Donsol-Philippines
For almost last three years in Philippines, I was waiting eagerly to get an opportunity to go for watching “Whale Sharks”. This Easter holidays provided just the right opportunity as it is the peak season for this activity.Donsol, a small coastal fishing town, 600Km away from Manila, on the southwest coast of Luzon, Philippines is frequented for several years by Whale Sharks, called “Butanding” in local Filipino dialect. All local fishermen were aware of them but it was like a best kept secret.
A team of foreign divers publicized it for the first time in year 1998. After that, poachers and hunters swarmed this place. Filipino government stepped in quickly and declared this variety of fish as a protected species.
Butandings, although called as Whales are not mammals like other whales but they are actually fish and belong to group of sharks. However, this one is not a predator like other varieties of sharks and just feeds on the plankton and small fish. Thus, in a sense a giant vegetarian fish.
The meaning of this Filipino term “Butanding” means “Gentle Giants”. This name represents their true nature. This is the largest fish in the world and grows up to the length of 60 ft and weighs up to 15 Metric Tons!! The lengths up to 50 ft are found in Donsol region.
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