Whale shark

Photo: Tomas Ernest · CC BY-NC

The largest fish in the ocean, whale sharks are filter feeders that target dense concentrations of fish eggs, copepods, and krill near the surface. At Bangka, seasonal upwellings and spawning aggregations of baitfish create feeding conditions that reliably attract individuals between October and January. Their movements between feeding sites are tracked by satellite tagging programs, and genetic studies show that whale shark populations in North Sulawesi connect broadly across the Indo-Pacific. Listed as Endangered, they face pressure from vessel strikes, fishing bycatch, and targeted hunts in parts of their range.