elizabeth_sockwell's Identifications

Dive site Three Trees, max depth 60 ft / 18 m.

Turns out my stupid charger wasn't actually charging my camera the previous night, so I ran out of battery right before a cool close nurse shark encounter. This photo is from my dive buddy.

I think the guide said this shark is "Scarface," from the chunk missing from its right lip. The shark had a weird pale spine stuck in its forehead, and was rolling upside-down on the sand trying to get it off. After a couple tries the divemaster pulled it out of its head. It was serrated on one edge and looked like a small stingray spine, maybe from a Lemon Ray. This shark was not at all shy and we probably could have taken turns hugging it if we wanted.

It followed us for a bit, and at one point lay down on the sand, which greatly confused the sharksuckers that had been on its stomach. Some of them moved to its back, and others just flopped down next to it on the sand, either right-side-up or upside-down.