Where to see
Triaenodon obesus
Coiba National Park leads · 7 parks ranked by real sighting rates
Share of wildlife watchers reporting a Whitetip Reef Shark during a day in the park, from citizen-science data (GBIF)
| # | Park | Country | Sighting |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Coiba National Park | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 2 | Isla del Coco National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 3 | Galápagos Islands | 🇪🇨 Ecuador | |
| 4 | Ningaloo Marine Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 5 | Komodo National Park | 🇮🇩 Indonesia | |
| 6 | Raja Ampat | 🇮🇩 Indonesia | |
| 7 | Cabo Pulmo National Park | 🇲🇽 Mexico |
Coiba National Park
In Coiba National Park, Panama, about 90% of wildlife watchers report a Whitetip Reef Shark sighting on a given day, the highest of the 7 parks where we can rate it, from GBIF citizen-science data.
Isla del Coco National Park and more
After Coiba National Park, the next-best odds of seeing a Whitetip Reef Shark are in Isla del Coco National Park (Costa Rica, about 90%), Galápagos Islands (Ecuador, about 70%) and Ningaloo Marine Park (Australia, about 60%). Outside Central America, the best options are Galápagos Islands in South America (about 70%), Ningaloo Marine Park in Oceania (about 60%) and Komodo National Park in Southeast Asia (about 60%).
It depends on the park
In the top parks, the best months are July in Isla del Coco National Park (over 90%) and June, August and November in Galápagos Islands (about 90%), as the share of wildlife watchers who report a Whitetip Reef Shark on a given day. Each park's Whitetip Reef Shark page has the full month-by-month chart.
