commercial fisherman for the same species. However, the ultimate losers are the animals being caught. COLLECTING Many thousands of creatures with beautiful shells live under the sea, in tropical and in colder waters. Divers can observe these creatures in their natural habitats, so shell collecting is an activity enjoyed by many divers. Some type of marine animal forms every shell seen under water. If you collect shells with living animals, you are removing that animal from the population and destroying its chances to reproduce. Conscientious divers only collect empty shells. Check that nothing is living inside the shell. It is usually possible to find a good specimen of the shell you want without resorting to collecting a live animal. EXPLORING WRECKS Most divers enjoy the thrill of exploring a sunken ship, whether a fishing boat that sank a few years ago, a warship sunk during World War II, or a mail steamship wrecked during the 1800s. Little can compete with the excitement of finding a new, unexplored wreck. Many divers like to collect artifacts from shipwrecks to decorate their homes. Unfortunately, when you do this, you generally destroy part of the wreck to remove the item from it (figure 8-25). This takes away from the historical value and atmosphere of the wreck. If enough people remove artifacts, the wreck will be reduced to a pile of rubble on the sea floor. Remember that wrecks can be the property of the original owners, or of the group salvaging it. In many areas, removing artifacts from shipwrecks is illegal and violators can lose all of their dive gear and face severe fines. Divers have received stiff fines for removing artifacts in marine parks or state-controlled waters. CLEANING UP THE ENVIRONMENT Many types of trash can be harmful to marine creatures, so you must not dump trash overboard when diving from a boat or carelessly discard it at the beach. Synthetic materials such as plastics can last for years in the marine environment and harm numerous animals. If you buy soft drinks in six-packs with plastic rings holding the package together, you should cut these rings open before you discard them – even into trash receptacles (figure 8-26). This helps avoid the possibility of a marine mammal or bird becoming entangled in them if the plastic is lost. Recycle these rings whenever possible. NAUI Scuba Diver 190 Diving Environment FIGURE 8-25. SHIPWRECKS WOULD BE EASILY DESTROYED IF EVERY DIVER TOOK A PIECE HOME. FIGURE 8-26. CUT OPEN SIX-PACK RINGS TO AVOID THE POSSIBILITY OF A MARINE MAMMAL OR BIRD BECOMING TRAPPED IN THE RINGS.
20490TC
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