Tell Tails

One of the most unexpected days I’ve ever had in the ocean took place during a spearfishing and fishing trip in the Bahamas. We were out to catch dinner when we spotted a massive flock of birds feeding at the surface. I knew that a large school of diving birds often means there's a large school of fish below, so we decided to steer the boat to the birds for a high-speed troll past the activity. As we approached, we saw tuna leaping out of the water, and my curiosity piqued—if there was this much action at the surface, what could be lurking beneath? Without hesitation, I grabbed my camera and dove into the water with my friend, using the flock of birds as our guide to where the fish were. With birds swooping overhead and diving all around us, we were soon surrounded by tuna darting past, all trying to eat the tiny baitfish near the surface. With so much activity in the water, I couldn’t shake the feeling that something larger might be nearby. I kept a lookout for sharks, fully expecting either a Dusky shark or a large Reef shark to make an appearance. Sure enough, a big shadow emerged, but it was far from the shark I had anticipated. Amidst the chaos of tuna, fish, and birds, there it was—a whale shark! A whale shark in the Bahamas, of all places. Aware of how rare this sighting was, we approached cautiously from behind, staying in its blind spot to avoid startling it. As we drew closer and entered its field of view, the whale shark paid us no mind, continuing to feed on small fish at the surface. We freedived alongside it for about 20 minutes, enjoying its graceful presence until the birds and tuna began to disperse, and the whale shark slowly followed.