Croc Hunter pushed his luck
Like millions worldwide I was saddened to hear that Steve Irwin, the Crocodile Hunter, had been killed by a stingray while diving. No-one enjoyed his shows more than me, but it must be said that over time he was pushing his luck, and like other viewers, I've watched as he threw his weight around, gung-ho fashion, in the environment of dangerous species.
The incident when he fed a chicken carcass to a crocodile as he held his baby son Bob in his arms, after which he remarked that the child was "In no danger", was one such example. What if he'd tripped and dropped the child? The crocodile, a formidable predator, would have eaten him.
On his fatal dive he had moved across this usually timid creature, who probably thought he was about to "hitch a ride", as is done by many divers.
When we enter the "living room" of marine wildlife in particular, we do so as uninvited guests and this privilege ought not to be abused. When we enter the house of a friend, do we have the right to move their furniture around, give them a prod, or take a "piggy back"?
Twenty years ago, while on a diving expedition on a shipwreck in the North Sea, my buddy (diving companion) was prodding crabs and I reprimanded him.
A year later, diving in the same region off the Northumberland coast, but with a different buddy, we descended in clear visibility on a cliff covered with millions of sea urchins - the colours were unforgettably beautiful. My buddy brought up a live specimen in his goody-bag, when there were many sea urchin skeletons to be found as souvenirs. On surfacing, I reprimanded him on the dive-boat, to which he replied: "We are the superior species." I said: "Are we really?!"
Divers ought to keep their distance and look but don't touch - they are indeed a privileged minority and this privilege is abused at their peril.
Graham R Payne, Pargeter Court, Walsall.
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