Whats the biggest _____ you have ever seen on a dive?

[Mauifish]

I was diving off Red Rock in Maui some time ago when a friend and I came across a Giant Hawaiian eel, a species that is rare and is supposed to be the biggest species of eel in the world. It was @ 8 feet in length and swimming out in the open about mid-morning, obviously it had no fear of us due to it's size I suppose.
What is the biggest marine species you have observed on a dive and what was it?

 

[TSandM]

Well, for right now, it's got to be the octopus we found one night with a mantle as big as a basketball, and a tentacle diameter wider than my arm spread. This fellow (or gal) sat directly underneath me for several minutes, glaring at us for disturbing him, before he made a dignified exit into the dark. It was amazing!

 

[Mauifish]

Well, for right now, it's got to be the octopus we found one night with a mantle as big as a basketball, and a tentacle diameter wider than my arm spread. This fellow (or gal) sat directly underneath me for several minutes, glaring at us for disturbing him, before he made a dignified exit into the dark. It was amazing!

That sounds great, bet you were excited! Where was it and do you know what species?

 

[Carribeandiver]

I saw a 10 foot green eel with a diameter at least 12" in the Spooky Channel at Roatan. Saw big boy twice, once during the day and once at night.

Adding this in with the EDIT

I saw him with the instructor as I was doing my navigation dive for my AOW. We were alone and of course, all the other divers ribbed me about his size - accusing me of exaggeration - however, the instructor backed me up.
We, the instructor and I, saw him again doing our night dive for the AOW.
All the other divers and I planned on a Friday morning Spooky Channel shore dive where I would take them out where this eel lived but it rained Thursday night and the current was unbelieveable Friday morning so the tour got cancelled.
The owner of the resort - Ted at Bay Island Beach Resort - said the eel had been around for a while and they named him Snookems. I still call him Big Boy and hope to see him again when I go back.

 

[Mauifish]

I saw a 10 foot green eel with a diameter at least 12" in the Spooky Channel at Roatan. Saw big boy twice, once during the day and once at night.

10 feet!!:11: I didn't think that species got that big, seen him twice ! These are the sort of moments ya never forget! It's what I dive for. Thanks for sharing that.

 

[Thalassamania]

1. There was the huge green moray off Sunset Hose in Grand Cayman back in the 1970s, I think they called him “Percy.” He was about 10 foot long.
2. There are two really big Jewfish that tend to hang out under the Thunderbolt.
3. Big White Shark off the Farallons, seem to remember he was about the size of a greyhound bus.
4. Jellyfish up in the Arctic with a bell that was about eight feet across and tentacles that stretched perhaps 100 foot.
5. Oceanic White Tip out in the Gulf Stream perhaps 12 foot.
6. Goosefish more than six foot long on the bottom next to a tide guage we had to move.
7. Giant Pacific Octopus up in Pugent Sound that had an arm span of about eight feet.
8. Six Giant Bluefin Tuna that sped past us at Aden Rock in the Gulf of Maine.
9. Sixgill Shark as big as our submersible off Bermuda.
10. Gray Whale at the edge of the kelp, Monastery Beach, California.
11. Manta's off Hawaii
12. Whale Shark off the Solomon Islands

Maybe I'll think of others later.

 

[gregorio]

Whale shark in Donsol, Philippines 9m (30feet)
Manta in Malapascua, Philippines 5 (15feet)

Lucky guy no?

 

[Diver0001]

I was diving off Red Rock in Maui some time ago when a friend and I came across a Giant Hawaiian eel, a species that is rare and is supposed to be the biggest species of eel in the world. It was @ 8 feet in length and swimming out in the open about mid-morning, obviously it had no fear of us due to it's size I suppose.
What is the biggest marine species you have observed on a dive and what was it?

The biggest thing I've ever seen was a big Oceanic Whitetip (quite a bit bigger than a person -- maybe 3 metres...) that was bearing down on my and my lets-just-splash-around-on-the-surface-and-see-what-kind-of-excitement-it-causes buddy at Elephant Stone in Egypt.

Actually, she was having trouble clearing her ears and I was down at 5 metres waiting for her and keeping an eye on where the other divers were going so we could get back to the reef. By the time she descended we were pretty much out in the blue and then that shark came at us like it had been launched.

My first thought was "WOW", which was followed immediately by "HOLY CRAP!". Man I felt small and clumsy.

R..

 

[TSandM]

It was a Giant Pacific Octopus. I was so excited, I was pointing frantically with both hands at this THING sitting below me (as though my three companions couldn't see it) and I think I was squeaking through my regulator. I was still wound up 20 minutes later when we surfaced, and the first thing I said was, "Did you SEE that octopus?"

 

[dive_lover88]

1.Saw a 3m manta.
2. Nurse and grey reef shark about 2m under a wreck in Manado.