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Please note: This Online Coral Reef Treasure Hunt is Now Closed.
The Next Treasure Hunt is Scheduled For January 2010
Stay Tuned For Great Prices To Win!
Beautiful Oceans launches the first Online Coral Reef Treasure Hunt at the occassion of WORLD OCEAN DAY 2009,
This Online Coral Reef Treasure Hunt takes you to two incredible diving destinations: Providenciales Island on Turks and Caicos and San Salvador Island in the Bahamas.
The prize for the winner: Online course on coral reefs “Coral Reef Architecture & Organisms”, comprised of interactive quizzes, videos, a final comprehensive knowledge review and official certificate of completion (a resale value of $149*, additionnal course materials are shipped to continental US only). Learning with Beautiful Oceans enhances your in-water fun and contributes to the preservatioon of this fascinating ecosystem!
During this online coral reef treasure hunt, you will explore the 3D Coral Reef Maps of the following two dive destinations:
Providenciales Island, Turks and Caicos
One look at the geography of the Turks and Caicos Islands and it's no wonder this place is wall-diving central. Two chains of islands, the Turks and the Caicos, are perched atop a shallow bank, separated by a trench-like channel. Depths offshore approach 6000 feet with 50 to 150 feet of visibility, and this meeting place of deep and shallow means huge sponges, healthy corals, seahorses, neck crabs, wine coral shrimp, blennies – in short, a dense concentration of ocean life and the occasional encounter with out-of-the ordinary pelagics.
San Salvador Island, Bahamas
San Salvador offers a wealth of attractions to divers of all abilities and experience. Since the 1970's, divers have returned to the island’s waters for the healthy coral and animal life, stunning visibility—typically 80 to 150 feet—and warm waters because of the dramatic walls that surround San Salvador. There are 32 moored dive sites along the protected lee side of the island that offer safe and convenient diving for even the most demanding diver.
Your Challenge
Your task over the next few weeks is to unveil the name of a creature – but not just any creature!:
"In fact, the creature you will set out to discover is a very discreet, yet incredibly important one! So important that without it, most if not all coral reefs in the word would cease to exist!
Despite its importance, very few have ever heard its name. In fact this creature hides so efficiently that even the most tenacious scientists are able to locate it only by the means of specialized electronic equipment – most of us don’t even know of its existence! The name of this elusive creature is composed of 13 letters."
Collect and correctly assemble 13 letters to find its name and you can participate in a final draw to win great prizes!
What is the 13-letter name of this elusive creature?
(You may want to print this page to keep track of your progress and to have our adresses handy for hints and clues)
In order to access 3D Coral Reef Maps and creature information you need to register as a member on this website. Membership is free and can be validated by accessing the member login page from the top right button visible on every page on this website.
When one of your friends wins, Beautiful Oceans makes you a winner too! We double the prize and award it to you as well!
The equation is simple: the more people who participate in our Online Coral Reef Treasure Hunt equals the more who people will learn about this beautiful and incredibly important ecosystem: "In the end, we will conserve only what we love, we will love only what we understand, we will understand only what we are taught."
You win - your friend wins - coral reefs win. It’s simple.
Hints and Clues
Every second day, we will post a riddle for you on Beautiful Oceans’ respective Facebook and Twitter pages. Each riddle will help you find one of the letters that composes the name of the creature. In total, there will be 13 riddles which means that this first Online Coral Reef Treasure Hunt will end 26 days after it begins. The posted riddles will accumulate at the bottom of this Web page to enable welcomed latecomers to participate in the Online Coral Reef Treasure Hunt. Early birds obviously have an advantage: some of the riddles are tough and you don’t want to find yourself in the situation of having to solve 10 or more riddles within only a couple of days if you want to participate in the final draw! But don’t be discouraged if you are late joining in; with some dedication you can catch up!
When the contest ends—after 26 days—we will draw winners amongst those who submitted the correct answer and we will announce the winners on this Web page. Sounds easy enough, yes? Make a habit of visiting us on Facebook and Twitter starting June 8th, 2009, to make sure you do not miss out on any of the riddles that will be posted. By the way, if you get lost at any time during the game, just drop us a message! We will be happy to help!
