Whale Shark Fact Sheet

Appearance:
An unmistakable, huge shark with a broad, flat head. Truncated snout and very big terminal mouth. Origin of first dorsal fin over the pelvic fins. Second dorsal fin relatively small. Prominent ridges along the sides with the lowermost expanding into the prominent keels on each side of the lunate caudal fin. Prominent subterminal notch.

CColoration:
Greyish to dark color with a unique checkerboard pattern of light spots, horizontal and vertical stripes.

Distribution:
Circumglobal in tropical and warm temperate waters. Western Atlantic: New York to central Brazil, Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean. Eastern Atlantic: Senegal, Mauretania, Cape Verde Islands, Gulf of Guinea. Indo-Western Pacific and central Pacific: South Africa and Red Sea to Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Thailand, China, Japan, Philippines, Indonesia, New Guinea, Australia, New Caledonia, Hawaiian Islands. Eastern Pacific: Southern California to northern Chile.

Biology:
Prefers coastal and pelagic waters. Often seen far offshore but sometimes comes close inshore and even enters atolls and lagoons. Can be found in schools or aggregations (up to hundreds!) as well as individually. Whale sharks apparently prefer areas where the surface temperature is 21 to 25 °C with cold upwelling water (around 17 °C) and a salinity of 34 to 34.5 ppt.

Feeding:
Plankton, small crustaceans, small fishes. As opposed to the Basking shark ( Cetorhinus maximus ) the whale shark is an active suction feeder.

Size:
Average size about 10 m to 12 m, maximum total length still unsure but approximately 14 m.

Reproduction:
Aplacental viviparous (ovoviviparous).

Similar species:
None.

Endangerment:
Endangered.

Danger to humans:
Harmless.