Touching coz wildlife

[JamesBon92007]

Quick question, i'm passing through coz and going to do a few quick days diving, never been before. A quick look at vids online shows several where people/diveguides are grabbing/groping nursesharks and generally touching/picking up wildlife etc.

Is this standard for cozumel?...would rather set my expectations before i end up in arguments because is 100% p!sses me off.

They sometimes do, but you sure aren't supposed to. On the video for the underwater park on the Mexican Waterjet ferry they say you should stay 5 feet from the reefs and don't buy anything made from sea life. I have videos of two different DMs coaxing a splendid toad fish out of their holes to show the divers. I've seen YouTube videos of people petting nurse sharks as they swim by--odd behavior that makes me wonder if someone has been feeding them.

Edit: I guess they changed their name to WinJet.

 

[PACKRMAN]

i wouldn't like to be on the wrong side of you either to be honest Packrman.... thanks for tolerating me on that last trip

hahaha...I didn't even see the guy touch the turtle. The only reason I knew it had happened was that I asked why they were so upset with the guy. I did express my support of how it was handled. I did tip higher than I normally do. We have specifically asked for these guides on later trips with Dive Paradise.

As for tolerating you, HA! You were great. I had a great time and would love to be on the boat with you again.

 

[horn34]

So I went and looked at the georges websites. This guy is a fool. He has a small closet office just past casa mission on rosada salas. My friends ran the tequila factory across the street and I used to hang out there a lot. I used to joke I wouldn't let George take me on a free dive trip. He preys on unsuspecting tourists and I would not feel safe diving with him. So if you see the portly gringo that looks outta place and he wants to take you diving or anything run and warn others.

 

[Streydog]

If you must harass a turtle, hire a damsel! I enjoyed watching this interaction for quite a while last year at Columbia Shallows.

 

[Ministryofgiraffes]

Great video! Pretty sure that’s a damsel though....

 

[Ministryofgiraffes]

This is a blenny:

 

[Streydog]

Great video! Pretty sure that’s a damsel though....

Oops, long day. Changed it. Thanks

 

[RayfromTX]

There is no need to harass the wildlife. Hang out and chill and they will harass themselves for your enjoyment.

 

[Snoweman]

There is no need to harass the wildlife. Hang out and chill and they will harass themselves for your enjoyment.

Was that a mating thing? Was I watching turtle-porn??

 

[RayfromTX]

Looks more like turtle sexual assault. I was a bystander that refused to step in and defend the victim. It went on for a very long time but I limit my videos to a few minutes.

The serious point I want to make is that if you get in tune with the wildlife and recognize their behavior, it is possible to position yourself to enjoy it in a way that isn't disruptive. This will mean that you will often be further from the action but the videos on youtube of marine creatures in retreat as divers chase them to get closer is pretty boring stuff. Patience and respect are what allow these fun opportunities to unfold.

The hard part was keeping them in the frame while staying off the bottom and close enough to the bottom(at the end of the video you can see the little rise I was sheltering behind) to be protected from the current while reverse frog kicking to not move forward into the action. It was a real challenge and i'm sorry for the image movement. I use a gopro hero3 which has no stabilization.