The Whale Shark (Rhincodon typus) is the largest fish in the world, but they are disappearing from sight.
At up to 61 feet (18 m) and 30 tons, whale sharks can be found in all temperate and tropical oceans around the world with the exception of the Mediterranean Sea. One of the only three species of sharks that filter their food including the megamouth shark and the basking shark, whale sharks diet consists almost exclusively on plankton and larvae. These slow swimming surface dwelling sharks migrate thousands of miles to separate feeding grounds. Did you know whale sharks visit California waters?
Not a whale, its a shark!
These sharks can process more than 1500 gallons of water an hour through their gills filtering small shrimp, fish, and plankton through modified their gill rakers. While feeding, whale sharks open their gaping mouths and sweep move head from side while opening and closing their gills to rid excess of water and create suction. According to the IUCN, the Indo-Pacific population of the whale shark is thought to have reduced 63 percent over the past 75 years. The population in the Atlantic is thought to have been reduced more than 30 percent. Globally, the populations are continuing to decrease.
Threats
This species has no significant natural predator other than man. While whale sharks are protected in many parts of their range, they are fished legally and illegally in some countries like India, Taiwan and Indonesia. Whale sharks are hunted for the oil from their livers, and for their meat, which is eaten in many parts of Asia. Whale sharks also fall prey to the practice of shark “finning”, in which the fin of a living shark is sliced off and the animal is thrown overboard to die. Most of these fins are used for display at restaurants and casinos in Singapore, Hong Kong and China.
Because of this, whale sharks are classified as endangered. They are listed under CITES Appendix II which is intended to protect them from trade, but detection and enforcement of international trade is difficult.
The largest whales sharks can weigh over 30 tons and give live birth to a succession of 300 pups, if allowed to reach sexual maturity, which is estimated at 25 years. These sharks are killed as bycatch in fishing gear, for food and as caught deliberately for their fins primarily for display in Asian restaurants. Their ocean habitat is also in danger. Climate change warms the water and changes current patterns- affecting both habitats, prey, and shark population shifts. Other threats include filtering poisonous and obstructive ocean plastic pollution, and entanglement in nets.
Endangered
According to the IUCN, the Indo-Pacific population of the whale shark is thought to have reduced 63 percent over the past 75 years. The population in the Atlantic is thought to have been reduced more than 30 percent. Globally, the populations are continuing to decrease. Because of this, whale sharks are classified as endangered. Whale sharks are becoming increasingly important to humans through ecotourism, and diving with whale sharks has become a popular ecotourism attraction in several countries.
Action
With conservation partners Shark Stewards proposes to increase the CITES listing to the most protective under CITES Appendix I, effectively barring all trade and killing in countries that observe the convention. We are also supporting increasing protection in swimways where they migrate and gestate in SE Asia and in Mexico, by supporting them thorugh dive ecotourism.
Download our Whale Shark Fact Sheet and help us keep these sharks swimming!