Follow us on Twitter:
BeautifulOceans corporate Twitter page:
http://twitter.com/beautifuloceans
Stephan Becker, CEO:
http://twitter.com/StephBeautifulO
Nicklaus Davey, Associate:
http://twitter.com/NickBeautifulO
Anita Davey, Associate:
http://twitter.com/AnitaBeautifulO
Stéphanie Sabbagh, Science Team:
http://twitter.com/StefiBeautifulO
Follow-us on Facebook:
Click on this link to follow us on Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/
or copy-paste the following link into your browser:
http://bit.ly/BEiVH
Hey! What’s the Treasure?
Glad you asked: the real treasure of our Online Coral Reef Treasure Hunt consists of the knowledge that you will gain throughout your journey and the impact this will have on the preservation of coral reefs. But of course, there is more!
For this first treasure hunt, you can win one of the following prizes:
Prize for Participants from the United States*:
(Please note: due to high shipping costs, we currently do not ship sweepstake program materials overseas, only to continental USA and Canada)*:
1st Prize: Fully interactive online course on coral reefs “Coral Reef Architecture & Organisms” — Coral Reef Guardian level as described on the following page: www.academy.beautifuloceans.com . A great gift for yourself or for a coral reef aficionado friend!
Prize for International Participants*:
(Please note: due to high shipping costs, we currently do not ship sweepstake program materials overseas, only to continental USA and Canada)*:
1st Prize: Online course on coral reefs “Coral Reef Architecture & Organisms” — Coral Reef Guardian level as described on the following page, EXCEPT FOR THE COURSE MATERIALS (taking care of shipping charges from your end is ok) : www.academy.beautifuloceans.com. A great gift for yourself or for a coral reef aficionado friend!
Provided that this first online treasure hunt is a success, we will be back! With more maps, more riddles, more creatures - and of course bigger prizes to win!
How Do I Submit my Answer?
If you think you found the name of the creature, please send an email to
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
.
Please do not submit your answer through Twitter or Facebook! – by doing so you risk revealing the correct answer to everyone else and therefore reduce your chances of winning the prize. We collect all correct answers for participation in the draw. To participate in the draw you need to send an email with the correct answer to
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Please note that during the course of the online treasure hunt, we may send you a link to an online questionnaire that will help us improve online treasure hunts by learning more about what you liked, disliked, as well as the difficulties you encountered. Your ideas and feedback are very important to us and are very much appreciated – after all, this treasure hunt is for you!
When one of your friends wins, Beautiful Oceans makes you a winner too! We double the prize and award it to you as well!
The equation is simple: the more people who participate in our Online Coral Reef Treasure Hunt equals the more who people will learn about this beautiful and incredibly important ecosystem: "In the end, we will conserve only what we love, we will love only what we understand, we will understand only what we are taught."
You win - your friend wins - coral reefs win. It’s simple.
* Hardcopy course materials for the Coral Reef Architecture & Organisms are not included in this prize package for participants living outside of continental USA and Canada.
Riddles helping you to find the solution for our Coral Reef Treasure Hunt (see above) :
Riddle #13 of 13 - July 2 and 3 (sweepstakes end July 6, 2009):
While most don’t live beyond 100 years, some in my family can make it to 15,000, eating all day and all night without having to exercise very often. My water intake is impressive and when you put your hand above my exhaust you can feel a very slight but steady current. This feeding behaviour of mine has a name. Take the second or third letter of the second component of this behaviour and insert it into box #13.
Riddle #12 of 13 - June 30 and July 1 (sweepstakes end July 6, 2009):
This species likes to scrape turf algae from corals and will sometimes remove chunks of coral as a result of its feeding habits. While snorkelling or SCUBA diving, you can hear the biting and scraping sounds made by this species of fish. Take the scientific Latin name of this fish. Take the first letter of the second part of the name and then count forwards in alphabetic order to the 4th following letter. Insert this letter into box # 1.
Hint: you can find this fish at the Ramada dive site in Providenciales, Turks and Caicos.
Riddle #11 of 13 - June 28 and 29 (sweepstakes end July 6, 2009):
The Crack is a diving site on Providenciales, Turks and Caicos, where you can encounter a lovely male who enjoys attracting the females of his species by making exaggerated fluttering movements! What family does this flamboyant male belong to? Take the 3rd vowel in the family name and insert this letter into box #2.
