I had never gone snorkeling with so few fish as I did in Malapascua, Philippines. With that said, the water was clear and we had a great group and our first ever encounter with a Sea Snake!
I’ll post about the Sea Snake soon, but in the meantime, here are some fun pics from our snorkeling experience below.
With hardly any fish and great visibility, we mostly just played. Our international group of friends were from Italy, Sweden, England, Holland, and the U.S.
Is there good snorkeling?
I adore the Philippines and was excited for a snorkeling trip.
If you’re wondering, is there good snorkeling in Malapascua? That depends on your perspective, but I’d say no. If you’re looking for clear water, it’s wonderful. If you’re looking for lots of fish, I don’t recommend it. With that said, I had an amazing time!
Once we got over the disappointment of not seeing fish, we had a fun photo shoot in the clear waters of Malapascua.
Gabbi had her blade ready, just in case we saw a single fish on our adventure. Unfortunately we did not.
the only fish we saw in two hours of snorkeling
Ian was ready with little pieces of bread in a bottle to feed the non-existent fish.
Ian was ready with little pieces of bread in a bottle to feed the non-existent fish.
Peppi loved how clear the water was everywhere we went!
Note, don’t touch the sea snakes. They’re incredibly poisonous and dangerous. Ahhhh!
Sea Snake in Malapascua Philippines Visit50 Feb2011
Malapascua is mostly known for the thresher shark diving – if wondeing what that is, I’ve got you covered, with a full post outlining all you’ve ever wanted to know about thresher sharks.
I’ve also put together a post on the rest of Malapascua island, which I absolutely loved! The whole island is just 1.5 miles long (2.5 KM) and only a little more than a half mile wide (1 KM wide). You can walk the entire island in less than 2 hours
Imagine snorkeling with Whale Sharks! They’re the largest fish in the sea, and they migrate right through The Philippines annually. It provides a perfect opportunity to see whale sharks up close. You can also get in the water and actually swim and snorkel with them. Swimming with whale sharks. Wow!
Swimming with Whale Sharks!
Firstly, I’ll share their size and what they eat. Secondly, you might be wondering if they’re dangerous. Thirdly, I’ll show you how close you can get. In addition, I’ll share photos about my experience swimming with whale sharks too.
impressive whale shark photo by Joe Newman
How big are Whale Sharks?
Huge. The first one we saw while snorkeling was about 20 feet long; they can grow to the size of a school bus! Average size is more than 30-feet and 20,000 pounds. They can grow much larger; a whale shark caught near Taiwan in 1994 was 79,000 pounds, and that’s not even the largest ever! (catching whale sharks is now banned)
Is a Whale Shark a Whale or a Shark?
It’s a Shark. It’s a whale-sized shark. Rhincodon typus – the largest fish species still around (I just learned the term is “extant” – the opposite of extinct)
Imagine snorkeling and seeing this whale shark just a few feet below you!
How close can you get?
Very close (see below photo). I was in the water swimming with whale sharks, and they were so close that I didn’t even see the whale shark at first because I was too close.
On my whale shark snorkel trip, I looked down and only saw cloudy water. Then my friend Julian pulled me over a few feet so I was directly over the dorsal fin. OMG. I learned that the water wasn’t cloudy. Those were spots on the shark about 5 feet below us. If I accidentally went vertical I could have nearly kicked it with my fin! [see below photo]
Notice the little snorkel fins at the top of this photo – we were this close to this massive whale shark!
photo by Adam Brill – he captured the mouth open
Is it safe??
Yes! They’re rather docile and aren’t bothered by humans swimming around them.
grainy close-up of the whale shark dorsal fin.
Do you need to be in a cage?
Nope! We went in the water with massive whale sharks without a cage. Lucky for us, they have no interest in eating us.
What do Whale Sharks eat?
Lucky for us, their favorite meal is plankton and tiny fish near the water’s surface. They eat algae and microscopic plants. Their mouths are 4-5 feet wide with 300 teeth (which play no role in eating). It’s a filter feeder – they leave their mouth open for small fish and the clouds of eggs and sperm during mass spawning.
closeup of the whale shark’s mouth – I swam ahead to take this, which was a little scary
How fast are they?
They weren’t moving fast at all – slow enough that we went snorkeling with the Whale Shark for about 20 minutes before he swam off, and then found another for about 35 minutes. This is a reeeeally cool experience!
Whale Sharks have 5 large pairs of gills. I was enamored by the pattern of bright spots
Whale Sharks are also known as –
Whale Sharks are called “butanding” in Donsol, Philippines, where I was. They’re called “pez dama” in much of Latin America. They’re called “Sapodilla Tom” in Belize, named after the area of the Belize Barrier Reef where they’re often seen. In Vietnam, where the whale shark often known as a deity, it’s called “Ca Ong.”
Whale Sharks have tiny eyes on the side of the massive flat heads
Where can you go Snorkeling with Whale Sharks?
I went snorkeling with whale sharks in Donsol in the Philippines. It’s a known migration area. You can also do it nearby in Cebu.
There are lots of places to find, see, and swim with Whale Sharks. Near the US, I’ve read about sightings in Mexico (in Holbox and Isla Mujeres), Belize, Puerto Rico, Panama (Isla Coiba), Honduras (the Bay Islands), and more.
Other places to swim with whale sharks
Other places to see whale sharks according to wikipedia and the book Sharks of the World: Thailand, the Maldives, Western Australia (Ningaloo Reef, Christmas Island), Taiwan, Tofo Beach in Mozambique, Sodwana Bay (Greater St. Lucia Wetland Park) in South Africa, the Galapagos Islands, the Seychelles, West Malaysia, islands off eastern peninsular Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Oman.
photo by Elias Levy, who has lots of other great shark pics on his Flickr
When to go whale shark snorkeling?
This depends on which location you choose. We went to Donsol in the Philippines in late March. This is ideal. The peak time to see whale sharks in Donsol is February through April. Whale shark season is from December to May.
What kind of boat do they use for whale shark snorkeling?
The boat has a design custom for these whale shark snorkeling trips. First we all get on this little platform. Then a spotter locates a whale shark. Next, we drop in for snorkeling. With my snorkel trip, just as we jump in someone yells “Free Willy!” (from the movie)
hmm… maybe I took a little too much
How to photograph whale sharks
Learn how to photograph the distinctive patterning and scarring on whale shark here. To clarify, these are used to uniquely identify individuals for long-term, mark-recapture analysis.
From snorkeling partners to new friends:
You can also make some great friends! For example, my whale shark trip included an international mix. I went with Gabbi (from Sweden). I met up with Julian and Christie (from Germany), and we met Sarah there. All four are now friends!
I traveled with Gabbi all over the Philippines, and later visited her in Sweden.
After meeting Sarah that afternoon, we later met up to travel throughout Vietnam
I originally met Julian and Christie in Borneo. We went on to meet up in Singapore and all over the Philippines.
Then the four of us went on to meet up in Boracay, one of our favorite parts of our trips. Awesome!
Searching for whale sharks with Julian from Germany, Gabbi from Sweden, and Sara and Denmark
Getting ready for whale shark snorkeling in tiny Donsol, in The Philippines
In conclusion, swimming with whale sharks is an amazing and memorable experience. You’re swimming with whale sharks! It’s definitely an experience you’ll never forget. Therefore I definitely recommend it!
Swimming with whale sharks in Mexico
Here’s more info on going swimming with whale sharks in Mexico in Isla Mujeres (a short ferry from Cancun) from Jack and Jill Travel.
If you’re craving even more photos, I also enjoyed these photos of snorkeling with whale sharks here: 1
