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Bailey, C.E. Bond, J.R. Brooker, E.A. Lachner, R.N. Lea, and W.B. Scott. 1991. Common and scientific names of fishes from the United States and Canada. American Fisheries Society, Special Publication 20. 183 pp.","conceptName":"<i>Rhincodon typus</i>","taxonomicComments":null,"roundedGRank":"G4","conservationStatusFactorsEditionDate":"2015-01-28","conservationStatusFactorsEditionAuthors":"Jackson, D. R. 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Human exploitation exists but is not currently heavy, although this could change in the future. Biological characteristics such as large size, slow growth, late maturation, and extended longevity probably limit recruitment, which makes the species susceptible to overexploitation and limits its ability to recover from any overfishing.","grank":"G4G5","rankInfo":{"elementGlobalId":104436,"aooPercentGood":null,"enviromentalSpecificity":{"id":8,"enviromentalSpecificityDescEn":"Moderate.  Generalist or community with some key requirements scarce.","enviromentalSpecificityDescEs":"Moderado.  Generalista o comunidad con algunos requisitos claves escasos.","enviromentalSpecificityDescFr":"Modéré. Généralistes ou communautés répondant à certains critères clés sont rares."},"intrinsicVulnerability":{"id":2,"intrinsicVulnerabilityDescEn":"Highly to moderately vulnerable.","intrinsicVulnerabilityDescEs":"Altamente a moderadamente vulnerable.","intrinsicVulnerabilityDescFr":"De très à moyennement vulnérable"},"longTermTrend":null,"numberEos":null,"numberGoodEos":null,"numberProtEos":null,"popSize":null,"rangeExtent":{"id":34,"rangeExtentDescEn":"200,000 to >2,500,000 square km (about 80,000 to >1,000,000 square miles)","rangeExtentDescEs":"200.000 a >2.500.000 kilómetros cuadrados (aproximadamente 80.000 a >1.000.000 millas cuadradas)","rangeExtentDescFr":"De 200 000 à >2 500 000 km carrés (de 80 000 à >1 000 000 miles carrés approximativement)"},"shortTermTrend":null,"threatImpactAssigned":{"id":9,"threatImpactAssignedDescEn":"Medium - low","threatImpactAssignedDescEs":"Medio - bajo","threatImpactAssignedDescFr":"Moyen — faible"},"rangeExtentComments":"\"The whale shark has a very widespread distribution, occurring in all tropical and warm temperate seas, except in the Mediterranean. It occurs throughout the Atlantic Ocean, from New York through the Caribbean to central Brazil and from Senegal to the Gulf of Guinea. It also occurs in the Indian Ocean, throughout the region, including the Red Sea and the Arabian Gulf. In the Pacific Ocean it is found from Japan to Australia, off Hawaii, and from California to Chile\" (Florida Museum of Natural History, undated a).<br />\"In contrast to most sharks from the same order (Orectolobiformes), which are benthic (live on or near the bottom) species, the whale shark is a pelagic (open sea) species. Studies reveal that this shark prefers warm waters, with surface temperature around 21-30º C, marked by high primary productivity (much plankton). It is often seen offshore but commonly comes close inshore, sometimes entering lagoons or coral atolls. The whale shark is thought to be highly migratory but currently there is no direct evidence to support this hypothesis\" (Florida Museum of Natural History, undated a).","areaOfOccupancy":null,"areaOfOccupancyComments":null,"numberEosComments":null,"popSizeComments":null,"viabilityComments":null,"threatImpactComments":"\"In the past, the whale shark has been of little interest to man. At present, commercial fisheries for whale sharks are limited, but may expand from an increased demand for food products. In Taiwan approximately 100 whale sharks are taken annually. The whale shark meat fetches a high price in this country, and this fact has stimulated larger harvests over the last years. Fishing for this shark also occurs in the Philippines, particularly in the Visayas and Mindanao areas, providing food for the local fishing communities. Whale shark fins are sold in the Orient, especially in the Hong Kong. Occasionally whale sharks are captured accidentally along the coast of India. Sometimes the flesh is eaten and the liver oil is utilized for waterproofing wooden fishing boats and other appliances, for the manufacture of shoe polish and as a treatment for some skin diseases. The processing of whale shark fins has also been reported in India\" (Florida Museum of Natural History, undated a, accessed 28 January 2015). A small number of whale sharks have been removed from the wild to be displayed in aquarium facilities (Japan and Georgia, USA), but the difficulty in maintaining the species in captivity precludes this from being common.