Riddle #10 of 13 - June 26 and 27 (sweepstakes end July 6, 2009):
This sea urchin is a very important herbivore in the Western Atlantic. Its population decreased by nearly 95% due to a mass-mortality in 1983. This creature also occurs on 3D coral reef map of Dr. John (N). Take the first letter of the second component of the scientific name for this black urchin. Insert this letter into box # 12.
Riddle #9 of 13 - June 24 and 25 (sweepstakes end July 6, 2009):
Shaking things up, the male of this species takes care of the offspring. A special zone is named after this creature on the Amphitheatre dive site in Turks and Caicos. Once you have discovered this creature’s common name, take the 3rd letter of the second component of the common name and insert it into box #5.
Riddle #8 of 13 - June 22 and 23 (sweepstakes end July 6, 2009):
Whether you are down in the Caribbean or back home, the name of this dive site reminds you of a glass of Sangria! If only it could fit into some of the giant bowl-like structures that characterize this dive site. Take the 2nd last letter of this dive site’s name and insert this letter into box # 10.
Riddle #7 of 13 - June 20 and 21 (sweepstakes end July 6, 2009):
If Santa Claus SCUBA dived, he would most certainly go through the chimney at this particular dive site. Santa could even perhaps bring a little hope and joy to the endangered yet extremely important elkorn corals found at this site. Take the first letter of the dive site’s name. Insert this letter into box # 8.
Riddle #6 of 13 - June 18 and 19 (sweepstakes end July 6, 2009):
Dr. John-North was not having a good day until his favourite nurse swam over onto the northern wing of his reef to assist him in his procedure. A nearby stingray was guarding the area. Dr. John-North's favourite nurse’s ID Code is G.CC. Now what is the common name of his nurse? Take the first letter of the nurse’s common name and insert it into box # 6.
Riddle #5 of 13 - June 16 and 17 (sweepstakes end July 6, 2009):
This coral used to be noticeable in the Caribbean but has declined considerably over the last two decades due primarily to a progression of anthropogenic (i.e. relating to humans) events including global climate change, coral diseases, pollution and hurricanes. You can find it at the snorkel site called Michel’s Playground (click here). Take the first letter of the common name of this coral. Insert this letter into box # 9.
Riddle #4 of 13 - June 14 and 15 (sweepstakes end July 6, 2009):
This is is an extremely common fish to Caribbean coral reefs that occurs also on The Dome (click here) dive site on Providenciales in Turks and Caicos. It is also found in mangroves and seagrass beds. This fish displays three different stages of colour throughout his maturation into adulthood. Hint: the terminal phase is referred to as ‘supermale’. Take the first letter of the first component of the Latin name of this species. Insert this letter into box # 7.
Riddle #3 of 13 - June 12 and 13 (sweepstakes end July 6, 2009):
This species is immobile and lives its entire life in one place. It filter-feeds plankton and dead matter through its many pores. The strong currents which provide a constant supply of food are predominant at Bob the Nassau Grouper’s Runway 10 (N) in San Salvador, Bahamas. Take the 2nd of the 3 letters that make up the Beautiful Oceans’ ID Code for this creature. Insert this letter into box #4.
Riddle #2 of 13 - June 10 and 11 (sweepstakes end July 6, 2009):
Who am I? Some of us are more at ease grazing during the night. Whether it’s to go out and dance or to live and eat while others sleep, there is a feeling of ultimate freedom – and most importantly, protection. Carrying my kingdom through the night I am a regular visitor of the royal suite at the Ramada Inn. Take the 4th letter of my family name and insert it into box #3.
(Today's hint - June 11: visit 3D coral reef map RAMADA - it will become clearer - at least I hope!...if not, drop us a line at
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
, or send a Tweet...:-)
Riddle #1 of13 - June 8 and 9 (sweepstakes end July 6, 2009):
On the North Pole Cave (S) dive site located on San Salvador in the Bahamas there is an elongated creature capable of changing colour at will in order to blend into a new background. What is the name of this peculiar behaviour? Take the 3rd letter of the first name of this behaviour and insert it into box # 11.
(Toda'ys hint - June 9: visit the corresponding reef map on this website, find the creature mentioned in the riddle, go to the creature's page and detect the correct behavior, then count the letters...:-)
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