This is the hilarious moment a tourist panicked when he was almost swallowed while posing for pictures with a whale shark.

Ikbal Nurkarim went on the sightseeing snorkeling trip while staying at the Talisayan Village in the Berau province of East Borneo during a work trip on July 26.

The group went on the boat to feed the marine life off the coast and Ikbal climbed into the water for a swim and to take selfies with the creatures.

However, during one of his selfie attempts, the huge creature opened its wide mouth next to him as like it was Moby D*ck about to swallow him whole.

His friend Ediho, who was holding the camera, said: "The whale sharks were nice but I didn't have the guts to go down there. Although they look harmless, I still would not want to trust my life with it. What happened to my friend shows why. It looked like it was going to eat him.''

Despite their size, whale sharks do not pose a threat to humans. They are docile fish and sometimes allow swimmers to catch a ride, although this practice is discouraged by conservationists because of the disturbance to the sharks.

Whale sharks are classed as endangered on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species.