A total of 14 whale sharks (Rhincodon typus) were discovered and documented in Sarangani Bay on Saturday. The Task Force Butanding Gensan disclosed that the recent documentation of whale sharks in Sarangani Bay made the Philippines as the second largest known population of whale sharks in the world, according to the Wildbook for Whale Sharks, a global online library that provides a visual database of whale shark encounters around the world. These whale sharks or “butanding” were spotted surface feeding in the waters adjacent to Silway, General Santos City which were officially tagged as P1597, P1598, P1599, P1601, P1603, P1604, P1606, P1607, P1608, P1609, P1614, P1615, P1616 and one in Kiamba, Sarangani (P1605).

Whale sharks in Sarangani Bay up to 14. (2019, March 12). Manila Standard, p. B4.