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Whale Watching Can Be Both Fun & Safe!
 Many private boaters are not aware that the Mexican government has enacted very specific laws as it relates to whale watching activities from a private vessel.
In order to help you become a more responsible boater and whale watcher, we have posted the complete official regulations here at our web site. Please take a moment to review them so that you can help to protect whales and other marine mammals that might be near your boat.
Also, you can click on the chart to the left to see a visual representation of how to approach whales and conduct yourself in their presence. You can print this out to keep onboard your boat and feel free to share it with other boaters.
These laws were designed to ensure the least amount of stress on the whales, to protect them from unintentional injury by boaters and to ensure that the mothers and calves are never separated from each other – lest the calf falls victim to being eaten by an Orca (Killer whale). Even without human intervention, we estimate that one in three calves are lost to predation by Orcas. We do have Orcas within the vicinity of Banderas Bay and also within the bay. So, it’s in our interest and the interest of the whales to ensure that we are not accidentally contributing to the deaths of the newly born calves.
Mexican environmental law NOM 131 ECOL 1998 clearly states the following as it relates to whale watching by private boaters:
Private boats can stay looking at the same group of whales for a maximum of 10 minutes (no matter how exciting the show might be) and must maintain a distance of at least 80 meters or 240 feet. When participating in whale watching, boats must operate no faster than 4 knots at any given time and must never move faster than the slowest moving whale.
IMPORTANT NOTE: One thing that we observe every day are boat captains not turning off their engines early enough when approaching whales. Your boat WILL continue to move forward even after the engine has been turned off. Please take this into consideration when you are approaching whales to ensure that your boat stops outside of the 80 meter limit (240 feet) described in the regulations. The captain should ALWAYS remain at the helm when navigating near any marine mammals.
Mothers with calves are extremely sensitive and every effort should be made to reduce their stress. Never obstruct the path of a whale, never split groups and certainly never engage in any activity or maneuvers that could potentially separate the mother from her calf.
Sport fishing is not permissible near or during any whale watching activity. If you observe any marine mammal entangled in fishing gear, please report it to the Navy Sector at 224-5783 or on marine channels 16 or 82. Do not attempt to assist the animal as this can be very dangerous and stay with the animal and keep a distance of at least 300 yards until professional assistance arrives.
Scuba diving or snorkeling in the vicinity of a whale is very dangerous and is forbidden by law. Jet skis, water skis, kayaks, canoes, etc. and any type of aircraft, parasail or gliders are also forbidden to be used in the vicinity of whales.
Trash, especially plastic bags can suffocate a whale if it is sucked into the blow hole. Also, they become a choking hazard for our endangered sea turtles as the bag can be mistaken for jellyfish – a favorite food of sea turtles. If you see plastic bags or trash floating in the water please take the time to retrieve these items. This small action may in fact save the life of an endangered whale or sea turtle.
If you have any questions related to responsible whale watching please contact us. We are also available for lectures for marinas or yacht clubs if you have any interest. We can discuss this topic and more. Just let us know!
Happy Whale Watching!
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