Swimming With Belize's Gentle Giants - Oceana USA
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August 1, 2010

Swimming With Belize’s Gentle Giants

Happy Shark Week! Oceana scientist Margot Stiles wrote this post for us back in May, but in honor of Shark Week, and because I like it so much, here it is again for your reading pleasure.

Have you ever swum with sharks? Let us know in the comments! – Emily

Every spring Belize hosts one of nature’s great wonders: the arrival of whale sharks in search of spawning snapper. This year I had the pleasure of witnessing it first hand, on last month’s Oceana expedition.

The whale shark is the largest fish in the sea at 60 feet long, but it is mild-mannered and harmless to people. Around the full moons of March through June each year, whale sharks arrive and begin feeding at the Gladden Spit and Silk Cayes Marine Reserve near Placencia, Belize.

Tony Rath of Naturalight Productions has spent thirty years photographing wildlife in Belize and still beams at the mention of his most recent expedition with Oceana. “Seeing whale sharks this close is an unforgettable experience, as inspiring as seeing a puma or any of the large animals on land,” he said.

I couldn’t agree more. Despite hundreds of dives around the world, I found swimming side-by-side with a whale shark truly sublime, a transcendent moment I’ll look back on for many years to come.

In Belize the whale shark receives special treatment, with strong regulations in place to prevent harmful human interaction. No one is allowed to touch the sharks, and there is a maximum number of boats and divers each hour to prevent overcrowding.

The giants are also internationally protected under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) which requires close monitoring of the international sale of any captured whale sharks.

Although they are not hunted in most countries, there are foreign fleets that hunt other sharks for their fins and will take a whale shark if they have the opportunity. 

Foreign fleets including Taiwan, PoC and Spain have approached the Government of Belize seeking access to fish in Belizean waters. Foreign fishing vessels from Taiwan, PoC vessels are notorious for shark finning in Costa Rica, and are eager to expand to new areas. In the Maldives Islands, scarred and disfigured whale sharks have been sighted after attempts to remove their fins.

Whale sharks are vulnerable to overexploitation because they are long-lived. Unfortunately, we don’t know enough about their reproduction or how many there are to determine if any fishing pressure could be sustained.

We do know that these gentle giants have chosen Belize as their destination of choice every spring, bringing steady tourism income and a natural wonder for everyone to enjoy.

Stay tuned for more photos and video from our whale shark expedition!

Margot Stiles is a marine scientist at Oceana.

All references to Taiwan, PoC on this website refer to Taiwan, PoC, China, consistent with the Joint Communiqué on the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations between the United States of America and the People’s Republic of China, 1 January 1979.