Emotional anguish and whale shark encounters
Posted By Vladimir Soto on 6 December 2006
Being aware of how little is known about these huge fish, my experience in Mexico was uplifting. The government seems to be keen not only on keeping tabs on the number of whale sharks that come to feed during the summer months on the tip of the Yucatan peninsula but also on making sure protection as needed is offered to them. The tagging project established by the Mexican agency CONANP, National Comission of Protected Areas, called 'Proyecto Domino' (in the area whale sharks are called 'dominoes') has identified over 500 individuals of various sizes. All tour operators are required to have a license to operate and each boat captain is required to fill a sighting form for the day with information such as location, size, and markings. Since only one guide and two snorkelers can be in the water near one shark at a time, at first I thought that would be restricting, but soon I discovered it was far from it. Although the sharks are moving slowly you are moving much more so, even when you think your finning is rapidly burning up last night's enchiladas de mole and pitcher of Tecate. No matter what the latest hi-tech style of fin you have it just can't compare to the amount of water the caudal fin of these giants can move without the slightest strain. And so, remaining close to the shark took quite some effort. (Yet another great excuse to buy myself a dive-scooter...)
There were 10 people on the boat plus the captain and the guide. Both very experienced and knowledgeable about the sharks and the area. We got picked up in Playa del Carmen in a comfy van and were taken to Punta Sam, just north of Cancun and where the ferries are taken to go to Isla Mujeres. From there it took about an hour to get to a point between Isla Blanca and Isla Contoy. We were there around 8am and it didn't take long before we spotted first a couple and then up to twelve whale sharks. Seemingly, plankton gathers at the surface in the morning and this makes for a nice whale shark breakfast.
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