Despite its large size, a lot of mystery surrounds the whale shark—particularly regarding its reproductive habits. However, an extraordinary chance was recently offered to researches to collect data from a living whale shark pup.
To date, this particular whale shark pup is the smallest whale shark observed by researchers. The pup was discovered in the waters around the Philippines, and it was “being offered for sale at a nearby beach, [and the] 15-inch (38-centimeter) shark [was] leashed to a stake in the mud like a neglected puppy.”
The whale shark can grow over 40 feet in length, but fishing pressure has “shrunk [the whale shark] in body length by an average of over 6.5 feet.”
Via Blogfish and National Geographic
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wow thats a really small whale shark!!!!! never in my life thought they could be that small what happened too the shark for it too be soooo itty bitty??????:O
this makes my heart smile and worry at the same time. do you know how they came across this pup. Because aren’t whale sharks like mammal in the ways of their reproductive ways? Don’t they keep the pups in their wombs until old enough to survive in the wild.