Odd Coz growth?

[KidK9]

First don't take this personally, it's a soap box item for me.

Reguarding the use of a knife butt instead of your hands, it is true that this will cause less damage than your hands. However, I would like to point out that knives are not allowed in the Cozumel marine park for this very reason. To keep people from using them on marine life.

As to the other point, scientists do not generally swarm reefs at the rate divers do in Cozumel. The park staff estimates that 1500 divers per day hit the waters in Cozumel. How do you think the reefs would fare if 1500 scientists went down for one little poke?

James

In answer to your question Haole - I don't know what it is.

Next, I won't leave James out there alone. I don't agree with the poking of any sort. As James said, don't take it personally, but I don't think I'm going to see your name on any scientific articles anytime soon regarding Cozumel, and I doubt that you were in Cozumel, "on diving business". Therefore, I would just say, for future reference - take 2 million photographs of the thing...near, far, macro, wide angle, up, down, left, right...etc. But don't touch - at all.

I feel Coz is one of the coolest places on Earth - and in 3 years, have been there 3 times. I'd hate to see stuff start to dwindle due to this attitude. Thanks, again, do not take it personally, I'm not flaming you.

 

[HammerNoMore]

I said it was the rule. I didn't say it was enforced. I've seen plenty of people with gloves in Cozumel as well, though that's the rule also. I've also seen 8 people with 1 DM on the C-53.

You can find info on the regulations here: http://www.cozumeldiveguide.com/regulations.php

James

 

[ggunn]

I didn't know that knives weren't allowed, we even checked with Scuba Du before our first beach dive, to make sure we were in accordance (they only said we couldnt have gloves, which we all expected).
I understand your concerns about not touching sea life, and I think that other than some empty shells (in those large piles of empty conch shells that you occasionally find) I didnt touch anything else.

What made those big piles of empty conch shells, anyway? My guess is that they were made years ago (before the park status) by folks that harvested them for food and dumped the shells from a boat. They all seem to have that characteristic hole up in the spiral part that they cut to detach the conch from its shell.