Hassling the Fish

[TSandM]

I was on a dive once where the swimmers before us had hassled all the pufferfish into puffing up. I'd have been incredibly righteous about it, except the swimmers were dolphins . . .

I have certainly seen animals hassled by divers. I've seen them badly hassled by dive guides. I saw a group of divers manhandle a small octopus that a guide had pulled out of its hole and passed from diver to diver, until I wanted to whack them all upside the head with my can light . . . but that's the same can light I use to illuminate animals that don't have eyelids (although I do put my fingers over the light to filter it, when I can).

We don't belong there. I think we should try to minimize our impact underwater, but even if we make no effort whatsoever to do so, we will never have the impact that development, runoff, fishing and dynamiting have. And if taking those "hassled" photographs subsequently makes even a few people more aware of sea life and conservation, it might even turn out to be worth it.

 

[chillyinCanada]

It really chaps my . . . when I see divers trying to hold or restrain a turtle. How can a diver not know that a turtle needs to return to the surface from time to time?

(Thanks for the info on the Pub to those that provided guidance. I'm not afraid because I cut my teeth in rec.scuba.)

 

[dumpsterDiver]

I think the idea of finding balance is never a bad thing. Just because we dive doesn't mean we have to destroy the things we see, and just because we ride a plane to get somewhere or use any other sort of inefficient transportation doesn't mean we can't be environmentally minded. Some of us weren't born engineers able to fix all the issues in the world but we can make an impact on a small scale by changing our own behaviour. Environmentalism isn't a switch you turn on or off, you don't need to live in the woods and eat moss to be earth-minded and respect the other life on the planet.

You have a very strange way to describe "environmentally minded". So it doesn't matter what we do, but rather how we think?

 

[brnt999]

I think the bottom line that would be hard to argue against, is we owe it to our children not to screw it up so bad they can't enjoy the same things we do.

 

[Bob DBF]

You have a very strange way to describe "environmentally minded". So it doesn't matter what we do, but rather how we think?

Welcome to the new Mellenimum DD. I used to read about this in science fiction but didn't think I'd live to see it, of course I should have gotten the hint from 1984, but I'm slow at times.



Bob
-----------------------------------------
I may be old, but I’m not dead yet.

 

[BDSC]

Probably the only thing I have ever done in my 22 years of diving that may have been questionable was in Cozumel. I was on a night dive with just my buddy and the DM from a local shop. So before we went in he asked if we wanted to help him catch a few lobster and we would have them for dinner back at his house. So we ended up catching maybe 8 or 10 that night and had a feast afterwards! But that's the only time so in 22 years that's not so bad I guess.

 

[boulderjohn]

Enter the pub at your own risk. This statement could describe it....

Abandon hope, all ye who enter there.......

Here is the difference. In this forum, Allison could post that and no one will say anything.

In the Pub, someone would point out in a mocking tone that she misquoted it, and that the more accurate translation would be "Abandon all hope, ye who enter here."

 

[261311]

You have a very strange way to describe "environmentally minded". So it doesn't matter what we do, but rather how we think?

Unless you have a degree in engineering and can design, manufacture and produce environmentally friendly forms of transportation, I'm merely remarking that until someone achieves this, we're stuck with it. I'm not qualified to make change on such a large level so I try and do it on ones that I can impact. I can try and voice opinions about environmentalism, make sure I recycle and influence my purchases towards companies that support what I believe in but I do not have a choice over what airplane I ride on in what airline. They decide that for me, now at a certain point one must ask themselves how environmentally friendly they are. Am I willing to stay at home and sulk next to a tree, or am I willing to take an occasional vacation? I can accept that the world we've grown into isn't yet a sustainable place but I can also try and lower the amount of impact I have on it.

 

[Adam Grose]

Maybe we need to get these guys swimming and hassle THEM *EG*

Adam

I have read some posts from people lamenting that there are not as many fish around on the reefs as there used to be.

I am a new diver but some examples of what I have seen are:

-in Thailand a sea turtle was lying on the bottom. There was 2 buddys diving and one had a video camera. One diver dove down and hassled the turtle from behind causing it to swim away so the other guy could get a good video shot.
-in Thailand there was a couple of cuttle fish lying on the bottom--they looked like rocks. A couple of divers with cameras got real close causing the cuttle fish to move away.
-in Mexico a stingray was lying on the bottom partially covered in sand. The DM swam up to it and touched one wing causing it to swim away.
-in Mexico the DM scooped up this fish that puffed up like a ball and started playing catch with it.
-in Mexico an eel had his head sticking out of his hole and the DM flapped his fin close to its mouth causing it to swim out and try to bite the fin.

I am not a marine biologist but I think its only common sense that if day in and day out the fish are hassled they are going to get stressed out and leave the reef.
Is there not some kind of ettiquette about not hassling the fish?

 

[rmh84]

I don't think that divers depopulate the reef - unfortunately chaging climate and polution do this for us.

I do strongly believe in don't touch/move/harass the sea life though. I've dove with DMs who have learned to move with an animal in order to naturally keep in close for the divers to check out - these are my favorite dives. The most I'll do to "disturb" the sea life is to wave a bit of water their way or something (like with Christmas Tree worms), and I'm even selective with this - no need to hassle things like sea horses, I'd just be thrilled to see one!

I'll even back off from an angry Sargeant Major. They're pretty cute when they're angry - but I also know they're protecting a nest so it's not fair to tease them.

There are a few exceptions to this: I don't really have a problem with legal spearfishing or lobster collecting. I also know of a few creatures that it really does no harm to the creature to pick them up, and really it's great fun to hand one to a new diver (like the Donkey Dung sea cucumbers).

I guess the bottom line is: I feel as divers it's our responcibility to know what the impact of our actions are before handling the creatures. A brief touch to a turtle shell probably won't do it any harm, but drowning it sure will! getting the blowfish to puff up might be fun, but it definitely stresses them and shortens their lives (nevermind that you do risk your own fingers with the big guys!). I adore puffers - they are, strangely one of my favorite types of fish - and I LOVE seeing them stay alive long enough to get really big.