Papua Diving, Revealing the World’s Largest Fish in Cenderawasih Bay

Where the feet are stepped on, there the sky is upheld. You must apply this adage when visiting wherever you go, especially if you want to do Papua diving. It is proper for tourists to protect the environment. Papua is one of the best in the world for tourism, especially diving, and the Cendrawasih Bay National Park is one of them.

Papua Diving in Cendrawasih National Park

Papua Diving in Cendrawasih National Park

There are several things that you must follow to be able to enter the Cendrawasih Bay National Park area.

  • Submit an application for a permit to enter a conservation area
  • The names of the teams and the origin of the participants
  • Length of visit
  • List of activities subject to non-tax revenues
  • List of equipment subject to non-tax revenues

Condition:

  • Copy of identity card (WNI Visitor)
  • Copy of passport (foreign visitors)
  • Police road certificate (SKJ) for foreign visitors
  • List of ship crew and ship sailing permit (liveaboard visitors)

After taking care of everything, you can enter the Cendrawasih Bay National Park area. Of course, before diving at Cenderawasih Bay, there are obligations that you must know and obey.

  • Read the terms and obligations in the area entry permit
  • Comply with the rules of the indigenous peoples inside
  • Cruise ships report in advance to the nearest village before doing tourist activities
  • Every cruise ship must be accompanied by officers 
  • No activity must purchase or serve its guests with overexploited types of fish, including grouper, reef fish, napoleon fish, parrotfish, shark, and certain shellfish
  • It is forbidden to light a fire in certain places

Papua Diving & Code Ethics

Papua Diving & Code Ethics in cenderawasih bay

Cendrawasih Bay National Park is home to whale sharks. Papua Diving is one of the ways for tourists to interact directly with this largest shark. You can find Whale sharks in Cenderawasih Bay in the waters of Kwatisore, Nabire, Papua.

Code Ethics

Before doing Papua diving and interacting with whale sharks, you must know the code of ethics.

  • The guide must do a short briefing (10-15) minutes
  • Snorkelers & divers must follow the guide’s instructions. Keep a distance to make room for the whale shark, 2 meters from the whale shark’s body and 3 meters from the tail.
  • The duration of interacting with whale sharks is a maximum of 60 minutes for each group.
  • Camera use allows without flash.
  • Touching and/or actively chasing whale sharks is prohibited. Stay calm and swim sideways when a whale shark approaches,
  • It is forbidden to make loud noises, make sudden movements, and splash water that can provoke/disturb whale sharks.
  • Scuba use is restricted. Maximum 2 scuba users in 1 group. However, it is advised not to use scuba.
  • One group consists of 1 guide and 6 participants (maximum).
  • The boat must be moored on the chart at the specified side with the engine off.
  • There can only be 1 boat with 1 group per chart.
  • The maximum speed of the boat to Bagan is 10 knots within 1 km and 2 knots within 50 meters from Bagan and 20 meters from whale sharks.
  • The guide descends into the water first followed by the guests.
  • Snorkelers should enter the water as calmly as possible.
  • Guests must immediately swim back to the boat according to the duration of the visit.
  • The guide must be the last person out of the water.
  • The guide must collect comments from guests and submit it to the Cenderawasih Bay National Park Center.

Whale Shark Life in Cenderawasih Bay

Papuan people know this whale shark by the name of Gurano star, with a motif similar to the stars on its body. Some people already feel that they own and preserve the Gurano star in the Cendrawasih Bay National Park. One form is in the form of a customary prohibition on hunting whale sharks.

How to eat whale sharks:

  • Swim while filtering or sucking water below the surface of the water
  • Stand still vertically while sucking in the water.

Whale shark food types

  • Fish egg
  • Crustacean
  • Molluscs
  • Crab Larva
  • Coral eggs
  • Little squid
  • Small fish