags of convenience from Bermuda, European eels ( Anguilla anguilla ) and American eels ( Anguilla rostrata ). Some scientific estimates put the quantity of crude oil floating in this sea at between 70,000 and 86,000 tonnes, held among the seaweed.

The Archipielago of the Azores

Bottom trawlers, no thank you

The Azores is a key location for understanding the migration of sea turtles in the Atlantic. All loggerhead turtles ( Caretta caretta ) found in these waters come from the laying beaches of North America and the Caribbean islands. The biggest longline fishing fleets in this area are the Spanish and Portuguese, searching for swordfish and tuna. Other major fleets, such as the Japanese, Korean, Chinese, Italian, Greek and Moroccan fleets, can also be found in both the Eastern Atlantic and the Mediterranean. Compiling information on the impact, fishing effort and discards of these fleets can help in managing the waters surrounding a ban on the use of bottom trawling over its important seamounts.

Route 4

The Mediterranean: from Azores to Majorca

1,797 nautical miles

Atlantic seamounts

Between the Azores and the Strait of Gibraltar there are seamounts of tremendous ecological value. The peaks of some of them rise up to just a few rooted at depths of some 3,000 metres. These mountains represent marine oases fro hundreds of species, and are even home to deep-sea coral reefs.

Strait of Gibraltar

The migration of cetaceans

This is one of the most unusual marine areas in the world due to the migratory routes of cetaceans, swordfish, tuna and other species, the heavy oil tanker traffic and the huge amount of concentrated rubbish. The Spanish, Portuguese ans Moroccan fishing fleets all operate in this area.

The Alboran Sea

Accidental catches

In the Alboran Sea we can find populations of both the striped dolphin and the common dolphin ( Stenella coeruleoalba and Delphinus delphis respectively ). Sightings of sea turtles such as the loggerhead turtle ( Caretta caretta ) and the leatherback turtle ( Dermochelys coriacea ) are also frequent. All these species, along with others such as pilot whales ( Globicephala melas ), sperm whales ( Physeter macrocephalus ), fin whales ( Balaenoptera physalus ) and Minke whales ( Balaenoptera acurostrata ) suffer from being caught accidentally in drift nets.

Western Mediterranean

The end of the expedition

The longline fishery, with its techniques involving accidental catches of sea turtles, is one of Oceana's main campaign concerns.

The impact of bottom trawling on the sea beds is another issue of major concern in the Mediterranean.

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