An American content creator left the internet in splits after sharing a hilarious, and slightly unexpected, encounter from one of his underwater adventures: getting repeatedly “slapped” by a turtle.
Christopher Chang, known for documenting his dives and close encounters with marine life, posted the now-viral clip on his social media, capturing the bizarre moment on camera.
In the video, Chang was seen floating underwater with a waterproof camera, visibly amused and confused as he told the viewers, “I don’t know what is up with this turtle, it keeps slapping me!”
Moments later, he dived back in to show exactly what he meant. What followed was straight out of a comedy sketch: a turtle casually swam toward him and, without much hesitation, swung one of its flippers straight across his face.
The interaction didn’t appear aggressive, but rather oddly playful. The turtle lingered around him, circling back and repeating the motion, almost as if engaging in some sort of underwater game.
Chang, for his part, seems more entertained than alarmed, continuing to film the encounter while laughing at the absurdity of the situation.
Watch the video here:
The clip gained traction online, with viewers amused by the turtle’s oddly expressive behaviour and the sheer randomness of the moment.
Several users jumped into the comments section with humorous interpretations of the turtle’s actions. One joked that the turtle’s expression looked like it was saying, “you know what you did,” while another quipped, “Was that a slap or a high-five?”
Others chose to see it as harmless fun, suggesting the turtle was simply playing tag with the diver.
Some comments leaned into playful exaggeration, with one user joking, “No one is safe. This is why I only use plastic straws, man,” blending humour with a tongue-in-cheek reference to marine conservation debates.
While the exact reason behind the turtle’s behaviour remained unclear, such interactions were not entirely unheard of in marine environments, where curiosity often drove animals to approach divers.
In this case, however, the “slap” added an extra layer of comedy that turned a routine dive into a viral moment.
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