Triton Bay - Where people live with giant sharks

4:30 am, the sky is still pitch black, the sea is calm and the crescent moon is gradually fading. A flock of Papuan hornbills flew past the ship. The sound they make is like a helicopter flying sideways.

Anita Verde, BBC writer, arrives at Triton Bay after being told about its incredible underwater landscape. And Triton Bay is also famous as a great spot for photographers who want to "hunt" whale sharks. Not many destinations in the world allow whale shark diving. That makes Triton even more special.

People who live with whale sharks

The boat took Verde to floating wooden fishing rigs, called bagan in the local language. Whale sharks will appear here.

The bagan rigs were created by bugis - an ethnic group originating from southern Celebes, now the Indonesian island of Sulwesi. They are known as "pirates" or "sea nomads".

Spark plugs spend most of their lives at sea with bagans. They have to travel long distances in search of the best waters for fishing. Over the generations, they have forged a special relationship with whale sharks.

The bagan is the only place to get close to whale sharks.

Every morning, they gather and feed under their nets. Their food is sardines that come out of small openings in the net.

There are many places around the world where whale sharks are concentrated - such as Australia's Christmas Island and Ningaloo Reef, the Galapagos Islands, the waters off the metropolis of Donsol (Philippines). This giant thing appeared only fleetingly.

In Triton Bay, whale sharks appear all year round. Where Bugis and their bagans go, they follow. Reason? To get free meals.

Stupid fish

Whale shark diving bookings are not available here. You have to find the bugs and ask for their permission. Aching, a bugis, agreed to let Verde on board.

Every generation in the Aching family has followed this profession. In the past, bugis fished only for their own subsistence and small trade with the local community. However, the scale of this industry has been much larger. They don't just supply the local markets anymore.

Whale sharks are rarely seen in waters with temperatures below 21 degrees Celsius. They only eat plankton, small animals and are completely harmless to humans.

Aching fished all night and now the net is full. He was relaxing in the morning sun.

"He motioned for us to look below the sea. Immediately, we saw a huge whale shark. They are the largest fish in the world with a body the length of a bus. its spectacular," the BBC writer said.

Aching says there are actually three whale sharks hanging around under his bagan. As a result, Aching left a net full of small sardines in the water for them to feed on.

Bugis people call whale sharks ikan bodo (stupid fish) because their nature is quite docile and docile. The spark plug community respects whale sharks and considers them a symbol of good luck.

Over the generations, the Aching family has "nourished" their relationship with these giant sharks. They hope they will reciprocate with nets full of fish. Therefore, every morning when he casts his net, he always leaves a batch in the water for the whale sharks to feed on.

"Just small fish. They just like small fish," he said.

Whale sharks are the largest non-mammal vertebrates in existence.

Like dolphins, whale sharks are considered a symbol of good luck. And this is confirmed both from a scientific perspective. The presence of whale sharks is important to fishermen.

They will attract species such as anchovies, mackerel, and tuna to the waters where they feed. It can be said that dolphins and whale sharks are one of the important indicators to determine the "health" of the ecosystem.

"In general, they help balance the food chain and ensure an abundant food source for the bugs," said Iqbal Herwata, representative of the Indonesia division of Conservation International.