Feeding Fish
 

What is a safe food to feed fish while snorkeling?

Anything except Ladyfingers, seriously though we have found stale bagels work nicely.

Dog biscuits - it's neat to hear the crunch/grind noises when the little guys chisel off a piece.

Be ready to be swarmed...

Squeeze cheese from the can works well, but they didn't go for frozen peas in St. John last week.

Happy snorkling! Trish

I second the opinion from tpraticco. I do underwater reef surveys, and found that cheez-whiz, from an aerosal can, works quite well. Easy to tuck in a swimsuit pocket. I may advise, though, the grunts, yellow-tail snapper, angel fish, and tang really go for it. It is an abnormal "frenzy" which they create, and I think you can fill in between the lines. Yes, predator fish will be attracted, too. Sharks and barracuda may make passes, for the pickings are easier with such a mass of food items. One time, there were so many fish, in the hundreds, surrounding my arm and the cheez-whiz pouring out of the aerosal can, that I couldn't be seen! They came from everywhere. I sensed what could happen, and took my finger off the spray nozzle, and they backed off. I'd hate for a hungry barracuda or usually-diver friendly caribbean reef shark to charge in and not notice me amongst their prey. So, spray sparingly, and keep yourself visible! Robert

Don't feed the fish! They turn into pests and hardly anything we give them won't be proper fish food. Canned cheese is about the worst. Depends on how many fish you'd like to kill?

Scubamom; Actually, you're right. I only use it to attract fish AFTER I do reef surveys, to see if any species weren't ID'd. Yes, if it gets to be a habit, and fish are continuously artificially fed at certain dive sites, it will impact on their normal feeding habits. Robert

ScubaMom is right, I've read many guides that request that fish not be fed while snorkling. It promotes agressive behaviors in the fish that are not normal in their habitat. The best policy is to look and enjoy, but avoid doing things to either destroy the habitat, or cause unnatural changes to it.

Interesting, but Stuart's Cove dive and snorkeling operation on South Ocean on New Providence (Nassau), took us on a snorkeling trip to Goulding's Cay. On the way back, we stopped at the Bahama Mama wreck, and snorkeled over it while chum was lowered in a bucket. After we watched the Caribbean Reef Sharks make short work of the chum bucket, 20 feet below us, they had us crawl back onboard the dive boat. They threw in buckets of round, dry dogfood-looking pellets, which the yellow-tail snapper, grunts, and many other reef fish devoured. Then, the reef sharks were attracted to the surface and zoomed into the mass of reef fish for an easy meal. This is definately not an au naturel event for the complicated reef system to endure. Since they make at least two such trips each day, I'm assuming they continuously artificially feed the reef fish. The sharks "hang out" around the Bahama Mama wreck, and I wonder what would happen if the artificial feeding were suddently curtailed? Robert

We just got back from Negril Jamaica & there was a notice posted on the snorkeling boat about proper care of the environment. It said not to feed fish. I was told that bread has been used by some people to attract fish.

We were saddened by the condition of the reef where we went. My husband snorkeled by Montego Bay about 30 years ago. He said it has really been hurt by progress. We saw very little colors in the coral & no "exotic" creatures. The good thing is that the resort is aware of the problem & trying to make it better.

i always use a banana

besides the fact that i think we should interfere with natural processes as little as humanly possible, i don't like the idea of any creature with big teeth looking at me as a source of food. there's a great snorkeling spot in Aruba where people have been feeding the giant blue parrotfish mushy white bread. as a result, it's very hard to get into the water without these big boys nipping around your fingers (etc) looking for a "hand"out.

At Coral World, right next to Coki Beach in St. Thomas, the sell dog biscuits specifically for fish feeding.

Fish are not like land animals which could become a problem by equating humans with food. Bears, skunks, and raccoons are example.

Ain't no fish gunna follow me home or rip through the dumpster looking for biscuits.

PC bull gone amuck.

MM