Indonesia’s whale sharks boost villagers’ earnings
LIMITS NEEDED: Although tourism is a boon for villagers, other people worry constant feeding could disrupt natural behavior and pose health risks for the whale sharks
Reuters, GORONTALO, Indonesia
Passengers gasp in delight as Ansar Lasimpala, 47, maneuvers his glass-hulled boat toward the large, dark shadow of a whale shark gliding under the waters off an Indonesian beach.
Once a backwater where fishing was the only source of income, Ansar’s village of Botubarani has turned into a tourism destination for those keen to interact with the whale sharks, which are the world’s largest fish species.
“I have a more relaxed job now and the income is fairly good,” Ansar said.
Boats float near a whale shark while a guide swims nearby carrying bait at Botubarani Beach in Bone Bolango Regency, Indonesia, on July 30.
Photo: Reuters
Ansar — who earns up to 3 million rupiah (US$165.81) a month, far more than the 400,000 rupiah he formerly made as a fisher — is one of about 80 villagers benefiting from the tourism boom by offering boat rentals, diving services and use of drones.
Video clips depicting a cluster of about a dozen whale sharks appearing together in 2016 sent the village viral on Facebook.
“It’s a very big animal, so it’s really an exceptional experience,” Dutch tourist Renee Westerbeek said after snorkeling with the fish.
Westerbeek and his family had specifically chosen the province of Gorontalo, home to Botubarani, to get close to the whale sharks.
“I don’t know another place where you can do that,” he said.
Whale sharks have appeared off the beach for decades, but the Facebook posts popularized them, regional tourism leader Wahab Matoka said.
Tourists often refer to them by the nickname Serli, an abbreviation of the Indonesian words “sering terlihat” or “often seen.”
Botubarani offers a feeding ground for whale sharks throughout their life cycle, said Sukirman Tilahunga, head of a monitoring team set up by the Indonesian Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries.
Usually young males below 30, the whale sharks range in length between 4m and 6m. They can live up to 100, growing to much as 18m in length, with dark or blue-gray skin that bears a unique pattern, Sukirman added.
The whale sharks are an endangered species, naturalists said, with environmental group Konservasi Indonesia estimating a population of 699 across the eastern islands of the archipelago.
Despite their name, whale sharks are not whales and breathe through gills, the WWF says on its Web site.
While tourism is a boon for the villagers, others worry about the impact on wildlife.
Constant feeding can disrupt natural behavior and pose health risks for the whale sharks, said Iqbal Herwata Putra of Konservasi Indonesia.
“Limits help ensure people and wildlife can coexist,” he said.
Authorities have attempted to cut back feeding activities.
Sukirman has developed a solar-powered marine attractor that uses light to attract plankton and the tiny fish critical for the diet of whale sharks.
For Ansar, what matters is that the animals stay.
“If the whale sharks are fed, it benefits the villagers,” he added.
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