Turtle-y awesome dude: Giants of the deep show all is well beneath the waves with a magical underwater high-five
This amazing image captures the moment two Green turtles seemingly share an underwater high-five.
Known as Shelley and Casey, the happy pair were caught on camera by eagle-eyed photographer Troy Mayne as he swam at Moore Reef, part of The Great Barrier Reef off the east coast of Australia.
The 39-year-old has written a series of 20 children's books, using the images he has taken to bring his stories to life.
This incredible photo captures the moment a pair of green turtles appear to high five each other underwater
He says the large animals which can live up to 80 years old now recognise him when he joins them in the water.
'Since I started writing the books, many turtles have started to show up. I now seem to have many different turtles that I know by name that regularly visit.'
Whilethe creatures are by nature solitary animals, Mr Mayne says groups of them now regularly follow him around when he is on dives.
Green turtles can grow to over a metre in length and up to a whopping 619lbs in weight.
Mr Mayne added: 'It is of course for food that attracts them. I feed them the algae that they naturally eat. I pick it from the reef each day.
'I feed them so much that lots of turtles now visit. Word is obviously getting around!
Called Shelley and Casey, the pair have made their home at Moore Reef - part of Australia's Great Barrier Reef
The photograph was taken by Australian photographer Troy Mayne , 39
Mr Mayne, who took the photos, has written a series of 20 books featuring the turtles and Wally the Maori Wrasse
Turtles are naturally solitary animals but a group of the animals have latched onto Mr Mayne and now follow him around
He said turtles swim right up and even grab old of him to share a hug and when he leaves the water they follow hmi to the end of the pontoon.
He added: 'Despite popularperception they are quite smart. They always have their heads in my pocket trying to get some food out, when I am not looking.
'If I do not pay them attention and feed them, they will give me a little nip to let me know they are waiting.
'I feel so privileged to have the interaction and friendship that I have with these wild animals. They truly are incredible animals.
Mr Mayne used a Nikon digital SLR camera housed in special underwater case to take the photos and incorporated an underwater flash to bring the subjects to light.
He said: 'Many of the photos are just lucky accidents, right place at the right time, but manyhave been painstakingly set up, sometimes taking weeks to get.'
The beautiful patterned turtles both stretch out their long necks as they try to get hold of the same bit of food
The turtles eye each other up while beautiful zebra fish and other tropical species dance around in the warm waters
Mr Mayne says the despite popular perception they are quite smart and are always hunting for food in his pockets
One of the turtles appears to be trying to get some shut eye in this photo taken on a Nikon digital SLR
Many of the photos are just lucky accidents but Mr Mayne says a many others require painstakingly preparation and sometimes taking weeks to get
Like other sea turtles, green turtles migrate long distances between feeding grounds and hatching beaches
Female green turtles crawl out on beaches, dig nests and lay eggs during the night. Later, hatchlings emerge and walk into the water. Those that reach maturity may live to age 80 in the wild
Some green turtles swim more than 1,,600 miles to reach their spawning grounds and mature turtles often return to the exact beach from which they hatched作者: hamtu5168 時間: 2012-9-22 11:17 AM 標題: 圖／超有趣！海龜深海相見 竟相互擊掌說嗨！
