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Are you going this year?

Swimming alongside a whale shark is fine; however, touching them will damage the protective mucus layer that protects the animal against bacteria and parasites. Any kind of touching will disrupt their natural behavior and cause them stress.

Swimming alongside a whale shark is fine; however, touching them will damage the protective mucus layer that protects the animal against bacteria and parasites. Any kind of touching will disrupt their natural behavior and cause them stress.

Can you afford it this year?

Unfortunately, from the angle of the camera, it's difficult to see but the swimmer in question was actually about 4 feet left of the whale shark. In the video, indeed it looks like he's swimming directly overtop and impeding the fin. There are guides in the water during the swim and they strongly discourage getting too close. Of course, mistakes happen occasionally, but they definitely try to avoid contact between the whale sharks and humans.

Their throats are actually of a size of a quarter!

GoPro Hero 3

We booked with Canada Transfers (www.canadatransfers.com/). The tour is temporarily not listed on their website because whale shark migration season is only from June to September. The tour option will return when the season gets closer.

Man same here! We are also going in august-septembre. I really wanna do this but I don't want to be eaten by a shark!

We understand your concerns but this activity is pretty safe. For starters, there are "several" boats from varying tour operators. They all congregate in the same area, so there are lots of well-trained professionals watching the water and swimmers. The whale sharks stay extremely close to the surface so it's possible to see them without having to swim/drive very deep. If you're going to see additional marine animals in the water, it's more than likely going to be beautiful manta rays, as they often swim with the whale sharks along the same migration path. The time of your trip is perfect because the migration takes place between June and September. Whichever tour company you choose will prepare you with the rules - no sunscreen because it gets in the water and harms the environment - apparently, whale shark skin is very sensitive. For this reason, they also warn you not to touch them. The only thing we would warn you about is this: if you suffer from motion sickness/sea sickness, it is strongly advised that you get an anti-seasick patch or bracelet because the boat ride has the potential to be rough, depending on the weather. And after they come to a stop near the whales, they will rock back and forth in the water.

My dad and i are planning to go to the Georgia Aquarium next month, i am wanting to see the whale sharks there!

The name whale shark comes from the fact these animals are as big as whales. Plus, like whales, their teeth are too tiny to eat fish so their food source is plankton, krill, and small shrimp. This is eaten by opening their mouths wide, gulping the water, then the water is flushed out their gills so only these small bits of food remain. HOWEVER, unlike whales, they have cartilage instead of bone - making them a true shark. The whale shark is the largest living shark but is a gentle giant.

@@GOGlobeHopper thank you

Whale sharks are filter feeders and can neither bite nor chew. Although its mouth can stretch to four feet wide, a whale shark’s teeth are so tiny that they can only eat small shrimp, fish, and plankton by using their gill rakers as a suction filter.

Tooth fairy got happy