poll -how many divers collect game ?

[SOUTH DEVON]

I would be interested to know the percentage of divers that collect game and the percentage of divers which just enjoy interacting with the underwater world without feeling the need to kill everything they come across !
The reason for my question is that the dive club that I have recently joined seem to be basically underwater fishermen and some of them complete butchers killing everything they come across.
On a recent dive the first diver to the surface had in his goodly bag about 50 shellfish,3 large dogfish, 10 plaice , several crabs far more than his fair share in my opinion!
On my dive I was happy to be buddied up with a petite attractive girl and I pointed out to her a large flatfish the next thing I knew to my horror there was a large knife sticking out of its head, she handed me the knife and I tried to put it out of its misery by stabbing it several times in the head but failed to kill it !
How are you supposed to kill a fish humanely under the water ?
I spent the rest of the dive trying to hide life from her including a very large lobster!
Apparently another club member goes around ripping off spider crabs claws!
So are most divers like this, or is it just certain clubs?
I am also wondering whether this is a location thing, as in the Caribbean you have a lot more exotic fish, whereas in the UK the majority of fish are plain!

 

[RichLockyer]

SOUTH DEVON once bubbled...
On a recent dive the first diver to the surface had in his goodly bag about 50 shellfish,3 large dogfish, 10 plaice , several crabs far more than his fair share in my opinion!

So are most divers like this, or is it just certain clubs?
I am also wondering whether this is a location thing, as in the Caribbean you have a lot more exotic fish, whereas in the UK the majority of fish are plain!

The guy that is ripping off crab claws (but not taking the animal for food) is sick. That is the same behaviour that manifests itself on the surface as kids pulling the wings off of flies, then killing small animals, and who grow up to kill humans.

The girl who stabbed the flatfish... did she have a goodie bag or intend to bring it back for food? If so, then there's no problem there. If she killed it just to kill it, then see above.

The guy with a lot of stuff in his bag, keep in mind that he was (hopefully) within his legal limits. While you can complain that limits are too liberal, limits are limits. My buddy and I generally limit out on lobster... total of 14... but we are sharing them with family, and it may be as long as a month before we go on another trip. Our lobster season is also winter-only, so we "need" to stock the freezer for the summer BBQ parties.
Same goes for tuna/yellowtail/dorado/bass taken with a pole.

In short, nothing we take is EVER wasted. Worst case, if something in the freezer goes bad, it becomes cat food.

We'll also occasionally crack open an urchin to feed the Garibaldi or Sheephead.

As far as being a regional thing, keep in mind that in the tropics, most tourist destinations are marine preserves... no take and no killing allowed. They won't even let you in with a knife if they know you have one.

 

[Bob3]

The guy that is ripping off crab claws (but not taking the animal for food) is sick. That is the same behaviour that manifests itself on the surface as kids pulling the wings off of flies, then killing small animals, and who grow up to kill humans.

Crabs are capable of growing new claws. The Florida Stone Crab is an excellent example, when they are commercially trapped they have their [legal sized] claws wrung & the crab goes on its way. The claw taking was originally restricted to removing only 1 claw, but the fisheries biologists found no significant increased mortality between the 1 clawed & no clawed.

 

[CincyBengalsFan]

Shoot it, Cook it, Eat it, col-beer, sunset.......Repeat once a week.

 

[drbill]

I stopped taking 25 years ago... with the exception of pictures. However, I have no problem with anyone who takes within legal limits for food. I'll even eat dinner with them. I don'tr like to be on dive boats with lots of "hunters" who I'm not familiar with, especially when they spear my thumn (happened once) or what I'm videotaping (they've only come close so far).

If the grocery strike doesn't end soon, or prices sky rocket after it does, I may be back out there hunting myself!

Dr. Bill

 

[Tanstaafl]

Kill...Eat...Repeat...

Quick and clean on the kill part.

Slowly savor the eating part.

Repeat as time allows. There's never enough time.

Can't wait to go again. We just started planning a couple of rig diving trips for the winter. See ya'll below.

 

[fweber]

Like everything in life, hunting/gathering has it's good practitioners and it's bad. Like it or not we are part of the food chain and I see nothing wrong with reasonable and humane hunting for consumption. Hunting in good style involves more than just being within season and bag limits. From personal experience I would say that what you have found is the exception. Are there anyother clubs in the area? I would try to find someone else to dive with. But, you could make it your purpose not to stop this group or leave it, but to slowly influence how they view and treat our fellow occupants of this planet.

 

[coberry7]

Seems that hunting underwater is OK, for the most part...i.e. legally and for consumption and done humanely.

Does anyone on this thread hunt topside? Deer, Turkey, Boars, etc.?


(I'm asking about US divers!)

 

[No Fish]

Crayfish. Little tiny FW lobsters..... mmmmmm

 

[SOUTH DEVON]

fweber once bubbled...
Like it or not we are part of the food chain
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Maybe but we do not have to eat meat to live a healthy lifestyle, people eat meat because it tastes nice and that's about the only reason for eating it ! And I for one cannot justify killing living animals just because I like the taste!
There are plenty of high-protein vegetarian alternatives and I eat far better than most people I know and I'm also far healthier than most! (Vegetarians are less likely to get cancer)
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From personal experience I would say that what you have found is the exception. Are there anyother clubs in the area? I would try to find someone else to dive with.
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Yes I'm going to explore another club this evening
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But, you could make it your purpose not to stop this group or leave it, but to slowly influence how they view and treat our fellow occupants of this planet.

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Yes I could try, thanks for your comments!