hand feeding whale sharks

You can really go of track and talk about Taiwan if you want, and spout all the non-relevent gibberish you want, do please go ahead, IMO it is still a bad idea and these wild creatures in question are now reliant on humans, and should be left alone, OK?..................This is my view, and i do think it is far, far more important than some un-thinking, brain dead, lazy tourist getting some photo's that are a fraud, i have stated that fact, and it is the last time i will be appearing on this thread.

these wild creatures in question are now reliant on humans

i suppose this is another of your uncorroborated "facts"

I agree with strauss1944's position. We should not be feeding wild animals, including whale sharks, with the goal of enhancing tourism opportunities. This changes their behaviour, and these behavioural changes are a greater risk to the animals' survival than any potential lack of food.

What is endangering not only the whale shark population but those of many species of sharks is not a shortage of available food but hunting them for their fins. @gregs3071, you rather arrogantly demand bibliographic references to support dissenting opinion to yours, and yet you cite wikipaedia as a source? That's about as far from a scholarly reference as one can get and wouldn't even be accepted for a secondary school term paper. So here's one that would pass muster, published by the government of Australia less than a year ago:
http://www.aims.gov.au/docs/research/biodiversity-ecology/sharks-rays/declining-whalesharks.html
Because whale sharks are migratory, declines in the populations are felt throughout their range.

For an easy-to-read resource, take a look at the Shark Trust's pages on whale sharks, particularly this page that deals with threats to the population: http://www.whalesharkproject.org/v.asp?level2=6379&depth=2&level3=6379&level2id=6379&rootid=6372&nextlevel=6379

Bottom line: Stop feeding the whale sharks in Oslob.

Fully agree Quero, in a lot less words, I stated this in the first reply already.
I'm also puzzled by gregs3071 reference to Wiki, you can't be serious to list that as a reference to support your theory, right?

I know you did, limbo1, but somehow those few, true words of yours slipped right past the intended audience. I hoped that a "heavier" post might hold his attention a bit more and give him a chance at gaining some insight. I hate to think that any diver or snorkeler, who should be an ambassador of the marine environment to those who are not as privileged as we are to enjoy its splendour, would be so misguided in his thinking that he honestly believes that hand-feeding whale sharks is a good thing. I'm hopeful that it's the sort of thinking that can be swayed by logical reason.

Good points and views Quroe, fully understand and support them.

quotes from post #18 In doing some reading about what you maintain, i find that what you say about fishermen 'Historically' hunting and eating Whale Sharks is ablsolute rubbish and completly untrue

Hunting and then eating them is absolute crap

you accuse me of arrogance? this contributor maintains that whale sharks led some idyllic life free of all human interference prior to the arrival of tourists

for those of you who are unfamiliar with how to use wikipedia i will spell it out for you - scroll down towards the bottom of the wikipedia page, there you will find a section called "References". in the references section you will find links to the publications used as source information for the preceeding page

for example
http://www.fao.org/fishery/species/2801/en
According to Alava et al. (1998) whale shark fishing for meat, skins, and fins, has been a traditional activity for generations in the Bohol Sea that underwent a rapid expansion very recently. These authors estimated that a small-scale fishery with harpoons and gaff hooks took at least 624 whale sharks in four of the five primary fishing sites in the period 1990-96. The number of whale sharks caught per boat in two fishing sites decreased between 1993 and 1997 from 4.44 to 1.7 on one site and from 10 to 3.8 on the other (Alava et al. 1998)

http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/fish/Gallery/Descript/Whaleshark/whaleshark.html
Fishing for this shark also occurs in the Philippines, particularly in the Visayas and Mindanao areas, providing food for the local fishing communities

furthermore, i have not at any point condoned or encouraged the feeding of whalesharks. if you would read the actual posts, rather than jumping aboard someone else's poorly argued bandwagon

Oh, but I have read your posts, greg3071.

