Though it is just 80 miles off the coast of South Australia, Kangaroo Island is practically untouched by tourism. It is Australia's third largest island, and over a third of it has been designated a national park. I flew there in early March from London, via Bali, to Adelaide, from where I took a short-haul internal flight to the capital, Kingscote (population 3,000). I was met by Josie Thiselton, one half of Kangaroo Island Diving Safaris. Josie whisked me away on an 80km drive through the untouched countryside to Telhawk Farm, where we met Jim Thiselton, the other half of Kangaroo Island Diving Safaris. The rest of the day was spent settling into the farmhouse accommodation situated on an adjacent farm.

Although the nearest neighbours were 15 miles away, the farm's isolation certainly didn't detract from the quality and comfort of the accommodation, which was certainly superior by anybody's standards.

After winding down from my long journey, day two dawned bright and sunny. Transport was provided down to the dive boat, but it certainly wasn't your average journey down to the dockside. It started off on 'White Knuckle' (a 40-year-old ex-Army Bedford truck) along a 4km home-made road, which at some points had a 23 degree gradient!

After arriving at te dive boat Eazy II )an 8m Cougar Cat that can accommodate 10 divers and two crew), Jim Thiselton and I set off on our trip to the first dive-site of the day.

My first priority was to find and photograph a leafy sea dragon (Phycodurus eques), a species Jime has a deserved reputation for finding without too much effort. Such is his confidence that divers are guaranteed two days' free extra diving if he doesn't find one!

The journey down to Snug Cove took approximately 35 minutes, taking us past some of the most superb coastline, with cliffs rising to over 500 feet, and the blue waters of the southern ocean crashing against them.

After kitting-up on arrival, I was surprised to learn from Jim that there was, in fact, a juvenile leafy under the keel of the boat! There are probably around 20 leafy sea dragons within a 15 mile stretch of coastline, and Jim Thiselton has tracked the local population for the last eight years.

One entering the water, I discovered that the superb coastline gave way to equally superb underwater scenery. The sight that met Jim and myself was totally untouched by the kind of environment damage that we have seen at the popular dive sites of the world. The fact that Kangaroo Island has been visited by relatively few divers means that its ecology has remained undamaged by human ignorance.

Within minutes of descending to the sea bed, which is covered with sea grass and kelp, Jim and I were met by a metre-long eastern blue grouper (Acheoerodus viridis) with no teeth!

Two years previously, Jim had found him at death's door and, for a month, had dived daily to hand-feed him abalone until he was fully recovered. Since then the two have struck up an unlikely friendship, with 'Big Blue' regularly awaiting Jim's visits for titbits, and a smal piece of abalone was duly produced for his consumption. 'Big Blue' was obviously duly grateful, as he returned Jim's kindness with a playful nudge on the shoulder!

We then proceeded down a 10-foot wide canyon, with huge boulders on each side covered in sea grass and various colourful sea stars, and a liberal scattering of undamaged gorgonian corals. The visibility was absolutely superb, stretching ro around 25m with a sllight surge.

At the end of the canyon Jim came to a halt. After scanning the scene for approximately half a minute, his hand shot out. I followed the direction of his finger and, amazingly, floating in the sea grass just three metres away, was a perfectly formed two-month-old leafy sea dragon, measuring just two inches in length. At this point I lost interest in everything else and spent the next 40 minutes admiring and photographing this beautiful elusive creature. In fact, during the next five days, Jim was to repeat this kind of unnerving accuracy on every subsequent occasion. The second time we witnessed an adult leafy sea dragon, and on the third day I photographed a very co-operative common sea dragon whose eagerness to pose for the camera would not have gone amiss in Hollwood!

There can't be many places in the world where divers can enjoy the thrill of dropping into crystal-clear water to be met by a family of New Zealand fur seals (Arctocephalus forsteri). On my final day, this was the captivating scene that awaited me and, for some 15 minutes, I was entertained by a display of acrobatics, unseen by those above the waves.

Further surprises were in store when I was met by a 12-strong pod of bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) who stayed for about five minutes, before vanishing into deeper waters. It was truly a dive that will never be forgotten.

Other sea creatures we encountered on a regular basis included eagle rays (Myliobatis australis), eastern blue devil fish (Paraplesiops bleekeri) and the beautiful deep red of the harlequin fish (Othos dentex).

We all understand the pull of the Great Barrier Reef, but there is something rare and special to be found at Kangaroo Island. If rarely visited dive sites, with spectacular and pristine ecology both above and below water, are what you're looking for, and you have a sense of adventure, then this is the place for you.

For the more adventurous who do like the adrenaline rush, it is possible to spend two days with Rodney Fox at 'Dangerous Reef', which is just over the water on the mainland. Here he will put you in a cage, throw blood into the water around you and hopefully attract a 6m great white shark (I gave this one a miss!).

There are over 270 species of fish to be found off Kangaroo Island and some 80 per cent of these species are endemic to the Southern Australian waters, from the spectacular leafy sea dragon to Australian sea lions.

The best diving season is from November through to April, with the best months being January, February and March, when weather conditions are at their best. Water temperature ranges from 17°C to 21°C - take a 5mm wetsuit with you.

If you have a few days to spare, there are many other attractions to be discovered at Kangaroo Island. Australia's unique wildlife, with plenty of kangaroos (no pun intended!), wallabies and koala bears, is close to hand and there are plenty of ranger-guided tours to enable you to visit the penguin rookeries ar Kingscote. If you feel like seeing them on land as well, there is the sea lion colony at Seal Bay to be enjoyed.

Leafy Sea Dragon

The leafy sea dragon is an endangered species - in 1991 the WA Fisheries in Western Australia declared it a totally protected species and it became the unofficial conservation symbol of Southern Australian waters.

Anyone who has marvelled at this delicate and colourful creature cannot fail to see the strong connection between the leafy sea dragon and those mythical fairy-tale dragons we read about as children.

Sea dragons actually belong to the same family as sea horses (sygnathidae), but differ in appearance by possessing leaf-like appendages on their heads and bodies, and having a tail that cannot be used as an anchor.

At first glance these amazing creatures resemble swaying seaweed, which can make them difficult to find in their natural habitat, usually inshore areas of sea grass. Under increasing threat from pollution and excessive fertiliser run-off, this is not the only danger faced by the sea dragon. Although not having any known marine predators, it has become the target of unscrupulous collectors. It is poorly equipped to flee from tose wishing to capture it.

The outer skin of the sea dragon is made up of solid plates, severely limiting its mobility, and the only way that the creature can propel itself is by rapidly oscillating its ventral and dorsal fins. However, it blends easily with its environment and is agile enough to hunt down tiny mysid shrimps or sea-lice, its main diet.

Perhaps the most extraordinary thing about the leafy sea dragon is that it is the male species that gets pregnant and gives birth. During mating the female lays eggs onto a special area on the underside of the male's tail, where they are attached and fertilised.

This brood patch, consisting of cups of blood-rich tissue, each holding one egg, is specially developed by the male for use during the August-March breeding season. During each season, male leafy sea dragons will hatch two batches of eggs and, after a period of four to six weeks from conception, the male gives birth to miniature sea dragons. These immediately become independent and receive no further help from their parent.

For two to three days after birth, the baby sea dragons are sustained by their yoke sac. After this they hunt small zoo plankton until large enough to hunt juvenile mysids. A baby sea dragon will eventually reach a size of about 35cm.

The leafy sea dragon is one of two species of sea dragon to be found in Southern Australian waters. the common, or weedy sea dragon (Phyllopteryx taeniolatus) is less rare and can be encountered more frequently in the same areas.