Whale Sharks Spotted

While we did not see whale sharks while scuba diving, two did get close enough to the surface between our dives for us to jump in with snorkels and have a look.  It was not the majestic encounter either of us had envisioned for the opportunity to admire such a magnificent animal, but it was still amazing and likely a once ... well twice in a lifetime moment.

Shortly after surfacing from a 52 minute dive along an outer reef the whale sharks frequent, we headed towards a congregation of tourist and local boats several hundred meters off the stern.  We arrived to a mess of boats and between 60 and 80 snorkelers in the water following a whale shark.  We jumped into the carnage and, after several blows from fins to the sides and noggin, there he was.  But only for about 15 seconds.  Some jackwagon dove down to try to touch the shark and off he went to the depths.

For those not aware, other than a blow from it's snout or tail by stupidly be in a position to receive it from this lazily swimming beast, a whale shark poses no danger.  They feed on plankton and their mouth funnels down to an opening the size of a quarter.  Other than the obvious reason of not disturbing them, I did learn another reason not to touch them from an Anderson Cooper interview of the kid who held onto the dorsal of one in a YouTube video which went viral.  I suspect it could be the last thing I learn from Anderson.  Whale sharks apparently have a slimy film layer that protects them from bacteria.  A human hand will remove this layer.

Another danger not covered in Anderson's segment is excitement.  An overly-excited tourist from another boat jumped in the water sans fins, lifejacket, and the ability to swim.  One of the scuba guides from out boat made the rescue missing out on the whale shark.  Our German head scuba instructor with a French accent quipped "should have left him to see the shark, survival of the fittest".  Joking of course, but probably not really.

Shortly after returning to the boat, another shark surfaced near where we had just completed our dive.  We raced down the reef to that shark to join the snorkel carnage once more.  This time nobody spooked it and we were able to follow him for a good distance.  Awesome despite the conditions.

Best picture I could get of the first whale shark before he went deep.

The rest are all the second whale shark.

Found this guy in our room after returning from our dive trip.
Apparently the resort leaves these for anybody whose seen a whale shark.