Endangered whale shark makes rare appearance off Jeju

A whale shark — the world's largest fish and an endangered species — was spotted off the coast of Aewol on Korea's Jeju Island on Tuesday.

The whale shark was spotted by a group of passengers and fishers catching squid at around 8:30 p.m., according to a local fishing charter. The marine species was circling the vessel.

Video captured at the scene clearly showed the whale shark's broad, flattened head, enormous mouth and distinctive white spots covering its body. Passengers cheered as the whale shark cruised slowly beneath the boat.

Experts identified the animal as a whale shark after examining the footage and estimated it was a juvenile about 3 to 4 meters (9 feet, 10 inches to 13 feet, 1 inch) long.

Whale sharks can grow to more than 10 meters in length. They migrate across tropical, subtropical and temperate waters.

Despite their immense size, they are filter feeders that consume plankton and small fish and are not known to attack humans.

The species is currently listed as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. It is protected worldwide.

Whale sharks are only rarely seen in Korean waters, typically during the summer when sea temperatures rise. In Jeju, two whale sharks were caught in a set net in 2012. Carcasses were found along the coast in 2015 and 2017.

"Whale sharks are known to travel long distances," Kim Byung-yeop, a marine science professor from Jeju National University, said.

"The increasing appearance of subtropical marine species in waters around Jeju can be attributed to rising sea temperatures caused by climate change, along with the richer food web that has developed as a result."

BY KO SEUNG-PYO [[email protected]]