Underwater Photographer Escorts Friendly Fish to Safety

An underwater photographer guided a friendly leatherjacket fish to the safety of a coral-covered pier pylon after the fish had clung to him in open waters in Port Phillip Bay, Victoria.

The fish nestled against the photographer’s gloves and equipment as it was guided to safety. Freediver and keen photographer Jules Casey caught the moment on camera, sharing it to Instagram on May 5.

“It was not leaving the protection,” Casey’s diving buddy was providing, she wrote, adding that her friend swam toward “the nearest pier pylon so [the fish] would have a safe place to hang out.”

Casey is based on the Mornington Peninsula, which is on the shores of Port Phillip Bay, Victoria. She often posts footage of what she sees below the waves at Port Phillip Bay to her OneBreathDiver Instagram account, where she has over 90,000 followers.

Casey’s work notes both interesting marine life, as well as dangers posed to underwater creatures by water pollution. Credit: Jules Casey via Storyful