White tape on fins...What for?

[bgill]

I see on alot of spearfishing shows/videos that most of the spearfishermen/women have either white or prizmatic tape on the backs of thier fins...Usually just a small peice or two...Is this supposed to attract fish or something?

Probably a silly question...but I'm really curious as to why I see it so often...Maybe just a way to identify YOUR fins?

[Fondueset]

Roger that - they put flashers on their fins - guns sometimes soon. Same logic is evidenced in the Omer Ocean camo wetsuits.

[rbsub]

If you dive in water with bad visibility, the white marks with tape can still be seen a little bit more that without. So your buddy can watch you better. It's a safety thing.

That's my idea.

[Bill]

I don't spear fish any more but I use the flashing tape to make myself more visible (for safety). Interestingly, yesterday for the 5th time, in 4 years, that I recall, the dolphins swam over to the rope just after I surfaced. I'm also the only diver that was down when two billfish came over to investigate but it might be the noise of blowing the bubble rings.

[deep thinker]

Apart from safety and all that, does one fin perhaps have more peices or a different pattern than the other?
If so it could be to mark left and right foot fin, a few of my mates here does that

[miles]

Hiya

Be very wary of putting reflective tape on your fisn if you dive is sharky waters. One of my buddy's use to put silver reflective tape on his gun barrel and used it very effectively when targetting yellowtail. How-ever, a young great white shark took a fancy to his "flashing" gun and tried to eat his gun!! Needless to say, he no longer dives with reflective tape on his guns!!

Regards
miles

[Mr. X]

I lost a dive knife first time out & so started putting reflective tape on my gear so that I stood a chance of recovering it I lost it. However, I've got away from that now & tend to go for drab/camo (& I have a mono spring & bungee lanyard to my cheap, flat dive knife to help avoid loss). The "flasher" aspect hadn't really occurred to me (although I did wonder if the oval RA logo on my knife sheath might appear fish-like).

I did come across 2 SCUBA divers vertical, one above the other while coming in from spearing once. I was below them and to the side of them (I had a dive float, but they didn't). They were almost invisible but one had yellow on his fins which is all I could make out at first - fortunately I realised it wasn't a fish. It was enough to get me to unload though.

[bgill]

Thanks for ALL of the reply's....So there are MANY resons why that tape is on the fins!!! Cool....Just like I thought!