I’ve given a lot of tours in a lot of places, and during all these tours I’ve seen a lot of things, some more impressive than others, some borderline illegal. Want to know what it’s like being a guide? Here’s my perspective on Views of a Tour Guide: Touching Sea Turtles.
Sea Turtles
One of my favorite animals on the planet with a worldwide protected status, sea turtles are beautiful and graceful with a humorous kick. They fascinate and enthrall, love posing for photos, and are often considered one of the top things to see while snorkeling. (Don’t Believe Me?)
There are 7 different species of turtles in the world’s oceans (or possibly eight), each with their own qualities, habitats, diets, appearances, and vulnerability statuses. The 7 (or 8) species of sea turtles are:
- Green
- Hawksbill
- Leatherback
- Loggerhead
- Kemp’s Ridley
- Olive Ridley
- Australian Flatback
Different cultures around the world respect and live with sea turtles in their day to day lives, and have unique perspectives on these ancient sea beauties.
- In Hawaiian, sea turtles are called “Honu” and have a long relationship with Hawaiian culture
- Bermuda is widely considered to have passed the first sea turtle conservation law
- In Japan, sea turtles are called “minogame” and symbolize happiness
- Indigenous societies in Australia, Papua New Guinea, and countless others have long sustained themselves with the bounties sea turtles can bring
Though I’ve seen a couple different species of turtles, the turtles I see most frequently when leading reef exploration trips are green sea turtles.
Green sea turtles are abundant throughout the world’s tropical and subtropical oceans, preferring sea grass beds for grazing and lying about why they’re called green.
Touching Sea Turtles
Don’t.
But more specifically, not under any circumstances should you be touching a sea turtle. If a turtle swims towards you, back away, keep your hands to yourself, and enjoy the view.
Oh, but what do you do if you spot a sea turtle and want to swim towards it? Great! You can definitely swim towards turtles to get a better view, so long as you keep your distance. There is nothing wrong with trying to get a better view; there is something wrong with harassing, coming too close, or altering a sea turtles natural behavior.
The most responsible behavior, for you and the turtle, is to be invisible. Float at the surface, dive next to them, but never touch them, steer their natural swimming direction, or make aggressive and quick movements.
But Why?
Sea turtles are protected around the world, and for good reason: they are endangered around the world. Touching sea turtles causes unnecessary stress by altering their natural behavior, interrupting how they eat, swim, and sleep. Altering behavior by touching sea turtles can cause them to bite, force them to flee, or scare them away for good. This is bad for the turtles, and it’s unsafe for snorkelers, too.
Therefore, nobody, not even your guide, should be touching sea turtles while on a snorkeling tour. Your tour guide should explain this and help you get the best experience possible without disturbing the wildlife. After all, that’s what a good guide is supposed to do.
*Your tour guide should never demonstrate or encourage unsafe or unethical wildlife encounters. Never touch, feed, harass, or alter a wild animals natural behavior, including sea turtles.
