Brave sea turtle shows up to visit scuba divers at shark dive

Hawksbill sea turtles are usually solitary and reclusive animals. They are beautiful and graceful, and a thrill to see in their natural habitat, but divers usually see them from a distance. To encounter one close up is a very memorable experience.

These divers were shocked to see a large hawksbill sea turtle on a shark dive. They had entered the water at a sea mount in the open Pacific Ocean in Papua New Guinea. This volcanic pillar was a known spot that was inhabited by silvertip reef sharks. Divers made their way to a ledge 70 feet beneath the waves and perched themselves to get a close up look at the seven foot sharks. Out of the blue, this turtle swam directly at one of the divers and peered directly into her face before drifting over her head only a few inches above her. The scuba diver looked up in amazement at the underside of the turtle as it drifted gracefully past her.

Amazingly, the turtle was unconcerned by the large sharks circling around the divers, looking for food. It seems that a slow moving turtle might make an easy meal for a large eating machine like these sharks. But just as surprisingly, the sharks were not interested in the turtle either. Sharks are much more agile than turtles and many species of sharks prey on turtles as they swim to the surface for air.

You can't help but admire this turtle's bravery as it swam among the sharks without fear!