Skewering a spearfishing photograph

In “Going Overboard on the South Shore” (April 13), author Jeffrey Selin writes of how beautiful the marine and bird sanctuary is, yet there is a picture of a young man “with a moray eel he speared while snorkeling at Ulua Reef.”

Those of us who are scuba divers and snorkelers realize how irresponsible it is to spear fish (especially moray eels). The picture represents all that is bad about spearfishing.

If each diver or snorkeler took one item from the sea, whether it be a fish, a shell or a sea fan, soon the sea would be as empty as a bathtub.

Please, take only pictures, and leave only bubbles!

Anthony Petrucelli

Fountain Valley

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I found The Times’ choice of pictures to support Selin’s article on snorkeling in Hawaii especially distasteful. It’s irresponsible to represent snorkeling in this light.

Snorkeling is about observing sea life, not killing it. Many marine reserves that allow snorkeling won’t even let you enter the water with suntan lotion on.

Keep those kinds of snorkelers in the city, where they can’t do any damage to precious natural resources.

Bryan Crisfield

Redondo Beach

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Your Maui articles have expanded our horizons every year. However, using a photograph of a smug spearer was a bizarre counterpoint to a great article.

I would rather have seen Selin’s last picture from his underwater camera.

Barbara Firmani

Seal Beach