Murder?!?!

[BigWillieStyles]

I was diving in the Channel Islands a few years ago, when a friend found a dead Horn Shark on the bottom. When he got back to the boat, he told the crew about it, and they looked pained and told him that it had happened the previous day. A diver had speared it and brought it to the boat to show his young children what a "real" shark looked like. He then threw it back in the water. What a way of passing his love of the ocean on to the next generation!

Isn't that just disgusting. Some people just don't get it. I used to sit on the pier near my house and go fishing regularly and see some fisherman who just don't seem to have any respect for the environment or the fish they caught.

 

[salty_dog_68]

I agree with sailor612. when we go spearfishing sometimes we have someone bottom fishing with line from the boat. We go below and pick a fish that is the proper size and species then bring it up if you are lucky enough to shoot it and get it on a stringer b4 sharks and jewfish try to take your dinner from you (we are not on the top of the food chain when we are in the water). Meanwhile, up top, our line fishing buddy is pulling up small red grouper left and right. He is releasing them but they don't do real well. I feel the sperafishermen do much less collateral (environmental)damage than long line and bottom fishermen.

 

[viola123]

I'm sorry to see that, but we adults really need to do something better in front of child.

 

[GratefulDiver69]

Almost every time that I have been diving when there were people spearfishing they did not follow the rules. From people shooting fish out of season, to killing undersized fish, to shooting fish in front of a no spearfishing sign, to shooting fish that I am trying to take a picture of, I think I've just about seen it all. One time I even alerted the Captain that Tautog season was closed and he informed everyone on board, and a spearfishermen still came up with a ten pound tog. It is obvious to me that many spearfishermen have no concern for the environment or their fellow divers.
I had initially bought a speargun for myself, but after seeing the way other people acted in the water I quickly decided that I want no part of it. I'll stick to shooting my camera.

 

[Chad Carney]

I recently shot a professional video of a weekend of seminars for a friend who organized the event. It was a "no cameras event" because of the big fee speakers she had hired and her plan to market the DVD.

Couldn't believe it but many amatures kept cutting in front of the video cam with their smuggled in point & shoots or crappy phones. They even bumped the tripod several times!

The same thing happens to me all the time underwater, and they kick up the bottom, stand on corals and scare away my subjects! It's obvious that many photographers have no respect for the rules or their fellow photogs.

After seeing this kind of behavior almost every time I dive with rookie shutterbugs, I think I'll stick to spearfishing... at least the vast majority of underwater hunters have a code of ethics and respect the environment.

I think I'll copy this post to the photo section.

Chad

 

[Hank49]

Good one Chad...

 

[Katamuki]

I think I'll stick to spearfishing... at least the vast majority of underwater hunters have a code of ethics and respect the environment.

Chad

Now THAT has me laughing. The only code of ethics most spearfishermen have is one moderated by who is watching and what they can get away with. I dont mind hunting underwater but the vast "majority" of those who do it from what I have seen are not in the slightest interested in their impact on the environment. Spearfishing should have the same sort of license and mandatory education as above water hunting does IMO as long as it is done near recreational DIVING areas.

 

[DiveBee]

Spearfishing is highly selective way of harvesting fish. People that break the law and shoot undersize/outofseason fish should be ashamed, turned in to law enforcement, and punished to the maximum extent of the law. Respect the ocean and hunt honorably.

I would make people take boating license test, before we instate spearfishing test

 

[Chad Carney]

Now THAT has me laughing. The only code of ethics most spearfishermen have is one moderated by who is watching and what they can get away with. I dont mind hunting underwater but the vast "majority" of those who do it from what I have seen are not in the slightest interested in their impact on the environment. Spearfishing should have the same sort of license and mandatory education as above water hunting does IMO as long as it is done near recreational DIVING areas.

Katamuki,

Why do you and the likes of GratefulDiver69 hang around reading the spearfishing sections? Are the others too boring?

You don't see real spearfishermen, because the places recreational lookie-loos dive don't interest us, and we don't need bus rides. You don't know us!

There is a spearfishing code of ethics in print, and it's very good, but that's not the one I'm referring to... it's an understood conduct that governs divers that really explore the ocean's far reaches and depths. We don't waste and we don't leave tracks.

Capt Chad

 

[Katamuki]

I am not sure about that Chad, I live on on island where much of the spearing is subsistence fishing and not for "sport". I know a number of the World record holders on the IUSA personally and dive with them. I am pretty sure these are "real" spearfishermen.

I also see many types who are absolute nuisances. As I said before, I dont mind hunting at all, I like to fish. Too many people IMO still think that any sort of conservation whether mandated or not just dont matter. If we are stupid now we will use up our resource of the ocean.