The use of drones in the observation of marine life demonstrates its effectiveness once again with the video captured off the coast of Hawaii at the beginning of this month of October in which the hunting and defense strategies, respectively, of a tiger shark and a green turtle.
The scene was captured by one of the Kaimana Ocean Safari teams while on one of their regular sightseeing tours just over half a mile from Kealakekua Bay.
Kayleigh Grant, director of this center specialized in nature tourism in Gentry's Kona Marina, has described the scene as spectacular and unusual in these waters. In any case, as a connoisseur of marine life, Grant remembers that it is another example of the “natural process of nature”: the shark looking for food and the turtle fighting for its life.
Kayleigh Grant's team had taken their boat tour along their usual route when they suddenly saw a shark repeatedly hitting a turtle. They started one of the boat's drones and were able to follow the shark's maneuver for several minutes to try to sink its teeth into the softest areas of the turtle. For its part, the turtle tried to stay well oriented to avoid bites on its legs, head or tail. The video spread on social networks shows that the shark bites the turtle's shell several times and leaves signs of the attack but without leading to devouring it.
The shark is big and strong but the turtle's defense "works quite well," Grant explained in statements reported by Yahoo News. In this case, from what can be seen in the images, the turtle survived but, "tiger sharks are prepared to hunt sea turtles; they have very sharp and strong teeth, which are capable of piercing the shell of the turtles," recalls Grant. .
Although a scene like this can lead to defending the victim, Grant remembers that this is an action of nature in which humans should not participate.
"Even if you feel bad for the turtle, it's best to let nature take its course and do what it's supposed to do to keep the ecosystem functioning properly," Grant said. She added that although she had seen something similar at least twice before, she felt lucky to witness it again.
The entire encounter lasted about 10 minutes before both creatures dove deeper into the ocean.
