Annex 1

Relevant Biological, Ecological and Fisheries/
Trade Data for Whale sharks Rhincodon typus Smith 1928

1. Life History Parameters

Size: Up to 15 metres length and 12,000 kg weight.

Age of maturity: 30 years.

Maximum lifespan: Unknown, though perhaps up to 100 years.

Fecundity: Ovoviviparous. Appears to be extremely productive – a female harpooned off Taiwan contained 300 embryos, 42-63 cm in length (Joung et al. 1996). This is among the highest recorded in sharks.

Survival rates: High, but largely unknown.

Food sources: Plankton, small fish.

Habitat: Deep water and coastal zones.

Distribution and abundance: Moderately rare but circumglobally distributed in tropical and warm temperate waters. No quantitative population estimates available. Numbers seem to fluctuate locally on an annual basis (Taylor 1996). Stable population of 200–300 reported at Ningaloo reef, WA (Australia) and are the focus of a tourism industry (Taylor 1998).

Movement patterns: Highly migratory, making estimates of population size and trends very difficult to assess. A tagged shark traveled 14,000 miles in 40 months.

Other: May be found singly, or in schools of up to hundreds (FAO fact sheet). Associated with schools of pelagic fish, including tuna, mackerel and baitfish (Colman 1997). Called Ebisuzame by Japanese fishermen, who regard it as a good luck symbol and avoid killing them.

Products in trade: Meat, fins, oil.

Use of products: Not widely exploited for human consumption, though sought after in Taiwan. Flesh is soft, bland and watery (referred by Taiwanese as "tofu fish"), and generally fetches a low market price. R. typus fins have been recorded for sale in Hong Kong, and meat has been traded from India to Taiwan and Malaysia (R. typus proposal).

Impact of past fisheries: Short-term decline noted in Philippines, from 4.4 to 1.7 sharks per boat (spb) and 10 to 3.8 spb in different areas over a 4-year period (R. typus proposal). However, Taylor (1996) noted a decline from 8 spb to 0 over 5 years, followed by a "recovery", even though there was no local fishing for R. typus; Taylor attributed these fluctuations to environmental factors and migration.

Locations of current fisheries: Of limited interest to commercial fisheries, though potentially at risk from pelagic fisheries directed at other species. Main threat appears to be localised harpoon fisheries in Asia – small harvesting operations exist in Pakistan, India, China and Senegal, where it is eaten by the local populace (FAO fact sheet). Taiwanese fisheries are thought to take 30–100 per year, though catches vary erratically (Uchida 1994). Indian fishermen are reported to have taken 40 in a 4-day period in 1982, keeping livers and discarding carcasses (Colman 1997). Indian fishermen along the Gujarat coast export meat and fins to Taiwan (~200 mt per year). Some claim it is an under-exploited species (e.g. Ramachandran & Sankar 1990).

Other threats: Taken accidentally in gill nets in India. May be avoided due to the damage it can cause to nets when entangled (Colman 1997).

Protection: Legally protected in Western Australia, Israel, Honduras, Maldives, Philippines, USA Atlantic and Gulf States.