Whale Shark - Rhincodon typus

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My name is Emmett and I am a budding nature photographer from Ireland, and I will be blogging about wildlife, photography and the environment which are my main passions in life. I'm looking forward to becoming part of the Steemit community, sharing my experiences and discovering the creations of other users. Please find below my first post, I hope that you like it :)

Whale Shark - Rhincodon types

Last summer I was extremely lucky to time my trip to Mexico with the peak of the Whale Shark season in the waters north east of Isla Mujeres, Yucatan Peninsula. On the day I took these photos there must have been over a hundred Whale Sharks congregating in one small area of the ocean surface, feeding on huge patches of fish eggs from the spawning of a small Atlantic Tuna known as 'Little Tuny' or 'Bonito'.

Whale Sharks are the largest fish species yet they feed on plankton and nectonic life, some of the smallest organisms found in our oceans. They are one of only three shark species (Whale Shark, Basking Shark and the Megamouth Shark) that filter their food from the water, which are known as filter feeders. Reaching a length of over 12 meters (40 feet) they can live on average 70 years of age in the wild and can weigh over 20 tons.

Each Whale Shark individual can be identified by the unique pattern of spots found around their gills, which helps researchers to monitor populations around the world.

The International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has recognised this species as being vulnerable due to their decreasing populations around the world. Pressures on this species are predominantly human induced, with the highest threat being the trade of Whale Shark parts which are used in traditional Chinese medicine.