Public Release: 30-Aug-2017
Tracking down the whale-shark highway
Did you know that August 30 is International Whale Shark Day? Whale sharks are the largest fishes on Earth, growing up to 18 meters (60 feet) long, but they feed mostly on tiny drifting animals such as copepods and, occasionally, small fish such as anchovies. To satisfy their immense appetites, whale sharks travel long distances to find dense swarms of prey.
MBARI biological oceanographer John Ryan recently worked with biologists who have been tracking whale sharks in the Eastern Tropical Pacific Ocean. They discovered that whale sharks in this area spend most of their time cruising along fronts--the dynamic boundaries between warm and cold ocean waters. This study, recently published in the journal PLoS One, could help in the conservation of these endangered animals.
https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2017-08/mbar-tdt083017.php
