Eel Hunting..

[willloomy]

Some scuba divers hand feed them which I think is fairly stupid and asking for trouble. It's a bit like they hand feed stingrays in some foreign dive centers. How good an idea is that? Ask Steve Irwin.
Dave.

I believe that the stingrays (if in captivity) have there barbs removed. there are little (and big) morays all over the place where I dive and I have had some small ones approach me while I gut my fish in the shallows it's good fun to feed them some scraps or guts. I've fed some big ones but never with my hands.

As far as congers go I encounter what I assume to be the same one almost every time I night dive at my home spot. he is so calm he'll let me pet him if I approach it slowly enough. You can do the same thing with porcupine fish it's very cool. I don't recommend either btw.

 

[willloomy]

Most definitely--here in Texas I've heard of gear, guns and even boat confiscated--plus a healthy fine (and the potential to lose the right to hunt or fish) for not following regs.

Thats funny because i couldn't find any thing that banned catching eel's (of any kind) on the texas parks and wildlife website and they had 4 species of moray listed for state records.

 

[agbiv]

Didn't mean eels per se. Not many species here large enough to shoot. I was referring to shooting and/or catching illegal or prohibited species and then getting in trouble.

 

[len]

hi
an moray eel is almost completely blind and uses his mouth to taste the scent of u. that is why they always open there mouths when u get close to em, so the loop idea is oke it doesn't need to be invisible at all. how ever if u tangle it around the neck it will probably lash out at the thing it can smell witch will be u :blackeye also a 5 feet moray is similar in strength to a 5 feet anaconda snake so i advice u :naughtymaybe see if u can get the wildboyz to try it :martial

 

[spudlington]

Interesting thread. I have encountered both species many times on scuba and wouldn't really be interested in spearing either. I did have an unusual conger experience a few years ago. Working as a commercial diver I was cleaning salmon farm nets using HP water jets. After only a few minutes my fellow diver gestured urgently for me to surface as he passed me in a blur. On reaching the surface he had pulled off his fullface mask and was well out of the water. A conger had appeared next to him(inside the cage). It had snapped at his water-lance, when he shoved it away it bit at the lance then tried to bite his thigh. A spray of high-pressure water from his lance sent it on it's way and him on a speedy exit from the cage.
We can only assume that an anti-aquaculture fisherman tossed it into the cage weeks prior to this. It was feeding on dead salmon and I assume some of the slower stock too. Unable to curl up in a hole or around anything it was behaving in an un-congerlike way having to freeswim constantly in the strong current. I guess that this combined with the loud noise / vibrations of our HP jets drove it a bit mad.
There followed a standoff for a day or two, the "mort" divers refusing to dive in the cage to remove the morts (dead salmon). Management insisted we remove it and offered a bounty. The farm's employees turned up every morning with new homemade trap contraptions, fishing gear etc but nobody had any success. Meanwhile he was getting bigger on his high protein diet of rotting morts! Eventually we (the cleaning team) said we'd get him. Spearing was ruled out due to the hassle a barbed spear hitting a net housing 60,000 fish could cause, tangles, torn net etc. So armed with sharpened knives and a sharpened garden fork we set sail. Once we spotted him we spent a good portion of the dive trying to net him in the hope we could remove him alive and set him free. This was unsuccessful and just pissed him off with him getting very aggressive and his movements becoming ever more jerky and rapid. Eventually I stabbed him through the skull and immediately drove a second knife up through the underside of his head/mouth. Pushing the handles in opposite directions kept his jaws shut. He did a lot of thrashing and whipping me with his tail as I slowly surfaced, keeping his mouth shut and pointing away from me! Shame to have to kill him but the cage was safe was safe to dive again. Have photos somewhere I think.
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[devondave]

Fascinating story Spud.
Would love to see some pic's please.

 

[foxfish]

Good story with an unfortunate end, pics please.
O and if it was any bigger than 10lb it was a female.

 

[spudlington]

I'll dig out those pics, had a look and can't see them on this laptop.
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[spudlington]

Pics as requested......

 

[Coral Sniper]

Here is one I speared last week, I shot a couple bigger before but the pics are on another computer. They are quite tasty!

I pretty much only shoot these bigger ones when they are free-swimming. Trying to eat my burly mostly. If shot in a hole crutch I feel sorry for the spear!

In the pic below you can see a half eaten grouper, thats what a pair of big moray's did. I had to pull the fish out of there mouths :duh