Fine these travellers on the starfish enterprise, says guide

[webfact]

Fine these travellers on the starfish enterprise, says guide


Image: Sanook

SATUN: -- A Thai marine guide was furious at three tourists - two Thai one Russian - after they posted pictures of themselves handling starfish on a trip to the Koh Lipe area of Satun in the far south of Thailand.

Guide Thanitsak Thanaraksak posted online himself saying that the tourists had set a very bad example by grabbing the starfish and photographing them both underwater and on the surface reported Sanook.

In fact he was so incensed that he contacted Turatao National Park officials, marine conservationists and even the police to look out for the tourists at the port on the mainland to stop them.

"They should be warned about this behavior, " said an irate Thanitsak, "In fact making them pay a fine would be setting the best example to warn other tourists not to do this."

Source: Sanook

-- 2016-06-14

[casualbiker]

Surely Guides like Thanitsak should do their jobs better and tell the tourists not to do it.. But many of the guides do it themselves!

[DefaultName]

I've handled a few starfish over the years, still had to pay them in the morning though.

[thaiguzzi]

What a headline...

[sanukjim]

They are not harmed by being handled if done so properly. Actually in many places they want you to remove them as they can eat up and destroy a entire coral shelf.

Edited June 14, 2016 by sanukjim

[Ulic]

The starfish will not be harmed by the handling. The same cannot be said for coral and other

marine life. That said, many fishing practices, pollution and boats anchoring in coral are

more destructive than these uninformed tourists.

[gandalf12]

They are not harmed by being handled if done so properly. Actually in many places they want you to remove them as they can eat up and destroy a entire coral shelf.

The rule of diving and snorkeling is "look but dont touch". Take photos if you ave the camera for it but tat is the limit