Divers monitoring the waters off Ogden Point’s breakwater at night have filmed a marine ecosystem rich in life and color that coincides with the high tide.
A crew of eight First Nations commercial divers has been monitoring marine life in the waters off south Vancouver Island since February 2020. They are part of the Multi-Nation Environmental Monitoring Project, a collaboration between Songhees, Esquimalt, Scianew and T’Sou ‘. ke First Nations.
The aim of the program is to establish First Nations as administrators of land and water and to uncover the natural history of the ocean floor.
During a recent night dive in the traditional Songhees and Esquimalt area, the crew encountered a playful seal and witnessed the Puget Sound king crab mating ritual.
One of the crew members recorded the interaction and other interesting activities after dark.
“It was a unique treat to see and interact with the seal,” said William (Billy) Mobley VII, a member of the T’Sou’ke First Nations. “It was an incredible rush of adrenaline. I had seen a sea lion before, but that was some distance away. “
While he usually wears a three-layer dry suit and uses oxygen tanks in the cold water, he has seen freedivers in the water next to him, just wearing a wetsuit and a snorkel.
The additional thermal protection means that it can stay in the water longer. He was in the water for about 45 minutes on the dive he encountered the seal. He could have lasted longer if he had been less active and not used up his oxygen to follow the seal, he said.
Since he first posted the pictures on his social media page last weekend, he has received hundreds of likes and has been peppered with questions about what he filmed.
“People seem to like what they saw and want to learn more,” said Mobley, 31. “Seeing a joyful seal game seems like an indication of what is needed at this point.”
He filmed the five clips with a waterproof GoPro camera.
A short documentary film from the program, Finding the Balance by director Steve Sxwithul’txw, was recently screened at the 2021 Victoria Film Festival.
The program is expected to be completed by the end of the month. The crew hopes that a similar program will take place in Saanich Inlet in the near future.
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