Meet the man who has become friends with a wild FISH and now the pair "meet" every summer at the same spot
- 11 months ago
A man has created an unlikely bond with a wild FISH and the pair 'meet' every summer at the same spot.
Rex Colubra, 40, made friends with the fresh water small mouth bass while on a dive in September 2021.
The bizarre encounter ended with the pair becoming friends and Rex even named the fish Elvis.
The pair now see each other every year when Rex travels to the lake where Elvis lives.
Print-shop worker and animal enclosure maker, Rex, 40, has taught Elvis a call that it will respond to and says his 'friend' now gets jealous if other fish get too close to him.
He said: "I even taught him a call. I will do a gulping grunt sound with my throat and he'll come find me.
"Elvis will literally just fight other fish if they get too close to me to keep them away."
Speaking about their first encounter, Rex said: "It was like any other dive I was checking out a new spot and all these fish where coming up to me.
"I noticed one was sticking closer than the rest. He wasn't scared even when I got out. He stuck close to the surface in the shallows."
He returned to the same spot two weeks later and the fish recognised him and approached him.
Rex, from north Wisconsin, USA, said: "Two weeks later, I returned and fed him some crawfish.
"He's completely obsessed with me. He follows me around and just stares me in the eyes."
Rex recognises Elvis because of a scar the fish has on his face, most likely from being caught by a fisherman.
Since the two met, there have been a couple of scares.
Last year, it took Rex a while to find Elvis and he feared the fish had died.
Rex, who refuses to reveal which lake Rex lives in to protect him from fishermen, said: "Of course, I would be sad if he had been caught. He's my friend.
"There's not much I can do to protect him. It's the risk he runs every year.
"I don't like sport fishing. I think it's immoral. If you are going to catch a fish you should eat it and not just put a hook in it."
Rex Colubra, 40, made friends with the fresh water small mouth bass while on a dive in September 2021.
The bizarre encounter ended with the pair becoming friends and Rex even named the fish Elvis.
The pair now see each other every year when Rex travels to the lake where Elvis lives.
Print-shop worker and animal enclosure maker, Rex, 40, has taught Elvis a call that it will respond to and says his 'friend' now gets jealous if other fish get too close to him.
He said: "I even taught him a call. I will do a gulping grunt sound with my throat and he'll come find me.
"Elvis will literally just fight other fish if they get too close to me to keep them away."
Speaking about their first encounter, Rex said: "It was like any other dive I was checking out a new spot and all these fish where coming up to me.
"I noticed one was sticking closer than the rest. He wasn't scared even when I got out. He stuck close to the surface in the shallows."
He returned to the same spot two weeks later and the fish recognised him and approached him.
Rex, from north Wisconsin, USA, said: "Two weeks later, I returned and fed him some crawfish.
"He's completely obsessed with me. He follows me around and just stares me in the eyes."
Rex recognises Elvis because of a scar the fish has on his face, most likely from being caught by a fisherman.
Since the two met, there have been a couple of scares.
Last year, it took Rex a while to find Elvis and he feared the fish had died.
Rex, who refuses to reveal which lake Rex lives in to protect him from fishermen, said: "Of course, I would be sad if he had been caught. He's my friend.
"There's not much I can do to protect him. It's the risk he runs every year.
"I don't like sport fishing. I think it's immoral. If you are going to catch a fish you should eat it and not just put a hook in it."