Logging what you see underwater: a sightings list for every dive

Why log sightings

Dive numbers say how often you went in. Sightings say what it was like. A year on, nobody remembers which reef had the cuttlefish, but one line in the log does. Over many dives the entries also answer questions you will actually ask: where did I see a manta, how many times have I seen a seahorse, which site is best in spring.

What to write

Keep it short and keep it to what you were sure of.

• Use the name you know. "Green turtle" or "turtle" is fine. A name you are unsure of can go in the notes with a question mark, to be checked against a guide book or your guide's list.
• One name per animal. Write "Octopus" the same way every time, so the same animal is not counted as three.
• Say where in the note, not the name. "Octopus" in sightings, and "under the ledge at 14 m" in the notes.
• Include the unusual. A rare shark deserves a line. The tenth anemonefish usually does not.

If you are diving with a guide, ask for the names on the surface. They know the site and what lives there, and a name you hear on the boat is better than one you guess later.

Add them in the dive form

Each dive has a sightings field. Add several, separated by commas. Loggerfish tidies them as you go: it capitalises the first letter, drops a repeated name and ignores differences in capitals, so "turtle", "Turtle" and "TURTLE" are one sighting. Pipes, semicolons and new lines also separate names.

You can add sightings straight after the dive, or in the evening with the rest of the details. Photos can be attached to the dive, so the picture and the name stay together.

From a list to a life list

Once several dives carry sightings, they add up. In Loggerfish the sightings view of the dashboard shows a life list: each species with a count, the newest species, the ones you see most, and the places you see them. It starts to fill in after a handful of dives, and gets more interesting every season. The sightings life list is part of Pro, the optional paid plan; entering sightings and exporting your log are free.

If you come from SSI, the MySSI spreadsheet can carry a sightings column, and Loggerfish reads it on import, so earlier sightings are not lost. Check the preview, which says how many were found.

Other things worth a word

Sightings tell the story of the animals. Add the story of the water too:

• Visibility and water temperature, which explain why you saw what you saw.
• Current, which brings fish to a point or keeps them away.
• Your own tags, such as "manta season" or "cleaning station", to filter on later.
• A rating, from one to five stars, for the dive as a whole.

All of these are free-form, and you can add them whenever you like.

Be kind to what you log

If you note an animal, you are probably close to it. Keep your distance, do not touch or chase, and follow your guide's briefing and local rules. A good sighting is one the animal did not notice.

A small routine

1. After the dive, ask the guide or your buddy for the names.
2. Write them into the sightings field, one name per animal, in the same spelling each time.
3. Add one line in the notes for the dive.
4. Look at the list at the end of the trip, and then at the end of the year.