IN THIS ISSUE

 Did you know…?

SEYCHELLES
Whale Shark Stamp  

Issued on the 13th November 2003, the first part in a new series of Seychelles Definitive Stamps features a whale shark for the first time in Seychelles Stamp history.  The 7 “Coral Reef Fish” stamps  were designed by Andrew Robinson, a well known UK Stamp artist.  

NOTICE BOARD

Aerial Sightings 
 Oct - Nov 2003

43 flights in total

91hrs 38mins flying time

492 whale shark (total) aerial sightings reported

36 whale sharks (max)  during a single flight

Micro-light aerial surveys have now finished for this season.  

 

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WHALE SHARK FEEDING BEHAVIOUR

	The whale shark is able to actively filter-feed in areas of dense plankton to make the most of food availability. Photo Bob Wharton

The whale shark, Rhincodon typus, is the largest shark, yet like the largest marine mammal it feeds on zooplankton, the smallest animals in the sea. The whale shark is one of three filter-feeding sharks, the other two being the Basking shark, Cetorhinus maximus, and the Megamouth, Megachasma pelagios.

  Whale sharks are opportunistic feeders foraging for rich and often patchy food sources. Two feeding modes have been observed, namely ram filter-feeding for diffuse plankton blooms, as employed by the other two filter-feeding sharks, and suction filter-feeding which is unique to the whale shark.  

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“Auger” provides an interesting distraction for the rescue team based on a SHELL platform in the gulf of Mexico. Photo Steve Maximo

 MCSS recently received an interesting article and some photos from Mr. Ian Jones which I am sure will be of interest to our readers:

  “I really liked your web page, I'm hoping to possibly dive the Seychelles in October, although that depends, if not this year then guaranteed another. I used to live in Seychelles when I was a kid (1978-1980) and I've been meaning to return for years.

  Anyway, I'm writing to include a little bit of whale shark info that might be of interest to you. I work for Shell in the Gulf of Mexico. I heard about a whale shark off one of our platforms and looked into it......... 

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Critical area for photo ID for the EcOcean ID system. Photo Bob Wharton

Although described some 170 years ago, very little is known about the life of the whale shark. This is mainly because the shark spends most if its life out of sight, appearing only at certain times of the year in coastal areas, such as Ningaloo reef. In recent years a number of programmes have been set up study the whale shark and following increasing interest from the diving industry, marine eco-tourism ventures have been set up at sites throughout the tropics known to be predictably frequented by whale sharks. As the number of whale shark encounters increase, this has created the opportunity to use photography to identify individual animals, many of which have distinguishing marks, either in the form of natural markings acquired markings, ie. scars and injuries.

  Photo-identification has been effectively used for studying a variety of terrestrial and marine animals in their natural environment......  

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Please let us know! Please get as much information as possible, where when, how many, how big, what it was doing etc. then call us, e-mail us or fill out our on-line sighting form every sighting is important in building a picture of these sharks movements and behaviour around Seychelles

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By becoming a whale shark foster parent you are ensuring that research on whale sharks is continued. Your support will assist in protecting these amazing creatures and ensure that they continue roaming the world’s tropical oceans.

Adopt me !

Mazarin (s275): A 4½ m juvenile male whale shark tagged on the 25th January 2003 near L'ilôt Island. He has a distinct scaring pattern and is easily recognized.

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