Disturbing advice given

[novadiver]

A few days ago I read a thread were someone ask all divers to respect coral reefs by not touching them. Well I agree that coral reefs should be conserved , I would like to bring up the fact that there is a valid reason for grabbing one.

Should you ever be put in a position were you might be pushed into a strainer, be pulled out to sea, or be in a downflow that will end your life , please feel free to grab anything that you can to save your life or the life of someone else. while this may fly in the face conservation. It is your life, and sometimes what's right is not always best.

thank you for understanding, NOVA

 

[saying]

I'm about the biggest tree hugging hippie around, but I sincerely doubt that if it meant my or my buddy's life I would even think twice about grabbing right onto some Elkhorn until I got back onto the boat (god willing).

And even then, I assume my thought would be something like this, "Wow, that sucked. I hope I didn't kill that colony."

On the other hand... people who just go grabbing around just because they think 35lbs on the belt is just right... they're ecological disasters and they should go to mandatory bouyancy camp and a seminar on coral development.

 

[novadiver]

Nicely said , saying

 

[bubblelogist]

I think that there is a difference between saving your life and take the perfect picture. Usually in panic or in a situation where your life is in danger I dont think any brain could have ecological consideration... If on a dive on a wall I see a diver grabbing the coral, I will assume he have a problem and will do what I can to help him. but sure back on surface I would try to figure what went wrong, and how to avoid this situation again.

 

[cmalinowski]

A few days ago I read a thread were someone ask all divers to respect coral reefs by not touching them. Well I agree that coral reefs should be conserved , I would like to bring up the fact that there is a valid reason for grabbing one.

Should you ever be put in a position were you might be pushed into a strainer, be pulled out to sea, or be in a downflow that will end your life , please feel free to grab anything that you can to save your life or the life of someone else. while this may fly in the face conservation. It is your life, and sometimes what's right is not always best.

thank you for understanding, NOVA

As for people feeling that not grabbing while in danger/panic mode, imagine the damage my dead body could do slamming into all those corals if I don't grab at this moment.

 

[opiniongirl]

Although in these situations one may hold on to a coral, one's best solution (rather than a temporary one) would be to simply calmly ascend.

Grabbing on to a coral and then subsequently getting stung will do little to ease the situation. Some coral will break off, again, doing nothing to assist.

Get out of a life threatening situation by establishing positive bouyancy, inflating the bc and dropping the weights if necessary.

I agree that human life is a higher priority, but holding onto coral in the above situations do not solve the problem, and may in fact exacerbate the problem, if the diver grabs on to the wrong species of coral!

 

[Hank49]

But for sure you would be in the "Tree Hugger Hall of Fame" if a large octopus grabbed you, pulled you down while your friends signal to grab hold of the coral and hang on....but you refuse, not wanting to dmage the fragile environment, and go down into the abyss.....

 

[OE2X]

Although in these situations one may hold on to a coral, one's best solution (rather than a temporary one) would be to simply calmly ascend.

Grabbing on to a coral and then subsequently getting stung will do little to ease the situation. Some coral will break off, again, doing nothing to assist.

Get out of a life threatening situation by establishing positive bouyancy, inflating the bc and dropping the weights if necessary.

I agree that human life is a higher priority, but holding onto coral in the above situations do not solve the problem, and may in fact exacerbate the problem, if the diver grabs on to the wrong species of coral!

This isn't always the case. A few years ago in the Maldives I was sucked from 65' to 150' in a down welling. It was all my buddy and I could do not go any deeper. While I may have hurt some coral at least my buddy and I were safe. I don't advocate this sort of behavior, but sometimes no matter how good your skills are, you have to take extreme measures.
Now if you are overweighted, have poor skills and are not in adverse water conditions, then latching onto the reef is really no excuse.

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

But for sure you would be in the "Tree Hugger Hall of Fame" if a large octopus grabbed you, pulled you down while your friends signal to grab hold of the coral and hang on....but you refuse, not wanting to dmage the fragile environment, and go down into the abyss.....

Being from the land of large octopus, about the only way I could see that happening is if you initiated the contact ... in which case, you get what you asked for ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[Hank49]

A large nudibranch then?