Scientists say they are baffled by the large number of whale shark sightings reported this summer in the northern Gulf of Mexico. Reports have been pouring in from all over; from Clearwater to the Florida Panhandle and along the Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana coasts.

“The sheer number of anecdotal reports from the public is amazing. There’s obviously something going on,” says shark scientist Bob Hueter who heads the Shark Research Center at Mote Marine Laboratory.

It is common for Whale sharks to gather in the plankton-rich waters off the Yucatan Peninsula during the summer, but this year numerous whale shark sightings have been reported from the eastern and northern parts of the Gulf as well. The concentrations spotted off the Yucatan Peninsula are also higher than before with hundreds of Whale sharks being seen in a single location.

According to Mote Marine Laboratory records, there were just three Whale shark sightings in the Florida Gulf in 2005, two in 2006, five in 2007, and three in 2008. This year, there have been 12 sightings just from July to mid-August.

According to Heuter, the large Whale sharks may have been attracted by a change in the massive “loop current” in the Gulf that took place this year, and there is also a stronger than usual upwelling of cold, nutrient-rich water off the Yucatan that may play a role.

“That changed the oceanography a bit, and it could have driven some of these animals up into the northern Gulf,” Hueter explained.

Eric Hoffmayer, a biologist with the Gulf Coast Research Laboratory on the Mississippi coast, said his lab has gotten reports of 30 sightings in just the last two weeks. On Aug. 1, there was a reported sighting of more than 100 whale sharks congregating about 60 miles off the Louisiana coast.

“We don’t know what’s going on,” said a baffled Hoffmayer.

Many of the sightings have occurred when there was a full moon.

As mentioned above, record sightings are being reported from the waters off Yucatan as well. An aerial survey last week did for instance reveal over 400 whale sharks in a relatively small area near the Isla Mujeres. The Yucatan aggregation is an annual phenomenon, but it usually takes place near Isla Holbox and the group tends to be much smaller.

As of August 12, 2009 the harvesting of krill in the in the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) off the coasts of California, Oregon, and Washington will be prohibited by federal law.

Yesterday, the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) published a final rule in the Federal Register prohibiting the harvesting of krill in these three regions. All types of krill harvesting will be illegal, regardless of fishery and gear type.

“Krill are the foundation for a healthy marine ecosystem,” said Mark Helvey, NOAA’s Fisheries Service Southwest Assistant Regional Administrator for Sustainable Fisheries. “Protecting this vital food resource will help protect and maintain marine resources and put federal regulations in line with West-Coast states.”

Harvesting krill within three miles of the coastline of California, Oregon, and Washington has already been prohibited by state law, but the zone situated between three and 200 miles off the coast have lacked krill protection until now.

“This is a great success for protecting the entire California Current ecosystem“, said William Douros, West Coast Regional Director for NOAA’s Office of National Marine Sanctuaries. “This decision reflects strong teamwork within NOAA and a commitment to addressing the issues raised by the Pacific Fishery Management Council and Sanctuary Advisory Councils.”

The krill protection rule was adopted as Amendment 12 to the Coastal Pelagic Species Fishery Management Plan (FMP), which was developed by the Pacific Fishery Management Council (PFMC) under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act. Amendment 12 adds all species of krill under a new category: ‘prohibited harvest species’.

According to a new report from Ningaloo Reef, the number of whale sharks in its waters is on the increase. The study, published in the journal Endangered Species Research (ESR), was made possible thanks to ECOCEAN – a new type of online photo-identification technology.

The system works by encouraging members of the public to send in their photos of whale shark, photos which are then stored in the in a database. Once they are in the data base, scientist can identify each whale shark using the pattern-recognition software.

Baby whale shark in the Phillipines.
Picture by WWF PF. Support WWF

The new technology in combination with the aid of citizens makes it easier for scientists to learn more about the migratory habits of the whale shark, the world’s larger fish. Prior to the 1980’s there were no more than 350 confirmed sightings of whale shark around the globe.

Since the project first began in 1993, over 500 new individual whale sharks have been discovered at Ningaloo Reef.

“Why are more and more juveniles arriving on the reef? It’s unclear, but it’s positive news,” says Jason Holmberg, lead author of the study.

Brad Norman, founder of the ECOCEAN whale shark project and Murdoch University, says the research shows that whale sharks can increase where they are well-protected.

“We have also demonstrated the power of citizen-science, that ordinary people around the world can make a real contribution to serious research and conservation,” he says. “Thanks to increasing levels of data collection, we’re finally able to estimate how many whale sharks appear annually, how long they typically remain at Ningaloo Marine Park (NMP), their patterns of arrival and departure and shifts in their population structure.”

