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| Despite their enormous size, whale sharks are completely harmless to humans. |
High-tech electronic tags attached to the backs of whale sharks—the largest fish in the world—have revealed their feeding journeys and locations.
Researchers in Belize, an independent country within the Commonwealth located in Central America on the Caribbean Sea, have tracked these sharks as they dive nearly 1 kilometer deep in search of food, while also locating spawning fish schools to feed on their eggs.
“Our research shows that this shark species dives much deeper than previously assumed, to depths of over 1000 meters in search of food,” said Rachel Graham from the Wildlife Conservation Society based in the United States. “At this depth, the water temperature is just a few degrees above freezing, which explains why tropical whale sharks have a layer of fat just beneath their skin—a mystery that has puzzled scientists for many years.”
At night, whale sharks often linger in shallow waters, feeding on plankton and storing up deep dives to retain heat during the day. These deep dives often end with a rapid ascent to the surface, possibly to take in a rush of oxygen after spending time in deep, low-oxygen waters.
Around the time of the full moon, Cubera snapper gather near the coast to spawn, forming large clusters of writhing bodies in a “fish soup” created from their eggs. For whale sharks, this is a feast, as they swim around and through this soup time and again, filling their enormous mouths with clumps of snapper eggs.
Whale sharks can grow up to 20 meters long and are listed as a vulnerable species at risk of extinction. Researchers believe that this recent discovery about their feeding habits and locations will help humans develop tourism activities around whale sharks without harming them. Belize is home to the second-largest barrier reef system in the world and is recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage site.
