Article Summary:

On Christmas Eve, Wetpixel Moderator Shawn Heinrich had an article and images published in the UK’s Daily Mail newspaper. The article shows a group of local fishermen hand feeding and interacting with a group of whale sharks near Oslob in the Philippines. He cataloged the behavior as:

“It was a lifetime moment, just me, the fishermen, and these gentle whale sharks. What was most touching was the relationship between them all. The fishermen clearly cared for these animals, and the whale sharks demonstrated such trust in them.

Having witnessed the slaughter of whale sharks at the hands of fishermen elsewhere in the region, this interaction was a beacon of hope for me, a message that both man and whale shark could coexist, could develop trust, and even appreciate one another.”

(Image by Shawn Heinrich/Barcroft Media)