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Language: Bilingual in English and Turkish
The Kaş region, given its geographical position in Southern Turkey, is influenced by species coming through the Suez Canal. Since its earliest days, this "lessepsian" migration has attracted the interest of scientists, locals and divers alike. They are following the changing biodiversity with curiosity and sometimes with concern. The author of this book has been diving year-round in the Kaş-Kekova Marine Protected Area for decades and here documents his underwater observations on 58 Red Sea species seen in this region between 2000-2015. Commentaries are kept as short as possible, aiming at providing some species-specific or local information, through the eyes of a diver.
It's hard not to be amazed by nature's creatures, but those that are underwater are harder to reach and mysterious: impossible to reveal those fabulous colours without the flashlights of underwater cameras. Readers are invited to a citizen science application by reporting new species, using the observation forms at the end of the book.
Murat Draman, born in Istanbul in 1957, is an amateur underwater photographer and marine biology enthusiast. He is founding manager of Dragoman Diving & Outdoor, Kaş, Antalya, Turkey, and a PADI Open Water Scuba Instructor & Turkish Federation of Underwater Sports Dive Guide. From 1991-2000 he was Assistant Professor of Industrial Engineering at Boğaziçi University, Istanbul, and from 2000-2006 he was President of the Board of Directors of the Underwater Research Society.
