The friendly baby sharks of Ayada Maldives
Maldives is home to over 25 species of sharks. The most common are the Black-Tip, White-Tip and Grey Reef Sharks. At Ayada Maldives you are almost guaranteed to see an abundance of baby reef sharks around the shallow waters of the lagoon and quite often even find yourself swimming among them. These baby sharks are totally harmless and will most likely swim away if you come too close.
So how can you identify which reef shark you have spotted?
The Grey reef sharks have a grey back with a white belly, where as the White-Tip reef sharks are a paler shade of grey with a distinctive white tip on the end of their dorsal & caudal (tail) fins. The fins of the Black-Tip reef sharks are almost all black tipped - pectoral, first and second dorsal, pelvic fins, and lower caudal lobe.
If you join one of our guided night snorkeling excursions, you might even spot a Leopard shark (also known as a Zebra shark). One of the most stunning in appearance, but rarely sighted. They belong to a species of Carpet shark and can be found moving around the seabed, close to the coral reefs. This is a nocturnal creature and can usually only be spotted at night.
The underwater seascapes found at our scuba diving sites are still undisturbed and untouched awaiting discovery by enthusiasts. This is where Hammerheads and Nurse sharks can be found and are indeed a sight to behold. If you are extremely lucky you may even find yourself face to face with a Whale shark - one of the oceans largest sharks or you might catch a glimpse of a Thresher shark. Both are rarely seen and the experience is awe-inspiring.
While the sharks in the Maldives make up only a small percentage of the extreme beauty hidden beneath the crystal clear waters of our lagoon and various dive sites, they are creatures worth preserving.
If you are fortunate enough to see these sharks thriving in their own environment you can’t help but have a feeling of admiration for their beauty of movement and their supreme efficiency as predators.