touching things underwater

[jepuskar]

There is nothing wrong with petting a nurse shark, nobody likes to hear that though do they? Leave bubbles, take only pictures...right? Wrong!!

Everyone has their panties up in a bunch about this, but when someones bouyancy sucks and they are all up in the reef like they want to become one with it, nobody really says much do they? A little bit, but ohh man, strike me down for petting the back of a turtle in Bonaire..which I did BTW...and my buddy did too...ohh, I'm sure we scarred the turtle for life...no wait, its probably dead.

There are acceptable times to touch aquatic life and then there are not. Take a dive with a marine expert with some fancy degree and watch them promptly pick up something to show you and for you to possibly touch. Generally I keep my hands off of everything because I don't want to be stung, bitten, hurt, mauled, molested..whatever. But if a divemaster brings me something to pet, I'm gonna pet it...heck, I might even take a picture of it.

Now check the below image out, look on the bottom of this king crab's belly. You see that, those are fingers holding the crab. This DM in Cozumel, picked up this crab and brought it over to me to photograph. I tipped him a little extra because it was an experience, but I didn't touch it, I know better.

On the flip side, I did a night dive in Bonaire early last year and my buddy...with whom I just met before the dive, was all over the reef...not because his buoyancy sucked, but because he was looking for stuff to harrass. I watched this guy displace coral heads looking for some eel..blah blah blah....class A jerk. To me, that is horrible!

So what am I saying? There are acceptable times to physically interact with aquatic life, and then there aren't. Keeping yourself and your equipment out of the reef is far more important and should be stressed right behind safety, but they do coincide.

If you are conservative and frown upon me touching the back of a turtle, I understand...there is nothing wrong with that. I applaud you for taking that stance and being that concerned about the environment and its creatures.

If you are liberal and don't see anything wrong with touching anything underwater for whatever reason, then I feel you are in the vast minority. You are frowned upon in the diving community.

I on the other hand will never intentionally harm any aquatic creature for any reason. However, I do feel it's ok to physically interact with certain animals at my own risk, but not the animals. Petting a nurse shark is acceptable to me, harrassing it is not!

If you want these animals to stay pure in its truest sense, than ban diving altogether, as every time we dive, no matter if you touch anything or not, you are subjecting them to foreign creatures. Creatures who don't belong in their habitat!

JP

 

[TX101]

Well, I guess one extreme is spearfishing - you are there to permanently "stress" the aquatic life, right? I've got no problem with killing for food - so long as you're not killing endangered species (and only doing it in approved areas and not marine parks). Not like the tale my manager told me when he was in grand caymen a few weeks ago.. a couple of local fisherman rolled up one day and threw a net over the local snorkle (and I assume dive) spot and removed all the fish. Illegal, but nobody stopped them.

Anyway, regarding interacting with the marine life.. I think a lot of people forget that underwater (and in the wild) it's a dog-eat-dog world. That crab you pick up has probably killed another fish in the last 24 hours and eaten it. Does it stress the crab when you pick it up? maybe. But what about when the shark comes along and tries to eat it - dosen't that stress the animal too? When the shark does it though it's called nature.

Just like in the red sea a couple of weeks ago. We saw a big turtle. We just watched it - I didn't really feel the need to touch it. But it was eating all the coral. Didn't someone tell the turtle the coral was Protected???

So yeah, I think there's a balance.. and so long as you're not killing animals for the fun of it, I've got no problem with anyone interacting with the wildlife.

 

[00scuba]

We can take this really far, look at all the domesticated animals we have as pets. Is that right? Or what if you are swimming and you touch a fish...OMG...ban swimming as well??? Think of all the boats that injure or kill marine life. I think that if a creature if friendly and safe interaction is ok for both parties, then what is the big deal?

I am confident in my skills to control my actions, including not being all up on something and causing damage or injury.

I had this moment with angel fish that i will never forget, they were feeding, and interacting with me, and it was amazing. Now, perhaps i need to pay for their shrink bill, but it was a moment I know i wil never forget.

 

[rhadamanthus]

I missed the nurse shark thread. My wife used to play with them as a little girl. Was fairly common. I have seen the "locals" do things on the reef that I wouldn't imagine doing. Course I understand that each coral polyp is an animal. Lots of folks just don't understand what they are doing.

I think it is fine to "interact" with marine animals as Jep describes. As with everything, know the limits, don't be dumb and don't be an a$$. The problem is that there is always one jerk (and you know, each of us is one at one time or another in some way or another, so don't pass judgement too quickly) that pushes the limits.

Always let common sense guide you, and if you're not sure then don't do it. You can use that for lots of things in life ...

Rhad

 

[Wristshot]

So maybe there are "gray areas" wher it might be okay in some circumstances, and not in other circumstances to touch things underwater? --*dripping sarcasm for the benefit of others*--

For me personally, I try my best to not disturb things if possible, but I am sure that I have some impact. I always remember that if something does bite or scratch me, it is almost always 100% my fault. Same goes for dogs and cats. And drunks.

I heard a tale of someone shining a light on a fish at night, and a grouper swooped in and swallowed the spotlighted fish. Oops. Stuff happens. No malice aforethought, but unfortunate for the meal, bonus for the intrepid eater. Almost as if nature took advantage of the situation. Was the ecology altered? Hard to say.

I like Rhad's closing sentence. I would just add the concept of "respect"; for the reef, for the ocean, for the flora and the fauna (sometimes hard to distinguish from each other) and for the other divers.

I guess I just woke up feeling preachy today.


Wristshot

 

[jepuskar]

The keyword is 'respect'. I am very aware of where I am at underwater, I'm not just talking bouyancy...but the fact that I am now in the underwater realm. I respect what is around me. Am I disrespecting a nurse shark for wanting to pet its tail, or a turtle for petting its back? In my eyes, no, in others yes!

Do I think riding a turtle is disrespectul, yes I do, that is over my line. It is all about individual interpretation.

The reason this is in the whine/cheeze section is that people really take it too far sometimes and ofcourse that is my interpretation.

 

[bwerb]

So...how hard should you "touch" the boneheads standing on the reef?