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Everyone on the boat gets very excited when someone shouts this word. It's Spanish for 'bottle' and describes a feeding behaviour where Whale Sharks stop swimming, which causes their tail to sink. They then 'stand' in the water and feed by moving their massive mouths and gills. It is still not clear why they do this. However, there seems to be a link to the concentration of food in the water. One common theory states that they stop when they find a very dense patch of food. An opposing theory is that they might be saving energy by not swimming when there is little food present. Maybe one day we will know for sure :) Taken on the Wetpixel Whale Shark Trip 2017.

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© Hannes Klostermann | HK-UNDERWATER.COM 2017
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Isla Mujeres, Mexico
Everyone on the boat gets very excited when someone shouts this word. It's Spanish for 'bottle' and describes a feeding behaviour where Whale Sharks stop swimming, which causes their tail to sink. They then 'stand' in the water and feed by moving their massive mouths and gills. It is still not clear why they do this. However, there seems to be a link to the concentration of food in the water. One common theory states that they stop when they find a very dense patch of food. An opposing theory is that they might be saving energy by not swimming when there is little food present. Maybe one day we will know for sure :) Taken on the Wetpixel Whale Shark Trip 2017.