Memorable Critter Encounters

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About 15 years ago I was in Bonaire, slowly poking around in the shallows. I felt I was being watched, and turned around. There were six squid in a curious triangular formation, one on the bottom, two above that one, and three above those two. They were about four feet away from me. We stayed looking at each other for fifteen minutes. As the squid drifted over different colours of coral and sponges they would change colour to mimic what they were drifting over. It was unbelievably cool.

On the Great Barrier Reef a black striped sea snake went by me at 85 feet.

On that same liveaboard, a baby Minke Whale played with us, diving under us, coming up, going back under.

At North Caicos Island, my buddy and I snorkelled for 1/2 hour with a wild dolphin the locals named JoJo. He liked snorkellers. He would swim beside us, within touching distance (but we didn't) and then zoom off, come back on the other side, zip under us, and so on. The dolphin would echolocate, and you could hear and feel the sound waves travelling through your body. At one point he went between my buddy and a coral head, seemingly redirecting her from hitting the coral. We swam up and down the beach until we were exhausted. He still wanted to play.

I saw my first Wolf Eel in St. Margarets Bay in Nova Scotia, and it was every bit as cute and ugly as they said it would be.

I was told once by a more experienced diver that the herbivores swim slowly over the reef, while the carnivores move quickly. He suggested to see more, swim slowly, like a herbivore, you will not be threatening. Whether true or not, it has worked well as a strategy.
 
For me it was on a midnight dive on a wreck off Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

My buddy, a marine biologist found a Tritons Trumpet and sat it on top of a Crown of Thorns, and we watched the shellfish destroy the starfish for about 30 minutes before it was time to ascend.
 
I was new to diving in 1980, by brother had also recently certified. We booked a dive boat to Anacapa Island off Los Angeles. At 80 feet we came across a massive torpedo ray, about 5 foot in diameter sitting quietly on the bottom. As I was memerized by the amazing animal my brother sneaked up above me from behind, and dropped a large rock onto the top of the ray. It immediatly turned towards me, and wrapped itself around my torso in a "hugging" manuver and gave me a intense electrical shock. I was wearing a full 7mm wetsuit, gloves, hood, etc. It was quite painful and of course I was mad! I could hear my brother laughing through his regulator as the ray swam off. On returning to the ship, and discussing the event with the divemaster, he related how lucky I was as there have been fatalities related to the electrical shock the torpedo rays can generate.
I still remind my brother on what a jerk he was for pulling that stunt 30 years earlier.
Mike
 
Homosassa Spring, FLJan 1992. Manatee. I was scuba diving checking out a spring in 20 FFW. After backing out of the spring I spotted a large manatee hovering above me. I had been told not to scuba with them because the bubbles scare them. Well this one was hovering in my bubbles and didn’t look scared at all.
I reached out and patted its side and started to swim away. The manatee swam over to my left side andproceeded to swim along with me about 4 feet off the bottom. I was looking for the rented boat and spotted it after a few minutes of swimming. During the swim I was rubbing the creature’s belly which promptly caused it to rollover on its back so I could have better access. I also swam holding one of its flippers between my thumb and forefinger. Surfacing at the boat I discovered it was a ranger! Now I had been told that scuba diving with theses manatees may get me in trouble so I was a little concerned when I saw who it was in the boat. Before I could say a word she told me that that was the most amazing thing she had seen in awhile. She said she saw me go into the spring and the manatee show up moments later and hover there until I came out. All the while I’m talking with the ranger manatee was right next to me vertical in the water like my friggen dive buddy! After getting the blessing of the ranger I went back to playing with my new dive buddy until it got bored or hungry and left. A most memorable dive.
 
I’ve had a few memorable ones.

Cannery Row, Monterey CA 1976, I was newly certified, I surfaced about 3 – 4 feet from a sea otter who was showing her pup how to crack a shellfish of some kind, I think it was an ab. She totally ignored me as I watched, lot bigger than I thought.

Bimini I took a picture of my buddy just as three spotted eagle rays flew in between us, I have that pic somewhere.

Hollywood Beach, FL night dive encountered two Octos separately. It was a full moon and they were both sitting on top of the coral. The first one was large and it let us play with it, when it had enough and left we saw the other smaller one a few feet away and it let us play with it too, we had turned off our lights and used the moonlight.

WPB night dive mini lobster season, I cornered a bug in a shallow crevess and was about to grab it, when it shot out of the hole and hit my mask. Unfortunately for the fighting bug, it skittered into someone else’s net.

Bimini a 'cuda followed my wife for the entire dive, it never left her side. It was a little disconcerting, to say the least.
 
Hi Bill,
I'm really interested to hear more about your experiences diving with the sea-lions. I have done this several times in the Sea of Cortez, amazing animals, especially as you say, if you time the trip well and get to dive with the young pups. The one down side of Sea of Cortez was how busy it has become, so crowded in the water around the seal lion colony. So I have some questions for you please, how busy does it get at Vancouver Islands? Is the water very cold, what mm suit are you using? Can you do this land based or does it have to be via live-a-board? Any other useful information would be much appreciated, thank you - hope you have an amazing trip (I'm very jealous!). Linda
 
February and March are the main opportunities to see the most numbers of Sea Lions off of Hornby Island - the Sea Lions congregate on Norris Rocks, just off the southern tip of Hornby Island.

Norris Rocks are a 25 minute boat ride from Fanny Bay, just south of Courtenay, B.C. We use U.B. Diving Scuba Diving Courtenay Comox BC.

A dry suit is recommended. Water temps in February are in the mid to low 40's.

Here is a video of our trip:

[video=youtube;GUYe_tnBNT8]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GUYe_tnBNT8[/video]


Hi Bill,
I'm really interested to hear more about your experiences diving with the sea-lions. I have done this several times in the Sea of Cortez, amazing animals, especially as you say, if you time the trip well and get to dive with the young pups. The one down side of Sea of Cortez was how busy it has become, so crowded in the water around the seal lion colony. So I have some questions for you please, how busy does it get at Vancouver Islands? Is the water very cold, what mm suit are you using? Can you do this land based or does it have to be via live-a-board? Any other useful information would be much appreciated, thank you - hope you have an amazing trip (I'm very jealous!). Linda
 
PB190044W.jpg

Or do you just mean fun encounters with juvenile Sea Lions?

A vet, marine animals, told me to get a tetnus shot because "their mouths are the filthiest place on the face of the earth".




Bob
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I may be old, but I’m not dead yet.
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/peregrine/

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