Everything you see while snorkelling here in the Red Sea is alive. What seem to be dead rocks are actually living corals. A coral reef is made up of trillions of tiny animals that cover themselves with a hard protective outer skeleton. Some corals are soft and look like plants but these are also animals. What you see on the above pictures are all animals! Never touch any coral or underwater creature. This is to protect them from you and you from them. Some corals can sting and burn you; some fish and other creatures can bite or sting when frightened. Both corals and fish have a protective layer of mucus which if removed exposes them to diseases. Just observe. Leave beautiful shells for other snorkellers to see. Don’t feed fish and other animals. It changes their normal behaviour and makes them unafraid of humans. There have been cases where normally docile underwater creatures have turned aggressive, expecting to be fed. Watch your fin movement and try to avoid hanging vertical above a coral reef. Fins do a lot of damage to coral and many snorkellers don’t notice when their fins are touching the reef. Avoid using gloves; you don’t need to protect your hands if you don’t touch anything. And lastly, bring all rubbish back to the shore. Keep the Red Sea clean! Three Golden Rules for Red Sea snorkelling: - Living coral reefs are dying not to be touched.
- Lets’ protect them, not collect them.
- Take nothing but pictures, and leave nothing but bubbles.
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