Swiming With Whale Shark Pictures
- Thread starter Palancarpets
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Palancarpets
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As stated taken in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Louisiana. It is a good chance the people in the boat are some fishermen in a privately owned boat out on a weekend fishing trip and got some memories that will last a life time.
03sonicstang
Member
Beautiful Whale Shark...now the gentlemen "trying" to ride her...not so beautiful!!
hotrodolds
New member
awesome pictures
people need to chill about the guy in the water with it. As was said if that thing cared in the least it had the whole ocean to get away.
people need to chill about the guy in the water with it. As was said if that thing cared in the least it had the whole ocean to get away.
biocube386
New member
Wow what a lucky experience! Those sharks were so neat at the GA Aquarium, could not imagine swimming with them but... Why get on that guys case for swimming with that? like for real? didnt look like he was prepared for it so why not take the oppurtunity to get in the water, i mean that shark is like 20' long i highly dought it was in any pain from him "holding" on to him! Like what was said earlier that shark could of swam away at anytime but didnt and its not like it couldn't.
yousmellsfishy
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Good point
SeaJayInSC
New member
Heh. +1.
Annually I attend (since so many of my clients do) a big shindig put on by the "Coastal Conservation Association." ( http://www.joincca.org ) It's a large group of recreational fishermen who are eco-minded, and they use the large membership to stay politically active. They do their best to ensure that licenses, limits, laws and rules work in their favor. Officially, their objective is to "conserve and protect" species of fish, and usually they are involved in projects that appear to be eco-friendly, like the "Save the Redfish" campaign and a variety of projects that include starting scientific studies and building artificial reefs.
...Of course, this is so that they can catch and kill them. :blown:
...Not that this is the same thing, but there does seem to be a lot of irony when it comes to people being on the water. The idea behind "please don't ride the animals" is rooted in the fact that the animal may view the rider as a threat, and may attempt to defend itself. Even if it simply tries to flee, there's no point in stressing the animal out and causing it undue fear.
In these photos, the animal is clearly unstressed and nonchalant about the human (and has an escape route), so I don't see an issue with anything in the photos.
As I mentioned before, my hope is that the interaction had a significant impact on the human's mindset. Perhaps he'll reconsider inflicting the cruel death of yanking a fish out of it's breathing medium by it's lips and allowing it to suffocate to death in the icebox.
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Wow, that's amazing. They are such beautiful creatures!
Ron Reefman
Active member
I'm not sure I would have jumpped in either, but what great photos! The only whale sharks I've ever seen were at the Georgia Aquarium! Ha!
Ron
Ron
Squanto804
New member
Nice Pictures!
SeaJay your comments about fisherman are a joke. Unless you are a full blown vegetarian, or better a vegan, I take offense to your statements about us being "killers" and "hunters". As if this is done with no respect for the creature we engage. As an avid spearfisherman, freediver, and occasional deep sea fisherman, I do take great offense to your ill-thought out statements about fisherman. So, please inform us if you're a full blown veg-head. Further more, I hold a great respect for the ocean and the creatures with in it. Before every kill, I observe the animal, I stalk the animal, and on a personal note I pray about the life I am about to take. I, as well as many other hunters/fisherman take only what is necessary, and eat everything we can from the animal so that nothing is wasted. Its not that cruel of a death, more often than not the fish is put out of its misery immediatly, and on top of that, the most humane way to kill a fish is by freezing it, that is painless for the creature. It is the most commonly used form of "putting down" a sick fish in our hoby. Seach some forums for that one if you dont believe me. Lastly, I am almost finished with a degree in Marine Biology from Cal State Long Beach, so you can be sure that Im not just some joker barking up the wrong tree, and please, what is the differeance of nature eliminating certain fish. Is it not cruel for a sea lion to be ripped apart by a shark? Surely you must not agree with that, since the shark hunts and kills the sealion for no other reason than it likes the taste of sealion, and often injuring it for a prolonged amount of time before actually killing it. And incase you're an expert on the whale shark, you shouldnt suggest that the creature is "CLEARLY" not distressed in any manor, Id like to know how you came to this conclusion from the photos posted above. Were waiting for your answer.
-clay
-clay
SeaJayInSC
New member
Wow, Clay.
In the past several weeks, I have heard several of my/other divers or clients say the phrase, "It is what it is," which is an implication that a fact is a fact, and that the fact is not the responsibility of the person who points it out. For example, if a person says, "The sky is blue today," the response may be, "It is what it is." If another says, "The working dive took me three hours instead of the one and a half that we'd estimated," the response may be, "It is what it is." I heard it in reference to some of the high estimates that I gave on some of the jobs that I've done this past month... There was a ton of work to be done underwater, and even after doing my best to cut costs and reduce the amount, the clients said, "It is what it is," and then paid the bill.
Nobody likes to have the obvious pointed out - it's either annoying (everyone already knows it 'cause it's obvious) or painful to accept (a high bill to pay, a lot of work to be done, or something that doesn't go your way). So I completely understand that my comments offend you. I, too, have been offended before, and it's not a pleasurable thing.
Nonetheless, if you are stalking (your words) an animal and killing it, by definition that makes you a stalker and a killer. If you are hunting an animal either by gun or fishing pole, that makes you a hunter. It is what it is, my friend.
Do not be angry with me for pointing out the obvious. If you do not like the label hunter or killer, then stop hunting or killing.
My diet is not the crux of your issue.
In the past several weeks, I have heard several of my/other divers or clients say the phrase, "It is what it is," which is an implication that a fact is a fact, and that the fact is not the responsibility of the person who points it out. For example, if a person says, "The sky is blue today," the response may be, "It is what it is." If another says, "The working dive took me three hours instead of the one and a half that we'd estimated," the response may be, "It is what it is." I heard it in reference to some of the high estimates that I gave on some of the jobs that I've done this past month... There was a ton of work to be done underwater, and even after doing my best to cut costs and reduce the amount, the clients said, "It is what it is," and then paid the bill.
Nobody likes to have the obvious pointed out - it's either annoying (everyone already knows it 'cause it's obvious) or painful to accept (a high bill to pay, a lot of work to be done, or something that doesn't go your way). So I completely understand that my comments offend you. I, too, have been offended before, and it's not a pleasurable thing.
Nonetheless, if you are stalking (your words) an animal and killing it, by definition that makes you a stalker and a killer. If you are hunting an animal either by gun or fishing pole, that makes you a hunter. It is what it is, my friend.
Do not be angry with me for pointing out the obvious. If you do not like the label hunter or killer, then stop hunting or killing.
My diet is not the crux of your issue.
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