<br />Like all marine life, pollution, such as that from oil spills, has the potential to cause serious harm to local populations of this species (and its food supply).","shortTermTrendComments":null,"longTermTrendComments":null,"inventoryNeeds":null,"numberProtEosComments":"\"In the Maldives and Philippines there is legislation banning all fishing for whale sharks. This protection was introduced because of the possible serious impact that the fishery may be making on whale shark stocks. The predictable occurrence of whale sharks in a few localities, such as in Western Australia, has led to the development of an expanding tourism industry. In this area the whale shark is a protected species and its tourism has been managed through a system of controls, including the licensing of a limited number of operators tours\" (Florida Museum of Natural History, undated a, accessed 28 January 2015).","protectionNeeds":"Maintain protection of the species in areas where it predictably occurs. There have been calls from conservation-minded divers worldwide to refrain from riding, chasing, or in any way harassing any large marine animals, including whale sharks. However, the impacts of such activities on whale sharks have not been adequately assessed (Florida Museum of Natural History, undated a, accessed 28 January 2015).","otherConsiderations":"The International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) lists the whale shark as \"Vulnerable.\" Further, it \"is listed by the AFS (American Fisheries Society) as <i>conservation dependent</i> (reduced but stabilized or recovering under a continuing conservation plan) in both the U.S. Atlantic and the Gulf of Mexico. However, it is considered <i>not at risk</i> in the Gulf of California\" (Florida Museum of Natural History, undated a, accessed 28 January 2015).","intrinsicVulnerabilityComments":"\"Some biological characteristics, such as large size, slow growth, late maturation and extended longevity, probably limit recruitment and make whale sharks susceptible to overexploitation. These characteristics also suggest that populations are slow to recover from any overfishing\" (Florida Museum of Natural History, undated a).","enviromentalSpecificityComments":null},"animalCharacteristics":{"elementGlobalId":104436,"majorHabitat":{"id":1,"majorHabitatDescEn":"Marine","majorHabitatDescEs":"Marino","majorHabitatDescFr":"Marine"},"nonMigrant":false,"localMigrant":false,"longDistanceMigrant":false,"mobilityMigrationComments":null,"foodHabitsComments":null,"animalPhenologyComments":null,"colonialBreeder":false,"length":null,"width":null,"weight":null,"animalPhenologies":[],"animalFoodHabits":[]},"occurrenceDelineations":[{"eoSpecsDetailId":-1,"locationUseClass":null,"eoSpecGroupName":"Default","subtypes":null,"inferredExtentDistance":null,"inferredExtentNotes":null,"minimumEoCriteria":null,"mappingGuidance":null,"separationBarriers":null,"separationDistanceUnsuitableHabitatat":1.0,"separationDistanceSuitableHabitatat":1.0,"altSeparationProcedure":null,"separationJustification":null,"versionDate":null,"versionAuthor":null,"versionNotes":null,"lastModified":"2020-02-25T14:20:12.251048Z"}],"plantCharacteristics":null,"elementManagement":{"elementGlobalId":104436,"eoManagementGroupName":null,"stewardshipOverview":null,"impacts":null,"restorationPotential":null,"siteConservationPlansConsidered":null,"managementMethods":null,"monitoringMethods":null,"managementProgramContacts":null,"monitoringProgramContacts":null,"managementResearchPrograms":null,"managementResearchNeeds":null,"biologicalResearchNeeds":null,"additionalTopics":null},"occurrenceViabilities":[{"eoRankSpecsDetailId":105886,"eoRankSpecsGroupName":null,"locationUseClass":{"id":1,"locationUseClassDescEn":"Not applicable","locationUseClassDescEs":"No se aplica","locationUseClassDescFr":"Sans objet","displayOrder":1},"excellentViability":null,"goodViability":null,"fairViability":null,"poorViability":null,"viabilityJustification":"Use the Generic Guidelines for the Application of Occurrence Ranks (2008).<br>The Key for Ranking Species Occurrences Using the Generic Approach provides a step-wise process for implementing this method.","versionDate":null,"versionAuthor":null,"versionNotes":null,"lastModified":"2020-05-14T02:26:38.509957Z"}],"references":[{"id":762542,"citation":"Florida Museum of Natural History.  Undated a.  Ichthyology at the Florida Museum of Natural History. Online. Available at https://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/fish","shortCitationAuthor":"Florida Museum of Natural History","shortCitationYear":null,"referenceCode":"WNDFLO02HQUS","lastModified":"2020-02-25T18:16:34.245659Z"},{"id":379642,"citation":"Nelson, J. S., E. J. Crossman, H. Espinosa-Perez, L. T. Findley, C. R. Gilbert, R. N. Lea, and J. D. Williams. 