Whale shark FAQ's
How can I recognize a tagged whale shark?
Look for a Shark Research Institute tag on the shark's back, usually near its first dorsal fin. Two different types of tags are used. Type A is long thin tag about the same diameter as a pencil and 12 inches [30 cm] long. Type B is a 2" x 8" placard. Don't try to remove a tag; just record the number on it. The shark's identification number is printed on the side of the tag, along with the Shark Research Institute's contact address. If you cannot get close enough to the shark to read the tag, make a note its color and location. Report your sighting to the Shark Research Institute at P.O. Box 40, Princeton, New Jersey 08540, U.S.A, or send a fax to (609) 921-1505. You can also report sightings of tagged and untagged whale sharks directly to the Institute via the Whale Shark Sighting Report Form on the Internet: http://www.sharks.org
Can an SRI-tagged whale shark be adopted by more than one person?
Yes, some tagged whale sharks have several guardians. Although SRI has the largest whale shark tagging program in the world, the sharks are rare. To date SRI has tagged more than 400 whale sharks with visual ID tags and deployed satellite tracking tags on more than a dozen whale sharks in the Indian Ocean, Caribbean Sea, and Pacific Ocean.
Why does the whale shark have such large gill slits?
Because it is a filter feeder. The whale shark's gills have two functions: In addition to extracting oxygen from seawater the gills filter the tiny planktonic organisms on which the shark feeds. When a whale shark is feeding it pumps large volumes of water over its gills and out its gill slits. The shark's gills have very fine gill rakers which function as sieves and strain plankton from the water.
Are any other sharks filter feeders?
Yes, two other species of sharks are filter feeders: the basking shark and megamouth. The basking shark (Cetorhinus maximus) grows to a length of 30 feet [9 m] and lives in temperate seas. It cruises close to the surface with its mouth open, filtering plankton from the water. Megamouth (Megachasma pelagios), discovered in 1976, lives in deep water. To date, comparatively few megamouth sharks have been caught, but we know that this species grows to at least a length of 15 feet [4.5 m].
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