Kitesurfing: Marine Life – The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

Kitesurfing is one of the most fun, exciting and enriching ways to explore the oceans of our planet. Gliding and flying across the water propelled by kites to remote locations is fun, but amidst all the excitement, we sometimes forget that we are explorers and guests in an element other than our own. Many of the inhabitants of the waters are intriguing and harmless, but there are many that are not. Here is a short guide to the good, the bad and the ugly that you are likely to encounter throughout your kitesurfing adventures.

The good

The ocean is full of amazing animals to interact with while kitesurfing. Some of the most memorable are sea turtles, dolphins, whales, and flying fish. Encountering any of these animals while kitesurfing will leave you smiling and laughing long after your session is over. Kitesurfing in shallow tropical waters will reveal schools of fish with myriad colors and behaviors that are fun to watch. The shoreline offers crustaceans such as hermit and fiddler crabs that may try to bite your toe, but usually hide when you get close. The shallows offer sea birds such as gulls, pelicans, plovers and cranes. You are part of the flock when hundreds of birds take off from the water right in front of you. There are more fun animals to find than I can mention. There are, fortunately, many more good animals to find than there are bad ones.

The bad

Do not fear, but respect these animals. After all, they don’t want to eat us, they are just survivors in a hostile environment, just like us. In fact, I only label these animals “bad” to emphasize that they have defensive adaptations or reflex behaviors that can potentially harm people. Here’s a crash course in where to look for and how to handle some of these animals.

Stingrays – There are many species of stingrays to observe in the water. They are quite elegant to see in their natural habitat. Large fan-shaped fins propel and glide stingrays through the water. Slender, disc-shaped animals with eyes on the upper part of the body and a mouth on the belly, the rays have two fangs. Stealth is the first method. Stingrays use their fan-shaped fins to dig shallow holes in sandy places. Burying up to their eyes in the sand, stingrays lie in wait for prey or for passing predators. Thus buried, the rays are virtually undetectable to the human eye. Train yourself to look for shallow raised disks under the sand so you can spot the rays while they are buried. If stealth fails, the stripes have defensive behavior. A long, flexible tail, tipped with a barbed spear, often accompanied by a toxin. While this toxin is generally not lethal to humans, it will sting and burn like nothing you’ve felt in years. How to avoid being stung by a stingray. Move your feet in the shallow sands, this will alert the stingray to your presence, and it will scuttle away from you to hide. Also keep an eye out for their telltale round or diamond shape buried just below the surface of the sand.

If you are stung by lightning, what can you do? Before your friend comes up with the popular “let me pee on myself” healing method, there’s something you need to know. Stingray venom is a nerve toxin derived from long-chain proteins. Like other proteins, heat will break it down. If you are bitten, soak the wound in hot but not boiling water for about half an hour. Next, carefully remove any extra spike pieces that may be stuck in the wound. Finally, do not cauterize or stitch the wound unless you must stop heavy bleeding. Cover it with antibiotics and a good Band-Aid. If swelling persists, wrap a sports bandage over the bandage.

Jellyfish: Jellyfish are members of the Cnidaria family. Cnidarians are typically not lethal to humans and have less of an impact than a ray. However, some jellyfish are potentially lethal to humans. Unfortunately, jellyfish are hard to distinguish between good and bad, and identification is compounded by problems because you’re sailing across the water at 25 miles per hour. The best tactic for jellyfish is to look at your local marine hazard websites. These sites often describe what times of the year and where in the world dangerous jellyfish tend to appear. Many beaches have kiosks that describe current local conditions; The rip and current, marine life and pollution levels are important to watch closely if you are a kiteboarder playing in the waves. Scanning the beach will also tell you a lot about what’s going on in the waters offshore.

The ugly: We all risk going out into the ocean. And let’s face it, there are some creatures that we have no advantage over. I’m talking about sharks. I believe that sharks do not normally behave aggressively towards people, and it is quite possible that they are harmless. But they are a big bad predator…you wouldn’t jump into a snowy Alaskan forest with a pack of wolves even if they look cute and cuddly, would you? So watch out for sharks in the water and my advice is to wait until they have passed before getting back in the water.