Rules about touching the marine life

[miketsp]

done... I didn't think about that when I posted it. It is pretty gruesome.

This just reminded me of what my wife says when she crosses with people in the street that don't have their dogs on a leash.

When she complains, most dog owners react saying "don't worry - he doesn't bite"

To which she reacts "Anything that has teeth bites - even me!"

 

[Kriterian]

Inconsistent, maybe. Hypocritical, no. Look it up. <g>

Hypocrisy: The practice of professing beliefs, feelings, or virtues that one does not hold or possess

The dive master "professing a virtue" (don't touch the fish) and then touching the fish (not possessing said virtue) is being hypocritical.

 

[drbill]

Fortunately the critters themselves often set the rules for you... some bite with gnarly teeth, others have sharp spines, scorpionship and others are toxic. Don't follow the rules and they may punish you with their own version of maritime law!

 

[Mike Veitch]

Hmmm didn't read the thread all the way through but this sort of one always interests me to read how against touching stuff people are. Stressing animals, damaging corals, using reef hooks etc etc. I believe in being very cautious about where my hands and feet go, i pull peoples hands off of corals that are alive and put them on the sand or a rock or something dead. Have i bothered animals underwater? of course i have, anyone who owns a camera has done so.

However, what i would like to know is how many people, who are extremely anti touching of marine life whilst diving do things like say....eat shrimp that has been bottom trawled and destroyed the entire undersea environment over which that net was hauled?

Interesting thought that its a no no to touch a nudibranch but just fine to support an industry that haphazardly destroys everything it touches and is the single most destructive fishing method out there.

yes yes i know that everyone can do something to play their part in helping out the environment by not touching anything, just wanted to put that thought out there

 

[D_B]

Octopus ... reminds me of the story my instructor likes to tell of how smart they are
A diver was bothering one and it reached up yanked his mask off , I guess he didn't get the message because the next time it yanked his reg. out of his mouth and didn't give it back right away :11: (not an even fight, what with 8 arms/suckers against 2 arms/no suckers)
Or , if you see one in the distance, on guard, and it ducks down, then you do the same, it raises up to see where you went, you come back up, it goes down, you go down and stay, it raises up, doesn't see you , thinks "what the heck is this" and will come over to you ... Octo. hide & seek

Don't touch anything , don't chase anything ... know the sealife and use there curiosity to get them to come to you

DB

 

[Quero]

It is a big fish with a nasty attitude. They will attack if you swim too close to them. Sometimes they get angry for no apparent reason. <snip>

What is and isn't harassment should perhaps be left to the animal to decide and act on by fleeing, biting, or approaching for a look-see. I feel that we divers should let the animal make the first move, and then we should just take the hint, whatever it appears to be.

I don't recall ever seeing a cabezon, but we have a fish with a similar bad attitude here in SEA. The titan triggerfish charges mainly during nesting season (when they can be seen hovering head down over the sandy patch where they have eggs). These guys are big and brutal. They can bite sizeable chunks out of arms and legs, and even out of rubber fins. Most dive briefings in areas they populate warn about staying clear of them and swimming away from their territory when they are spotted guarding their nests. (I doubt one would tolerate two divers corraling it to take pictures, even when it wasn't nesting, so its definition of harassment is quite broad, I guess.)

On one memorable dive, I recall an Italian gent purposely invading a titan triggerfish's nesting area with a videocam to film it as it vigorously defended its territory. The diver eventually "had to" strike out at the fish with the camera to avoid getting bitten. More power to the fish!

When I'm underwater, I'm acutely aware that I'm an alien in a habitat not meant for my species. If any particular marine creature suffers threats from other inhabitants of the realm, even to the extent of losing its life, that's only to be expected. IMO, what is to be avoided is that they should suffer intentional harassment from me, an outsider. (And, no, I don't eat them.)

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

I don't recall ever seeing a cabezon, but we have a fish with a similar bad attitude here in SEA. The titan triggerfish charges mainly during nesting season (when they can be seen hovering head down over the sandy patch where they have eggs). These guys are big and brutal. They can bite sizeable chunks out of arms and legs, and even out of rubber fins. Most dive briefings in areas they populate warn about staying clear of them and swimming away from their territory when they are spotted guarding their nests. (I doubt one would tolerate two divers corraling it to take pictures, even when it wasn't nesting, so its definition of harassment is quite broad, I guess.)

You wouldn't see cabezon in your part of the world ... they're a cold-water fish.

I have experienced the attentions of a triggerfish while diving in Bali. They are very ... determined ... until you get out of their yard, and in my case (wearing a shortie) that's all I wanted to do at the time.

But I must confess ... I do occasionally enjoy interacting with the sea life. For example, I like to touch dungeness crabs, especially during certain times of the year. They don't typically get too stressed till I put them back in the water ... of course, the water I put them back into is considerably warmer than the water I took them out of ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[Quero]

<snip>But I must confess ... I do occasionally enjoy interacting with the sea life. For example, I like to touch dungeness crabs, especially during certain times of the year. They don't typically get too stressed till I put them back in the water ... of course, the water I put them back into is considerably warmer than the water I took them out of ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

LOL Enjoy your feast, Bob (you can have my share, too).

 

[DennisS]

Now all we need to do is get the marine life to stop touching the humans, it's stressful on them

http://aolsvc.news.aol.com/news/article.adp?id=20050610231009990008

http://aolsvc.news.aol.com/news/article.adp?id=20050611064809990002&_ccc=5&cid=842

 

[pete340]

Hypocrisy: The practice of professing beliefs, feelings, or virtues that one does not hold or possess

The dive master "professing a virtue" (don't touch the fish) and then touching the fish (not possessing said virtue) is being hypocritical.

You forgot to look up "virtue." Professing a virtue involves a bit more than simply stating a rule. Unless, of course, you're humpty dumpty, and a word means just what you choose it to mean. Which makes communication rather difficult.