There is always research to be done and actions to be taken in order to ensure the safety of this species — and if we as humans work together and can be more careful with what we consume and how we consume it, whale sharks may not be a lost cause just yet. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.
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It is believed that whale sharks are highly migratory, they may cross oceans, and even move between ocean basins. Whale shark lifespan may approach that of a human, possibly reaching years. An animal this large does not escape notice, and while whale sharks were described to science only in , local cultures throughout their range had bestowed names on the creatures, and incorporated them into folk tales and legends.
This name comes from a story that says that when god made the whale shark he was so pleased with its beauty that he threw shillings, silver coins, onto its back, giving it a pattern of bright spots. Migration: The need to find sources of plankton rich enough to sustain their massive size means whale sharks must travel to feed.
As plankton sources may be widely dispersed in the ocean, whale sharks are believed to migrate long distances to take advantage of feeding opportunities. When a large food source does occur, the normally solitary whale sharks may show up in huge numbers. Such aggregations occur yearly in the coastal waters of Australia, Mozambique, India, Seychelles, Philippines and Mexico, as well as off the southern US coast. In one aggregation along the Mexican coast numbered more than animals.
Interestingly, many of the food sources that draw whale sharks recur on a yearly basis, and the whale sharks show up reliably to exploit them. How the sharks know to be at a particular place at a particular time remains unclear. Whale sharks may also migrate to breed.
Genetic analysis of whale shark populations from the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans, has shown little difference between these animals. This data indicates an evolutionary history of migration, and interbreeding, among distant groups of whale sharks.
Reproduction: Sexual maturity in male sharks can be determined by the maturation of the claspers, paired sexual organs located between the pelvic fins. Mature claspers are rarely seen on male whale sharks of less than 9 meters in length, and an animal of this size is likely years old. The feeding aggregations composed of primarily meter sharks therefore cannot be breeding populations, but rather are juvenile and subadult gatherings.
The habitat of mature adult whale sharks remains unknown. Female sexual maturity is less well understood than males, but it is likely that breeding capability is reached at about the same age. Beyond these few facts, little is known about where adult whale sharks are found, where males and females meet to breed, or where the females deliver their pups. Whale shark mating has never been observed, nor has a female been seen giving birth. Whale shark embryonic development is ovoviviparous, the young develop in egg cases within the uteri of the female, but prior to birth they hatch and complete their development free-swimming within the mother.
Only one pregnant female whale shark has ever been scientifically described, an animal caught in a fishery in Taiwan in This remarkable female carried more than embryos in her uteri, in a range of ages from small sharks still in egg cases to near-term pups ready to be born.
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