How to get used to sea life (relatively big ones)

[VCO]

I love the sea and diving . Luckily I have access to sea all around the year . Its kind of shallow 5-6 m and unfortunately visibility is mostly not so good ~3 m .

Today I jumped in to practice equalizing my ears and just snorkel around .
Im fine with smaller sized fish up to 20-30 cm, crabs etc I just watch them swim around.

But today suddenly I have seen something big coming to me brownish color . On a second I realized bunch of ray fish flying towards me and they scared the shit out of me

I dont know which one was faster, me swimming to shore or them turning around after seeing fins like crazy . Lol....

I really need to sort this out as I dont have much control what swims around

 

[Bill McIntyre]

Rays, like most creatures you'll see, can't hurt you.

If its any comfort, I've been diving since the early 1950s and nothing has harmed me yet.

The most likely cause of death while diving is drowning, and that is largely under your control.

 

[DerekB]

Education is the key to removing fear. With long fins on, we are some of the largest looking predators in the sea. Most animals are going to be more afraid of us. Even a 12 ft tiger shark will think twice if we swam directly at it.

Knowing what these sea life eat will help. Rays eat crustaceans, crabs and such. why would you be afraid of something that eats bugs? ( rhetorical question)

Likewise stop and watch their behavior. You will find all marine animals are just trying to live, and don't want to harm you.

 

[TFeatherly]

Rays are incredible, beautiful, giant flying mushrooms and generally very intelligent and curious. They are probably more scared of you than anything or regard you as just another being in the ocean. My guess is that you freaked out because you weren't expecting what you saw and given the low visibility, experienced panic which is sometimes difficult to move past. Getting used to being in the water with large creatures is something that will come naturally once you get more comfortable with YOURSELF in the water, and confident in your skills. I would suggest going to a swimming pool and practicing (ideally with a trained buddy or lifeguard near) snorkeling. Bring your gear, practice snorkeling in different body positions, swim underwater with fins, snorkel without a mask on, practice equalizing.. you get the picture.. and practice low visibility diving.. fog up that mask a little and swim around in it with people in the pool. Pool swimming can get boring, but it puts you in a safer space where you can really hone those skills. (also if you can afford it... take a class in freediving ?)