Swimming with Whale Sharks, Oslob, Philippines
Whale Sharks in the Philippines Photos and Experiences In the sleepy little town of Oslob in the southeast corner of Cebu Island, whale sharks ( Rhincodon typus) congregate close to shore for a feeding bonanza. But there is something unique about the feeding activity of these gentle giants slurping in sea water and filtering out all the tiny plankton. The method they suck in and filter out the plankton is the same here as it is throughout the tropics where whale sharks can be found. It is where the food is coming from that is different. These young whale sharks are being lured into this near shore water by fishermen tossing in huge handfuls of the sharks favorite food, brine shrimp. Now the fishermen are charging money to take people out to swim with the whale sharks. I talked with a lot of people in the Philippines about this area called Oslob and the impacts of these tours. There is a lot of debate about how the local fishermen are changing the whale sharks behavior an...