In some countries whale sharks are still harvested commercially, while others have shifted over to whale safaris which can generate a substantial income through ecotourism. The researchers from Curtin University have shown that whale shark ecotourism can be advantageous for local communities around whale shark ‘hotspots’ such as the Ningaloo Reef.

“Our results indicate that without whale sharks at Ningaloo Marine Park (NMP) up to $4.6 million* would be lost from the local economy,” says Norman.

The success of the online collaboration between scientist and citizens has prompted researchers to issue a worldwide call to vacationers and divers to join in a global effort to monitor and protect the whale shark. You can find more information at www.whaleshark.org.

* 4.6 million AUD equals roughly 3.4 million USD

The tiny whale shark caught off the Philippine coast near San Antonio on March 6 has been confirmed by WWF to be the smallest live whale shark on record ever to be captured and released in the Philippines and arguably also the smallest living whale shark ever to be scientifically recorded.

Picture by WWF PF. Support WWF

The impressive Whale shark, Rhincodon typus, is the largest fish on the planet. The biggest specimen regarded as accurately recorded was caught in Pakistani waters in 1947 and measured 12.65 metres (41.50 ft) in length, with a girth of 7 metres (23.0 ft) and a weight exceeding 21.5 tonnes (47,300 lb).

The small specimen caught near San Antonio was on the other hand no longer than 15 in (38 cm) and may be what biologists call a neonate, i.e. a newborn. This is very interesting, since we still do not know to which part or parts of the world Whale shark females migrate to give birth to their pups. The finding of this tiny pup has caused scientists to speculate that the Philippine waters might be one of the places on the planet where the biggest fish in the world is born.

So, how did this petite Whale shark end up in human hands? On the morning of March 7, word reached Tourism Officer Pedragosa that a whale shark had been caught near San Antonio the day before. Pedragosa immediately sent Butanding Interaction Officer Guadamor to inform the town’s Municipal Agricultural officer Rabulan, and at this point, Aca, WWF’s Project Leader in Donsol, the municipality in which San Antonio is located, also became involved. When a shark is caught, time is of course crucial – examining the animal is important from a scientific point of view, but you don’t want to subject the shark to more stress than necessary. Aca therefore joined the officers of tourism, agriculture, and interaction at the tourism office right away and together they hastily drew up an operational plan and headed for San Antonio. At this stage, Berango, Chief of Police of Pilar, had also been alerted and Ravanilla, Regional Director of Tourism, had informed the resorts closest to the site.

The Chief of Police met up with Aca and the ministers at the seashore, where they found not a gigantic whale but a small stick jammed into the sand with a rope leading away from it into the ocean. As they followed the rope, they saw that it was tied around the tail of the smallest whale shark they had ever encountered before.

Whale Shark – Picture GNU Licensed

The team examined the shark to make sure that it had not been hurt, gave it food, measured it and documented the unique find. Less then three hours after the report first reached the tourism officer, the shark had been safely transferred to a big, water-filled plastic bag and the team was now heading towards deeper water where the shark could be released. Releasing it close to shore was not considered safe enough since the shallows in this area contains a lot of nets.

All this action took place in Sorsogon, a Philippine province famous for hosting the largest known annual congregation of whale sharks in the world. The province has become a popular destination for vacationers interested in snorkelling with sharks and going on shark safaris, and WWF is therefore working with local residents to develop and improve sustainable eco tourism practices along the coast.

Divers enjoying the waters off Darwin, the northernmost island in the Galapagos, suddenly realised the presence of an amazing 33 feet (10 meter) albino whale shark (Rhincodon typus), and as if one sighting of an albino giant wasn’t enough, a snow-white southern right whale (Eubalaena australis) calf has now been spotted off the coast of Western Australia.

Common whale shark in the georgia aquarium. See picture of albino here

The whale shark encountered in Galapagos is and adult female and was first observed by naturalist Antonio Moreano as he guided a group of scuba diving tourists. “I told everyone to keep a distance and not disturb it so we all jumped in the water and followed it for five minutes.” says Moreano who also managed to get a few pictures of the awe-inspiring creature.

The young albino southern right whale lives in the whale nursery waters off Western Australia together with its 60-tonne mother. It has been given the name Wilgi Manung, which means “white whale” in one of the indigenous Australian languages. According to Doug Coughran, a senior wildlife officer with the department of environment and conservation, Wilgi Manung might not be a pure albino since its eyes and nose does not display the characteristic pink flesh normally seen in albino whales.

Albinism is a hypopigmentary congenital disordered. It can be partial or total, i.e. characterized by a partial or total lack of melanin pigment. Albinism is caused by recessive alleles and must therefore be inherited from both parents to manifest. Albinism has been observed in many different animals, including mammals, birds, fish, reptiles and amphibians. The name albinism is derived from albus, the Latin word for “white”.

See the albino Whale shark here

See albino Whale picture here