1) You did quote Wikipedia, after all, not those other resources that the wiki author has listed. Now you're backpedaling. And yes, you did display arrogance. And yes, I called you out on that by pointing out that the 'source' you cited was questionable. In case you can't identify exactly where your arrogance was on display, it was here, where, in addition to committing a grievous spelling error, you align yourself with a scholarly approach which you do not yourself follow.
>it is du riguer {sic} for scholars to cite their sources .... would you care to reference your research material
>here's a reference may may care to read

2) Here are some quotes from your posts that appear to condone the practice of feeding the whale sharks by the Oslob community. First you tell us:
>the fishermen have been hand feeding the whale sharks in the hope of encouraging the creatures to remain there as they have realised that attracting tourists is a far more profitable proposition {than shrimp fishing}

Then you justify this business strategy by saying:
>the fisherman in oslob do not enjoy all that advantages in life

Later, you unambiguously state (I might add, without citing references to support your apparent claim) that feeding the sharks somehow saves them from being killed:
>one way, the whale sharks will live, the other way, ... the whale sharks will die

So, in response to the following bit of reply you direct at me:
>furthermore, i have not at any point condoned or encouraged the feeding of whalesharks. if you would read the actual posts, rather than jumping aboard someone else's poorly argued bandwagon

I submit that yours is the poorly argued position.

1. the wikipedia page i quoted is a credible source that references & links it's primary sources. if you have any doubts regarding the veracity of the information contained on that page you can scroll down to the reference section & check the sources yourself. subsequently i quoted directly from those same sources

2. in regards to arrogance once again i must refer you to quotes from post #18
   In doing some reading about what you maintain, i find that what you say about fishermen 'Historically' hunting and eating Whale Sharks is ablsolute rubbish and completly untrue
   Hunting and then eating them is absolute crap!!

3. is it not reasonable to request sources for the claims made in post #18 (as quoted above)?

4. "a grievous spelling error" i think you had better look up the definition of "grievous".

5. appearing to condone+, and +condoning are not the same thing. i support the rights of the fisherman to make a living from tourism. i am not in favour of the practice of hand feeding the whale sharks. i hope that the human - whale shark practices as implemented in donsol (& other parts of the world) will soon be implemented in oslob. i am also of the opinion that the more publicity that is generated by the whale sharks of oslob then the more likely it is that those practices will be implemented

6. in post #12 i unambiguously stated that feeding the whale sharks is preferable to hunting them. here is the complete post, not your edited version

+oh, really strauss, you would prefer that they hunt the whale sharks & eat them

either way, the whale sharks will not be "left alone". one way, the whale sharks will live, the other way, such as you propose, the whale sharks will die+

clearly, the proposition in this unedited post is that if the whale sharks are hunted then they will die.

1. my claim is that tourism is the best hope for the continued survival of the whale sharks. they will not be left alone to enjoy some idyllic life free from human interference, whether that be hunting, competing for resources, or habitat alterations. welcome to the 21st century

Strausss1944

your statement - ..."'Historically' hunting and eating Whale Sharks is ablsolute rubbish..."

...is incorrect

Ernesto has fished the straits between the southern tip of the Pintuyan Peninsula and Surigao Mindanao for over 60 years. The harpoon he is holding was used to harpoon whale sharks in the Philippines - not Taiwan . They used sail boats in the old days. post # 20 The local fishermen would sell the sharks in Bohol - not Taiwan. I have never been to Taiwan except for the airport which is quite nice because there are showers in the cr.

I never actually fed the whalesharks my self but felt it would be something to observe and see how the situation develops.

I have been going to Donsol for 15 years and watched it evolve from a sleepy fishing village to a major tourist bonanza!

I never got a good view of a whale shark off of Limasawa island or in Sogod Bay yet - but it you are a diver I can highly recommend Sogod bay for it's excellent corals and clear water.

I have no recommendations for Taiwan at this time but would love to do some traveling there some day

cheers
dp