Sea Lice??

[amandasdaddy]

I don't recall haring about sea lice before I read it here.

Is sea lice that much of a problem? I usually dive in June and July in Cozumel, and I know I see little critters at night when the flash lights are concentrated, are those sea lice ?

Thanks for any stories or advice about sea lice.

 

[sapphire]

I've been diving near them several times, and while others have been affected, I must not be reactive to them. I actually felt that I was stung underwater once, but couldn't find any marks when I came up. The last time I was in Little Cayman one of our group had a severe allergic reaction, was stung on the face and upper lip. Boy, was he swollen! Benadryl and cortisone cream helped him a little.

I have heard there is something you can apply that creates a film that they dont bite through, but I forgot what it was called or where you find it -- someone on this Board must know or have experience with it!

sapphire

 

[amandasdaddy]

http://abcnews.go.com/sections/scitech/DailyNews/sealice010528.html

 

[9driver]

We were in CZM last month, and only ran in to them on one day. There were a few large patches that we found oursleves in upon surfacing. We saw them, and went swam under and around them, but by the time the boat got to us, we were in the middle of another swarm. I had a on a full 3/2, did my best to keep my head, neck and hands out of the water. I didn't get as much as a sting. OTOH, another lady we were diving with, had some pretty big bumps from where she had ran into them the day before. Anyway, they are still out there, or were as of May 21.

 

[jray]

I just got back from Roatan and got stung on both of the night dives I went on. I tried the Safe Sea cream and it did not help at all.

 

[detroit diver]

Nasty stuff.

My daughter was swimming at the beach in Boca Raton in March and wound up with it covering her from her shoulders down. She had to go on steroids, antibiotics, some kind of cream. It was not pretty.

 

[DivingLonghorn]

I was in Coz in May as well. However, the only place we ran into them was on the C-53. Since the C-53 is a anchor dive, we all stayed beneath the swarm until it was our turn to surface and get back on the boat. None of the other divers indicated they were bit.

 

[SueMermaid]

amandasdaddy once bubbled...
I usually dive in June and July in Cozumel, and I know I see little critters at night when the flash lights are concentrated, are those sea lice ?

I would guess those are copepods, flatworms, and other creepy wormy things. They are attracted to your lights, and the lobsters eat 'em up. I like them, they are actually pretty interesting to look at up close and personal, but they start to squick me out when I realize I am surrounded by several bazillion of them, and they get stuck in my wetsuit and in my hair. And they are a *very* good reason not to attach a light to your mask, as some of my dive buddies learned the hard way. Blech.
As for sea lice, I have been stung during the day as well as at night, but have not had a reaction (other than "OW"!) to them. Wearing a skin or half mil suit helps cut down on this.

 

[cudachaser]

I've seen instaces where 3 dives are diving together, one person get's covered, one few spots and the third nothing.

I live in Cocoa Beach. Our sea lice season is May. One year my son got a bad case out surfing. When he went to school the next day they sent him home thinking he had chicken pox

 

[ggunn]

A poll on sea lice? Put me down for "against them". ;^)