Whale Shark

Quick Facts

Name: Whale Shark

Diet: Small organisms such as krill, plankton, phytoplankton, fish and crab larvae, small fish, jellyfish, etc

Behaviour: Diurnal (active during the day) and typically solitary

Lifespan: 80-130 years

Size: Up to 20 metres long and weighing over 20,000Kg

Habitat/Range:

Threats: Poaching, bycatch, unsustainable tourism practises, vessel strikes, climate change, microplastics

Conservation Status: Endangered

Names & Nicknames: Whale shark, Tofu shark

Size: The BIGGEST FISH IN THE SEA, literally! These fishy whoppers are usually a cool 12 metres long, but some big males can get up to 20 metres and weigh over 20,000kg. That’s significantly longer and heavier than a double-decker bus!

Smell: Perhaps unsurprisingly, whale sharks smell a bit fishy. On the flip side, you may have heard of a great white shark's ability to sniff out blood, well a whale shark has an equally powerful sniffer that it uses to sniff out plankton.

Communication: Whale sharks are mostly solitary, meaning they aren't as talkative or expressive as their marine mammal namesakes: the whales. Sharks famously don't possess any organs capable of making sounds, unlike marine mammals and other fish that can create sounds with their swim bladders (something sharks don't have). Despite this, there have been several reports and recordings of low rumbling roars observed around whale sharks, similar to an underwater dinosaur. It's still unconfirmed if these sounds do indeed come from the sharks and how they would even make such a sound, but it goes to show there is certainly a lot about these creatures we still don't know!

Favourite Hangout: Frolicking along shallow coastal waters or diving in the deep sea? Whale sharks don't mind either. What they do mind is the cold. They're only found in warm tropical waters, usually at a casual 21-25c. As long as it's warm enough they can be found throughout the world's seas, with the exception of the Mediterranean.

Favourite Snack: Small plates, all the way. But not out of choice. Small bites are the only thing on the menu for whale sharks as their tiny teeth are incapable of letting them grab anything of any real size. Instead, they are filter feeders – gulping seawater and sieving prey using a natural mesh in their gills – ploughing through enormous quantities of plankton, small fish, and fish larvae.

Toilet Humour: A fish the size of a whale shark can produce some sizeable dumps. This takes the form of a large poo cloud. It can be up to 10 meters long and bright green due to broken-down blood and muscle pigments from whale sharks' prey, as well as a mix of green bile and a yellow pigment called bilirubin produced by the shark. Although you wouldn't want to swim in it, a whale shark's poo is full of nutrients and plays an important role in the ocean ecosystem moving energy from productive areas like plankton blooms to the open ocean.

Love Language: They're not big on us knowing tooooo much. Despite being such a large creature, little is known about the mating behaviour of whale sharks, and in fact, whale sharks' mating has never been officially recorded! An attempt was recently observed which involved a series of erratic swimming and deep dives from the male shark, demonstrating that there is an element of courtship. However, as whale shark numbers continue to decrease, it becomes harder and harder to find another fish in the sea or figure out why they bust these moves.

If you see them: Whale sharks are undeniably amazing creatures, and the chance to get to see or swim with them is something that many people dream of. However, this demand has led to one of the whale sharks' biggest threats, tourism. As people flock in their thousands to see whale sharks, these endangered species can be crowded, harassed, artificially fed with low-quality food, stressed, and more. All of this can mess with their vibe, so if you do want to see them, please research where you're going, the operator you're using, and the correct etiquette for swimming with these majestic fish. Always keep your distance and respect them.

Red Flags: As whale sharks occupy such a large habitat they face several threats, like being hunted for meat, bycatch, unsuitable tourism practices, climate change, and microplastics. One of their major threats is ships. Whale sharks feed mostly at the surface of the water and this makes them particularly susceptible to being hit and killed by ships, especially as global shipping traffic continues to increase!

Epic Journeys: These ocean giants aren't the speediest fish in the sea, swimming at around 3mph (human walking speed) on average. But that doesn't stop them from travelling thousands of kilometres across the world's seas in search of food. One particularly intrepid female was recorded travelling over 20,000km!

Glow-up: Not a lot is known about baby whale sharks (which is a shame because they are adorable). What we do know is that they develop as eggs within the mother, and that there might be as many as 300 eggs at different stages of development at the same time. They hatch within the mother and are then ‘born’ live. They are usually born between 40-70cm in length and are thought to grow pretty rapidly. But their growth rate slows down as they get older.

Facts: Firstly, whale sharks are very much SHARKS and not whales, although the mistake is easy to make given their size… and name. If you're ever confused, a quick way to tell them apart is marine mammals like whales and dolphins have tails that go up and down, whereas sharks and other fish have tails that go side to side.

Who are they in the friendship group: Big, friendly, and misunderstood – always keeping their nose out for delicious bakeries nearby.

How threatened are they: Endangered