Shark Paradise

This portfolio consists of images taken while freediving the waters off Bimini South in the Bahamas.

The Bahamas are a save h(e)aven for sharks. Therefore I like to call it shark paradise.

In the Bahamas commercial shark fishing and longlining has been forbidden (since 1990) and this island nation currently earns approximately 70 milion dollars a year with shark diving tourism.

Seeing all these different sharks and stingrays underwater upclose also changes peoples perceptions about these sharks which might be an even bigger win than the initial financial gain.

We explored the mangroves by kayak and discovered why they are so important for the island and the marine ecosystem that they support.

Bimini is also home to the Sharklab. It is a research station that for years has been a leading entity in shark research worldwide.

Sharklab hosted a guided tour during our stay which left us all, from 5 years old to grown ups, with lasting impressions.

The talks about the sharks and their behavior were very educative. Also gently touching a real shark and feeling the sandpaper like skin of the fish was pretty amazing.

Images from this portfolio were published in the September 2016 edition of the magazine Duiken showing why this place is heaven for sharks on earth (and for underwater photographers too btw ;-) ).

If you enjoyed reading this:

I posted hammertime, stingray and reefsharks and dolphindance blogposts too that you might want to check out.

Make sure to also watch the little video below that we put together about our adventures in the blue waters and mangroves of Bimini.