Dive into Whale Shark Research in The Maldives: Conservation Efforts and Marine Discoveries

I came to the Maldives alone volunteering with the Maldives Whale Shark Research Programme (MWSRP). Here's how it went...

MWSRP website 

MWSRP is a UK charity registered organization who stands for the protection of whale sharks and our oceans. They do fantastic work and continue to push for any positive change they can get. I've linked their website in the button below- they're also very active on instagram. 

MWSRP

Overview

For 10 days I conducted in field research. From the surface it seems like 10 days of swimming with whale sharks. However we like to keep it real on Heather Seas The World and we did very little swimming with whale sharks. We actually only swam with three whale sharks for around 30 minutes total the whole trip... definitely different than what I expected. 
The reality was we spent long days on the boat out in the sun looking for sharks (don't get me wrong I love the sun). During the boat time, we wrote down what types of other boats we saw and how many people were in each. These stats help produce long term data of traffic in the area. We also wrote down any marine life we saw (such as turtles) and their behavior- but could not swim with them. We took one snorkel maybe each day for about an hour maximum if we weren't seeing any sharks. 

Day to Day

A general day to day look is waking up around 8 am (sometimes earlier sometimes later) and then eating breakfast around 9. After breakfast we headed out on the Dhoni where we searched the reef until eating lunch on the Dhoni around 1. After lunch, we continued to search the reef until going for a snorkel or the weather got so bad we headed in at about 3 or 4 pm. Then, we had free time or did data until dinner time and after that I'm not sure because I passed out and was asleep. 

Cost

The cost of the research prgramme was $2,000 USD and an additional $1,100 for a flight. The cost included food, accommodation, airport transfer, and island excursions. Flights can be less or more and are booked individually. 

Likes

There were a lot of great things about this program. For starters it is in my favorite place in the world. The scenery was absolutely beautiful. Also, the people leading it were so knowledgeable and helpful. Kamey has this endless brain full of anything you want to know about whale sharks and beyond. I love how we got to be outside even if we weren't in the water and could still get a nice tan. For those of you who don't like the sun, there is no escaping it over time. Be prepared and cover your skin with something that will also cool you off. 

Dislikes

Looking back, the experience was good and definitely had its purpose. However, I felt it was a long way to travel and lots of money for an hour in the water each day. 
Also, I saw different groups have different experiences. We had really bad weather, the worst they've ever seen, and that prevented us from taking on various other activities such as beach cleanups on local islands that other groups participated in. I wish we could have had the full experience. 
I would overall say there was some poor planning for our group but we also had the short end of the stick due to things we couldn't control. It's always wondering being in such a beautiful place at the end of the day.