KENYA: Scientists are studying the world's biggest fish the whale shark as part of efforts to protect it

Record ID: 360799

  • Title: KENYA: Scientists are studying the world's biggest fish the whale shark as part of efforts to protect it
  • Date: 20th March 2009
  • Summary: DIANI BEACH, MOMBASA, KENYA (RECENT-MARCH 1, 2009) (REUTERS) EMPTY BEACH VARIOUS OF TOURISTS WALKING DOWN THE BEACH TO A BOAT IN THE WATER VARIOUS OF EAST AFRICAN WHALE SHARK TRUST MANAGER, NIMU NJONJO, WALKING DOWN THE BEACH TO A BOAT IN THE WATER (SOUNDBITE) (English) NIMU NJONJO, MANAGER, EAST AFRICAN WHALE SHARK TRUST, SAYING "I'm always amazed at how people are inter
  • Embargoed: 4th April 2009 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Kenya
  • Country: Kenya
  • Topics: Nature / Environment,Science / Technology
  • Reuters ID: LVA8RYLHLQEWMI6VH3MAG8P1N96N
  • Story Text: Scientists are working off Kenya's Indian Ocean coast to study whale sharks, the world's biggest fish, as part of efforts to protect them from extinction.
    Researchers from the East African Whale Shark Trust conduct an annual tagging expedition from February to March every year.
    The tags are implanted into the whale shark's thick skin using a spear gun. The tags are programmed to pop off after about a year. Once they've floated up to the surface, the devices transmit the shark's temperature and dive profile to researchers via satellite.
    The Trust held their fourth expedition this year.
    Tourists can pay 150 U.S. dollars to swim with the whale sharks while the researchers work alongside them. The funds go directly into renting equipment for the researchers.

    "I'm always amazed at how people are interested and excited by what we do and travel a long way and pay a lot of money to come on the boat and support our project. I'm always amazed by that - I think it's so fantastic and really encouraging," said Nimu Njonjo, who manages the East African Whale Shark Trust.
    Kenya's coast is a hotspot of marine life. The underwater coral reefs are home to turtles and pods of dolphins.
    Whale sharks grow up to 12 metres in length, have over 3000 teeth and can live for over 100 years. Although they are sharks, they are not cold-blooded predators, and instead filter-feed small particles in the water through rake-like structures in their gills.
    Whale sharks have been swimming in the tropical and warm temperate waters of the world since the time of the dinosaurs.
    But still very little is known about their migration patterns. Last year the Trust tracked a record 17 sharks with using satellite-linked tags.
    This year, they were only able to track three.
    Scientists say climate change and crowded sea shipping lanes could be responsible for the irregular patterns in their tracking records.

    "Well, it started off when we had a mantis shrimp invasion after the last El Nino event in 98-99. And we had up to 40 whale shark sightings in a day in 2001, 2002, 2003. And then it's been decreasing a little bit after that. It seems that our levels of whale sharks are back to normal now,"
    said the Trust's founder, Volker Bassen.
    During the Trust's annual expeditions, a small aircraft called a microlight scans the coastline at a height of 1000 feet, looking for whale sharks just off the edge of the reef. When it makes a sighting, the shark's position, by GPS, is sent to the researchers' boat so then can go tag the fish.
    The East African Whale Shark Trust hopes to expand its aerial survey coverage to other times of the year to document the seasonal variability in the Kenyan whale shark population.

    "When we know when they are here and what times of the year they are here and in what numbers, then we can apply for better protection for them. Because for the moment, whale sharks are listed on Appendix CITIES 2 - that means trade is allowed, you can kill whale sharks. So we would like them to be listed on Appendix CITIES 1, as would all the other whale shark organizations all over the world," said Njonjo.
    So far the research suggests that some of the whale sharks remain along the coast of East Africa for months or years at a time. The Trust has also observed that most of the whale sharks are juvenile males.
    Scientists say that these findings could indicate that these unique fish are using Kenya's coast as a place to develop into adulthood.
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