NORTH WEST CAPE AUSTRALIA
REEF SYSTEMS OF NINGALOO
(The reef systems of Ningaloo, although vast and spectacular, were
relatively unknown — until word got out about the heavyweight visitors. .
.)
Western Australia’s remote, windswept North West Cape is an unlikely stop for some unusual visitors — each year hundreds of whale sharks pass by for reasons scientists still don’t understand
All is quiet in the deep ocean off Western Australia’s North cape. The only
sound is the air rushing through my snorkel. Time seems to stand still. Then
suddenly, right in me, a huge dark mass covered in white spots looms into
view. it’s heading straight for with its vast mouth open to suck in tons of
Then, in a gesture that this 12m leviathan of the an must seem barely Ningaloo
Marine Park stretches 260km along the remote North West Cape of Western Australia.
It’s the only extensive coral reef system in the world lying on the western
coast of a continent. Although only one-tenth the length of the Great Barrier
Reef, some divers report that Ningaloo offers better diving.
Proximity to the Indo-Australian archipelago which has the richest marine
life on earth in terms of diversity and sheer density means that there’s a
large variety of fish and invertebrate species at Ningaloo. The warm, tropical
Leeuwin Current flows south along this coast, maintaining a water temperature
that encourages lavish coral growth. Ningaloo is also located right on the
edge of the continental shelf. The frequent rich upwellings of plankton and
other nutrients that occur at the edge of the shelf make the 4300sq km marine
park one of the most fascinating habitats in tropical waters. The reef is
home to turtles, sailfish, marlins, manta rays, oceanic sharks, dolphins,
dugong and humpback whales.
But Ningaloo’s real stars are the whale sharks, which arrive in their hundreds
every year between March and June. They have made the reef famous. In no other
place on earth are whale sharks found in such numbers or so often. In one
five-hour session, I swam with nine of these beautiful animals.
DEEP AND MYSTERIOUS -
No one knows why the whale sharks appear here when they do. One theory is that they are attracted by the plankton blooms created during the brief coral spawns in the spring — but this has never been proven: there are bigger plankton blooms in other places with greater coral density and diversity. It also doesn’t explain why the sharks hang around for so long after the few days of spawning are over.
Like baleen whales, whale sharks are plankton feeders; they glide along just under the surface of the sea with their jaws extended, sucking in the microscopic plankton and krill. Although they are biologically classified as true sharks, their behaviour is nothing like that of the other 300 knowns species of sharks.
Swimming with whale sharks
There’s no single technique for swimming with whale sharks. The only equipment you need is a good snorkel, a Lycra suit, a pair of fins — and a low-volume, wide-vision mask so that you can take in the full expanse of the shark.
The basic equipment is inexpensive, but whale-sharking is a costly pursuit as costs include chartering spotter planes for low-level aerial reconnaissance each morning from 9.30am-2pm. From 300m above the sea, the whale sharks look like little tadpoles swimming over the turquoise reef. Meanwhile, the whale-sharkers kit themselves put and gather at 9am on the Tantabiddi boat ramp, 30mins out of Exmouth.
