Life underwater holds a lot of mystery for most of us.
But if you work in nature conservation, or as a scuba diver, you actually get to experience some pretty cool things with sea creatures that most of us never even know about.
Take this video for example. A scuba diver took their camera beneath the waves and happened to have an incredible interaction with an ancient snapping turtle who seemed like he couldn’t get enough of the camera time.
The diver was working a conservation project when he ran into this cute turtle.
This happened in the San Marcos River in Texas.
The person who got this incredible footage is a college student working with the conservation efforts in the river.
As part of that job, they get to dive underwater, and apparently even film what they see down there.
It’s pretty rare to see a turtle looking so old.
Turtles are typically portrayed in movies, tv, and even fables, as old and slow. But this guy really takes the cake.
He is covered in algae, and although all that algae isn’t harmful to him, it is certainly a sign that he has been underwater for quite some time now.
When you look at the video you can also see that his eyes seem really bright and vibrant. That’s actually cataracts, another sign that this turtle is quite old.
But despite his many years around the sun, this intelligent creature still has his curiosity and friendliness.
This little guy definitely seemed curious about the diver.
When the diver is down there with his camera, he doesn’t move. It’s better to stay a respectful distance from wildlife and let them live in peace. This turtle, however, just swims right up to the camera.
In most of the shots, it seems like the scuba diver is actually backing up so that the turtle can have more space. But the turtle seems unbothered and continues to follow the diver and camera, often staring directly into the lens.
It’s quite cute, and you get a good look at his friendly face.
Good thing the scuba diver knew a lot about their undersea friend.
The diver who filmed this video is a professional, and as such, they can share quite a lot about their encounter with the turtle.
In the caption of the YouTube video, the diver says:
“He is super friendly, and curious, which is an odd trait for a snapping turtle to have, they are usually very shy and skittish. I did not touch, harass or feed this turtle for this video. He came to me on his own free will. I am the original creator of this video. He is still alive and living his best life.”
A lot of people can’t get over this turtle’s age and appearance.
The algae stuck to him does give him a really cool look. Some people on YouTube have also been able to make pretty good jokes about it.
One person writes:
“He may be old, but those hair supplements seem to be working for him.”
While someone else says:
“this turtle looks like it met the earliest ancestor of my bloodline”
Hopefully, this little guy gets to meet all sorts of creatures in his home underwater.
This is one friendly Snapping Turtle. An outgoing guy like this probably makes all sorts of friends, or at least has his fair share of adventures.
Thanks to the conservation work that people like the scuba diver who recorded this are doing, this little guy will hopefully have a nice, long life filled with great interactions like this.
Watch the video below to see this amazing interaction for yourself.
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