58 DAHLAK 



frighten him for a second, a second that got me out of range 

 of his lunge, and sent me to look for molluscs elsewhere. 



But to return to our day at Dissei. We pointed the tiller 

 towards the same part of the island we had visited the day 

 before, heading slightly further south. The coast was still 

 steep and the madreporic shelf wound in and out from the 

 shore more or less following the coast line. The shelf never 

 approached nearer than thirty yards and was never further 

 than a hundred yards from the island. 



Suddenly we saw those thin clear fins again ! But however 

 many were there ? Dozens ! In the shallow water they crossed 

 and recrossed each other, then circled widely over the deep 

 and returned. Now or never! Priscilla remained at the oars 

 while we three dived into the blue. It was a solemn moment. 

 We headed in battle order towards the coral reef hoping to 

 cut off the mysterious herd from their escape into the deep. 

 Gigi on the left, Cecco on the right, me in the middle with 

 the gun adapted for *big game'. A twenty-four-yard-long 

 nylon cord had been attached to the arrow of this gun, at 

 the end of it a float, one of the inner tubes from my car. The 

 idea was this: the float would mark the whereabouts of a 

 captured fish that was too big and strong to be held by a 

 man, and that had already broken the short cord that 

 joined the arrow to the gun. First and foremost, it would 

 show the whereabouts of the fish, secondly it would tire the 

 wounded animal quickly and prevent its vertical immersion 

 — an important point this, as it completely eliminated the 

 danger of losing interesting specimens, to say nothing of 

 preventing their escape to a lingering death. It was a system 

 that worked admirably until it failed. And with a manta of a 

 hundredweight it did fail, miserably. 



So in formation, our hearts thumping, we circled the herd, 

 although we were still unable to see them. This time, by 



