Whale Shark Management Program 
Natural History Documentary Production Support
The Artificial Reefs of La Paz Bay Biological Monitoring

Whale Shark Management Program

 
Baja Quest collaborates with marine conservation organizations to assist natural resource conservation in the La Paz region. Baja Quest Director and Oceanographer Rocio Lozano has collaborated with marine biologist James Ketchum to collect five years of whale shark observation data. She has also developed a management and monitoring program for whale sharks in La Paz Bay and surrounding areas. This program provides guidelines to mitigate the effects of human interaction with the whale sharks. The program proposes listing the whale shark on the official Mexican list of protected species to protect it from commercial exploitation. The whale shark monitoring program records data about the ecology, reproduction, and distribution of whale sharks in the Gulf of California.

Whale shark expeditions are organized by Baja Quest during spring and fall. We hire a private plane to locate whale sharks and then radio their location to our boats. Clients are encouraged to snorkel with whale sharks at a reasonable distance and to participate in the monitoring program by recording their observations or by providing photos or video recordings. By participating in these expeditions we obtain data for the monitoring program and valuable information that helps assess the affects of tourism on whale sharks. In addition, participation helps local non-governmental groups take a proactive role in protecting the valuable natural resources of the La Paz area. See more information in the Whale Shark Encounters section of our web page.