Whale Sharks are the biggest fish on our Planet, reaching as much as 20 metres in length and weighing up to 40 tonnes. Their spot patterns make them a thoroughly beautiful sight, with each shark displaying a unique spot pattern.
Aqua-Firma has been sponsoring Whale Shark Research and Conservation around the globe since 2005. The inspiring and dedicated researchers we support often join us as hosts on our Whale Shark Research experiences, with locations spanning Madagascar, Mexico, Tanzania and the Galapagos. Whilst Jacques Cousteau managed to swim with just two whale sharks in his lifetime, our ever-growing knowledge about these sharks helps us to pinpoint the best locations and timings to operate these Ocean Giant Expeditions.
Whilst our Whale Shark Research expeditions provide great opportunities to swim with and film / photograph whale sharks, you will be joining our expert teams in action, learning the very latest about the these Ocean Giants from our researcher's armoury of satellite tags, DNA analysis, drones and individual shark identification through analysis of their unique spot patterns.
Each location we go to has its own 'bycatch' that we make sure to integrate into these experiences. In Tanzania, we can explore some of East Africa's best preserved and most diverse coral reefs. In Madagascar, our timings coincide with Humpback Whales migrating up from Antarctica and forests where we can find lemurs, chameleons and more of this country's unique fauna and flora. In Mexico, we are often amongst a potential new species of Manta Ray; whilst in the Galapagos, we come nose to nose with marine iguanas, blue footed boobies, playful sealions and giant schools of hammerhead sharks.
In Mexico, Madagascar and Tanzania we find whale sharks when they are feeding at, or close to, the surface of the water. Consequently, all of our interactions are by snorkelling. In the Galapagos, we find whale sharks at sites where we would only take experienced scuba divers by dive liveaboard.
Whilst our interactions with whale sharks may often be close on our research experience, we maintain respect for their space at all times, operating according to a code of conduct determined by the researchers who accompany our trips.
