Med Dive Experiences Within The Illes Medes Marine Reserve

Above 1,345 different marine species have been cataloged there since Jacques Cousteau went scuba diving there and the Medes Islands ecosystem is justly classified as the finest natural reserve in the western Mediterranean.

Protection of the islands began in 1983, and in 1990 the preservation was widened to the seabed flora and fauna, encouraging a remarkable recovery of the indigenous species and changing the area into a refuge for numerous species faced with extinction. The zones supporting marine seagrasses like Posidonia oceanica are particularly productive as they are the breeding habitats for many important species.

The Medes Islands Protected Zone covers an area of 93,2 hectares with a supplementary protected 418 hectare area stretching up to the Montgri coast. A new Natural Park has been announced by the Government of Catalunya to include the coast north all the way to Cala Montgo, L'Escala.

Tunnels at Medes Islands Marine Reserve
The plentiful tunnels and caves give the clue that this limestone archipelago was attached to the Montgri Massif over ten thousand years ago. Today caves around the Medes Islands and up the Montgrí coast towards L'Escala provide outstanding opportunities for divers to experience (with a dive guide) the distinctive fauna that opt to live in semi-darkness.

One of the most renowned sites at the Medes Islands is Dolphin Cave, because of a statue at the southern entrance. Within is a refuge for large groupers, meagres and shoals of silvery bream. Along the reef outside divers glide through shoals of bream and clouds of anthias whilst looking out into the blue for cruising eagle rays and visiting sunfish and dolphins.

There's a second cave system handy with its groupers, always ready to pose for photographs, illuminated by a towering funnel. Yellow cup corals robe the walls and camouflaged scorpionfish perch concealed on ledges. Mediterranean moray eels and congers live in cracks in the rocks. From here a further tunnel leads back through the island and out onto the reef again, via the most beautiful yellow and red gorgonian corals.

Scuba Diving at Medes Islands Marine Reserve
There are 10 buoyed dive sites, providing diving all year around. A range of depths allows immersions for every level of diver, and even snorkelers can enjoy the colourful array of undersea marine life of the Medes Islands. In the shallow zones we can delve into a dense mantle of brightly lit seaweeds with over a hundred species hosting shoals of silvery bream, colourful wrasse, and exquisite nudibranchs. Below 10-15 meters we see light-deprived algae and pretty pink sea perch, large predatory dentex, eagle rays, octopus, lobster and big, friendly groupers. Below 20 meters we enter an area of gorgonian corals inhabited by more than 600 species.

The Illas Medes Protected Area, with its 65,000 dives per annum, is an example of good stewardship. In 2009 scuba divers participated in an assessment of the the Illas Medes ecosystems by completing questionnaires following their dives. Questions asked about the abundance of different species present and the number of divers, snorkelers and boats observed at the dives sites.

The results of the continuing evaluation of the Medes Islands Reserve will demonstrate the level of conservation required to safeguard this little archipelago for future generations. An area of exceptional ecological value, all the underwater environments to be found in the Mediterranean are represented in the seabed around the Medes Islands, making the area one of the most captivating sites for Mediterranean scuba diving.

Kangen Hexagonal Water: How It Helps Control The Real Cause Of Upper, Lower Back And Joint Pains - Dehydration!
Unintentional dehydration is primarily due to our fallacious belief that we think we are properly hydrated because we drink soda, coffee, tea and alcohol and 6 glasses of water a day. In fact we lose more water and salt than we drink because of the dehydrating effect of coffee, tea, soda and alcohol.

Finding An Unusual Present For Someone Who Has An Interest In Astrology
When so many of us are lucky enough to have most necessities and luxuries of life, choosing gifts for others becomes very difficult. Add an unusual interest like astrology and you may be stuck for inspiration. Here are some tips for choosing unusual gifts for "hard to please" people.

You Should Aim To End Self Sabotage, Erase Off-Putting Ideas
Have you ever taken part in any Personal Development program? Only to discover that your life had not changed for the better? These are your Limiting Beliefs that prevent you from getting any better!

An Article About How To Get Benefited With A Real Estate Foreclosure
If you are looking to buy an investment property in order to begin a real estate investment, you will want to look at real estate foreclosures in order to get the best deal to break into the market with.