A few gadgets that help to discover new species

A few days ago, visiting researches from the California Academy of Sciences discovered 300 new species on our very own shores. The diversity of life forms found ranged from inflatable sharks Air Swimmer Remote Control Inflatable Floating Sharkto “never before seen” slugs.

But what kind of tools do these scientists use? Obviously, they require standard diving gear, but they also have unique instruments that aid their quest in discovering new life forms.

Since recording data is essential, specialized notebooks filled with underwater paper are used. While most divers use slates to communicate and record, using paper allows for more data to be recorded without needing to constantly “wipe the slate clean”, so to say.

Other tools used to discover new life at unprecedented depths include surface marker buoys (aka safety sausages), LED lights and lift bags (pictured above) to send samples towards the surface. Furthermore, these underwater scientists also wear Datamasks, which are military grade masks that display real-time stats such as depth, dive time, tank pressure etc.
Let us all hope that the visiting researchers (as well as local scientists) find more unique life forms to renew our appreciation and awe for the diversity of our home, the Philippine islands.