wanting to film defensive reactions

[knobber]

I have a question that may come across wrong, but I don't intend it to.
Regardless, what is the forum's opinion getting a fish or animal to exhibit defensive reactions for a picture? For example, a puffer fish is a puffer, but a puffed up puffer fish would be much more recognizable to friends back home after you've returned to show them your pics.
I don't mean taking it so far as to get an octopus to squirt ink, or getting something to bite at you, but for those fish who are more commonly known for what they can do as compared to their normal swimming postures.
What do you think?

 

[adshepard]

Stressing an animal to the point of forcing it to "perform" for you is wrong and potentially harmful to the animal. Stress, no matter what the animal is, weakens it. You are a guest in their world and should behave like one.

DSDO

Alan

 

[Ruu]

Imagine a shark with a camera - its saying "But if I take off one of its legs, mum's going to know its a diver, see?".

If you're large enough to scare the living daylights out of something, then my opinion is that it is wrong to do so just for a picture. If you are wanting to see the defensive posturing of an 18 foot great white then fire away.

Dave

 

[wetman]

Ya, i tend to agree with the answers already given. These things provide you a lot of joy, why would you want to reduce theirs. If you're lucky enough to see a battle between two things go on underwater, so be it. But the other thing is, you dont really know what something might do in one of these mindsets either - a puffer fish is one thing, but anything with a mouth that can bite might come after you and then you'd be in the position of having to fight it off and potentially injuring it at which point you've way oversteped the bounds of reason.

steve

 

[SimonJ]

To me that would simply be abhorrent. IMHO we should try and leave the u/w environment exactly as we found it, take only pictures. I don't even approve of wearing reef gloves...if you dont wear them you simply wont touch anything.

Simon

 

[wetman]

That whole reef glove thing doesn't really cut it for me. If you aren't going to touch things its simple, don't. If you happen to need to push something away that might be able to sting you, it would be much better to be able to use your hands for that. You can do as much damage with elbows, tanks and errant fins as you can with your hands.

steve

 

[SubMariner]

Not to mince words, but that is really not a responsible way to take photographs of u/w creatures.

We've taken hundreds, if not thousands of u/w pictures and it would never even cross our minds to harass or provoke wildlife for the sake of a "more dramatic" shot.

 

[scubabear]

You can get some critters to diplay defensive or territorial behavior without causing harm by taking a hand mirror down with you. Position it in front of the subject, back off, and observe the change in behavior. I don't recomend stressing out the wildlife, but I have GINGERLY, with no gloves carressed porcupine puffers into inflating. The mirror is a much more benign technique.

 

[Dee]

I agree with everyone else.

scubabear once bubbled...
You can get some critters to diplay defensive or territorial behavior without causing harm by taking a hand mirror down with you. Position it in front of the subject, back off, and observe the change in behavior. I don't recomend stressing out the wildlife, but I have GINGERLY, with no gloves carressed porcupine puffers into inflating. The mirror is a much more benign technique.

It's not WHERE the stress came from that is harmful, it's the stress itself. That puffer gets just as stressed in front of a mirror, it still feels threatened, as it does whether you 'carressing' it into puffing up or a true preditor is after it. You're actions are harmful either way.

Just don't do it. In fact, I have deleted photos from this forum because for every photo of a puffed puffer, there are new divers seeing it and thinking it accepteable to treat the wildlife that way.

 

[ssra30]

For me, it is more meaningful to have a picture that was natural and not arranged. I would love to have a puffed up picture of pufferfish but only if I happened to come across one and not because I make it puffed up for my sake. That way, when I finally have that picture, it will be a lot more special.
It is not unsimilar to land photographer who put a dead butterfly on a flower so they can arrange it to get the exact perfect angle and exposure. What is so fun about that?