The Dorsal Fin

Well-known underwater photographer and WetPixel owner Eric Cheng has shared a video on his YouTube channel that features a 5-year-old boy swimming along side a whale shark (Rhincodon typus) off of Mexico’s Isla Mujeres. The area has become a hot-spot for snorkeling during the summer months when large numbers of whale shark aggregate in a relatively small area.

The latest pro-shark video from Blue Sphere Media and WildAid features Richard Branson swimming with whale sharks (Rhincodon typus) off of Mexico’s Isla Mujeres in order to raise awareness about protection of the species. Isla Mujeres has become a well-known aggregation point for whale sharks in the summer months, where hundreds of whale sharks gather each year to feed in the area’s nutrient rich waters.

While Branson refers to whale sharks as an “endangered species,” it should be noted that the IUCN actually list the species as “vulnerable” on the Red List, which is the next category below “endangered.”

Branson also tends to focus on the sharks being the victims of finning. However, the whale shark has been targeted in the past not only for its fins but also its meat and massive internal organs. For example, a recent feature on whale sharks in Kenya noted that the liver from a whale shark is a valuable commodity to fishermen. The IUCN also notes that whale shark populations have been depleted in some areas by harpoon fisheries and unintentional capture (or bycatch) by traditional fisheries.

An article in The Daily Mail suggests that a diver was nearly swallowed by a whale shark.

The UK’s Daily Mail posted an article today with the title “Open wide: The diver who nearly got swallowed by a whale shark.” While the headline itself seems a bit ridiculous in nature, the article does feature some nice shots of whale sharks (Rhincodon typus) off of Isla Mujeres, which were taken by Mauricio Handler.

In the photo that is captioned with “Jaws: This diver almost got sucked into the mouth of a massive whale shark as it fed on plankton” uses perspective that might give the impression that the diver is about to be sucked up by the whale shark at first glance. However, as one of the Daily Mail readers already pointed out in the article’s comments section, the whale shark in the photo is actually closer to the camera than the diver, which exaggerates its size in relation to the diver. The diver appears to be behind (in relation to the camera) the whale shark and not in any harm’s way. The article also notes that if a whale shark were to swallow a human, it would have just spat him out.

Eric Cheng posted some amazing whale shark footage to his blog/journal yesterday. The footage was shot off Isla Mujeres, and according to Cheng’s journal they had over 500 whale sharks around the island. Cheng’s work never ceases to amaze. In addition to the video above, Cheng has posted an exceptional close-up shot of a “whale shark gulp” in both 2D and anaglyph 3D versions in his recent blog/journal entry.

For more about Eric Cheng check out his website EricCheng.com. Additionally, you can view some of his amazing photography on his Flickr Photostream. Cheng also owns and runs WetPixel.com, an online community for underwater photography and videography.