Brian Kakuk

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Brian Kakuk
Brian-sketch-hires - crop.jpg
Kakuk in 2011
Occupations
Years activec.1980–present
Known forUnderwater cave exploration and preservation
Military career
Service / branch United States Navy
Years of service7
Website bahamasunderground.com
bahamascaves.com

Brian Kakuk is a cave diver known for underwater cave exploration and preservation efforts in the Bahamas, where he has lived since 1988.

Contents

Kakuk has dived professionally for over 40 years, conducted over 3000 exploration dives, and laid "hundreds of thousands of feet of line." [1] [2] He is the founder and director of the Bahamas Caves Research Foundation, and co-owner and operator of Bahamas Underground dive center.

Early life

Kakuk is originally from Goleta, California and took swim and snorkeling classes as a child. He completed Junior Frogman Ranger and Blue Sharks courses through Los Angeles County Parks and Recreation. [3]

Career

Kakuk served as a US Navy diver for seven years in the 1980s. His work included salvage and underwater seacraft repair. He subsequently worked as a civilian contract diver in the Bahamas. [3]

Kakuk has worked as the dive safety officer for the Caribbean Marine Research Center. He was featured as the chief science diver and diver in charge of safety for the Nova episode "Extreme Cave Diving." Producer James Barrat referred to Kakuk as "probably the planet's premier science and cave diver." [4] Kakuk performed dive safety for films including installments of the Pirates of the Caribbean series. [5] He has supported work for the BBC, National Geographic, and Japan's NHK. [3]

Divers Jill Heinerth, Wes Skiles, and Edd Sorenson have conducted exploration missions with Kakuk. Kakuk is an advanced cave instructor trainer and co-authored Side Mount Profiles with Heinerth. [6] [7] Jonathan Bird's Blue World featured Kakuk as Bird's cave diving instructor, and Kakuk supported Bird's IMAX film Ancient Caves. [8] [3]

Research and preservation efforts

Kakuk diving for NOAA Bermuda Deep Water Caves 2011 Exploration Brian-survey-hires.jpg
Kakuk diving for NOAA Bermuda Deep Water Caves 2011 Exploration

Kakuk founded the Bahamas Caves Research Foundation (BCRF) in the 1990s. [3] He has campaigned for the protection of caves known as blue holes in the Abaco Islands with the goal of forming an underwater national park. [9] In 2019, the South Abaco Blue Holes Conservation Area was designated. [10] Kakuk has assisted researchers, discovered over a dozen animal species, and has four microscopic animals named after him. [11] [12] [13]

In 2005 at Sawmill Sink, Kakuk discovered remnants of tortoises and crocodiles which were extinct on Abaco. His discoveries, combined with support from geologist Nancy Albury and curator David Steadman, led to the creation of a natural history museum branch in 2018. The museum was destroyed by Hurricane Dorian in 2019. [10]

Kakuk is a fellow of The Explorers Club. [14]

References

  1. ↑ "Brian Kakuk". TekDiveUSA. Retrieved 14 April 2025.
  2. ↑ Laukien, Marc. "The Crystal Caves of Abaco". Advanced Diver Magazine. Retrieved 14 April 2025.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Heinerth, Jill (21 February 2025). "DAN Member Profile: Whatever It Takes". DAN.org. Archived from the original on 7 April 2025. Retrieved 7 April 2025.
  4. ↑ Barratt, James (1 February 2010). "Risking It All for Science". PBS.org. Archived from the original on 18 September 2020. Retrieved 7 April 2025.
  5. ↑ Arandjelovic, Nadia (12 July 2011). "Epic dive to explore Bermuda's Ice Age coastline". Royal Gazette. Archived from the original on 7 April 2025. Retrieved 7 April 2025.
  6. ↑ "Brian Kakuk". National Speleological Society – Cave Diving Section. Retrieved 13 April 2025.
  7. ↑ "Side Mount Profiles". goodreads.com. Retrieved 14 April 2025.
  8. ↑ Bird, Jonathan (28 March 2023). "My Path to Cave Diving". DAN.org. Retrieved 7 April 2025.
  9. ↑ Livingston, Stephanie (5 April 2016). "Protecting a sunken ancient world". Florida Museum. Retrieved 7 April 2025.
  10. 1 2 McGrath, Jenny (20 November 2024). "Researchers found a treasure trove of fossils in a Bahamian blue hole that could transform our understanding of the island". Business Insider . Retrieved 14 April 2025.
  11. ↑ Morgan, Curtis (25 September 2010). "Blue-hole caverns a mystery of the deep". The Palm Beach Post. Archived from the original on 7 April 2025. Retrieved 7 April 2025.
  12. ↑ Achenbach, Joel (19 October 2015). "Scuba divers in Bahamas find trove of extinct animal fossils and clues to a scientific mystery". The Washington Post . Archived from the original on 20 October 2015. Retrieved 7 April 2025.
  13. ↑ Todhunter, Andrew (August 2010). "Deep Dark Secrets". National Geographic . Archived from the original on 20 January 2025. Retrieved 14 April 2025.
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