2004. Common and scientific names of fishes from the United States, Canada, and Mexico. American Fisheries Society, Special Publication 29, Bethesda, Maryland. 386 pp.","shortCitationAuthor":"Nelson et al.","shortCitationYear":2004,"referenceCode":"B04NEL01NAUS","lastModified":"2020-02-25T14:20:12.297935Z"},{"id":756145,"citation":"Page, L. M., H. Espinosa-Pérez, L. T. Findley, C. R. Gilbert, R. N. Lea, N. E. Mandrak, R. L. Mayden, and J. S. Nelson. 2013. Common and scientific names of fishes from the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Seventh edition. American Fisheries Society, Special Publication 34, Bethesda, Maryland.","shortCitationAuthor":"Page et al.","shortCitationYear":2013,"referenceCode":"B13PAG01NAUS","lastModified":"2020-02-25T14:20:12.282291Z"},{"id":1139849,"citation":"Page, L. M., K. E. Bemis, T. E. Dowling, H.S. Espinosa-Pérez, L.T. Findley, C. R. Gilbert, K. E. Hartel, R. N. Lea, N. E. Mandrak, M. A. Neigbors, J. J. Schmitter-Soto, and H. J. Walker, Jr. 2023. Common and scientific names of fishes from the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Eighth edition. American Fisheries Society (AFS), Special Publication 37, Bethesda, Maryland, 439 pp.","shortCitationAuthor":"Page et al.","shortCitationYear":2023,"referenceCode":"B23PAG01NAUS","lastModified":"2024-08-02T21:41:01.515075Z"},{"id":132833,"citation":"Robins, C.R., R.M. Bailey, C.E. Bond, J.R. Brooker, E.A. Lachner, R.N. Lea, and W.B. Scott. 1991. Common and scientific names of fishes from the United States and Canada. American Fisheries Society, Special Publication 20. 183 pp.","shortCitationAuthor":"Robins et al.","shortCitationYear":1991,"referenceCode":"B91ROB01NAUS","lastModified":"2020-02-25T14:20:12.297935Z"}],"otherCommonNames":[],"speciesGlobal":{"elementGlobalId":104436,"cites":null,"cosewic":null,"fwsRegion":null,"genusSize":null,"jurisEndem":null,"nomenclaturallyEst":null,"usesa":null,"informalTaxonomy":{"informalTaxonomyId":10,"level1":"Animals","level2":"Vertebrates","level3":"Fishes - Marine Bony and Cartilaginous; Hagfishes","level":3,"hasChildren":false,"parentId":2,"distributionStatus":"not","displayOrder":1130},"parentSpecies":null,"infraspecies":false,"kingdom":"Animalia","phylum":"Craniata","taxclass":"Chondrichthyes","taxorder":"Orectolobiformes","family":"Rhincodontidae","genus":"Rhincodon","americanFisheriesStatus":null,"americanFisheriesStatusDate":null,"saraStatus":null,"saraStatusDate":null,"cosewicDate":null,"interpretedCosewic":null,"cosewicComments":null,"usesaDate":null,"interpretedUsesa":null,"usesaComments":"In a 90-day petition finding, NMFS (Federal Register, 16 Aug. 2013) finds listing the whale shark is not warranted.","completeDistribution":false,"synonyms":[],"infraspeciesList":[],"ebarId":null,"ebarCanadianScope":false,"ebarGlobalScope":false,"ebarKbaGroup":"Fishes","caGeneralStatusId":null},"speciesCharacteristics":{"elementGlobalId":104436,"reproductionComments":null,"ecologyComments":null,"habitatComments":null,"generalDescription":null,"diagnosticCharacteristics":null,"speciesMarineHabitats":[],"speciesTerrestrialHabitats":[],"speciesRiverineHabitats":[],"speciesPalustrineHabitats":[],"speciesLacustrineHabitats":[],"speciesSubterraneanHabitats":[],"speciesEstuarineHabitats":[]},"primaryReference":{"id":1139849,"citation":"Page, L. 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American Fisheries Society (AFS), Special Publication 37, Bethesda, Maryland, 439 pp.","shortCitationAuthor":"Page et al.","shortCitationYear":2023,"referenceCode":"B23PAG01NAUS","lastModified":"2024-08-02T21:41:01.515075Z"},"predecessors":[],"elementGlobalThreatAssessments":[{"elementGlobalThreatAssessId":20275,"iucnThreatCategory":{"id":19,"iucnThreatCategoryCd":"5","iucnThreatCategoryDescEn":"Biological resource use","iucnThreatCategoryDescEs":null,"iucnThreatCategoryDescFr":null,"displayValueEn":"5 - Biological resource use","displayValueEs":null,"displayValueFr":null,"displayOrder":330,"iucnThreat":"Y","parentThreatId":null,"iucnThreatLevel":1},"iucnThreatScope":null,"iucnThreatSeverity":null,"iucnThreatTiming":{"id":1,"iucnThreatTimingDescEn":"High: Continuing","iucnThreatTimingDescEs":null,"iucnThreatTimingDescFr":null,"displayValueEn":"High (continuing)","displayValueEs":null,"displayValueFr":null,"displayOrder":1},"threatImpactCalc":null},{"elementGlobalThreatAssessId":20276,"iucnThreatCategory":{"id":23,"iucnThreatCategoryCd":"5.4","iucnThreatCategoryDescEn":"Fishing & harvesting aquatic resources","iucnThreatCategoryDescEs":null,"iucnThreatCategoryDescFr":null,"displayValueEn":"5.4 - Fishing & harvesting aquatic resources","displayValueEs":null,"displayValueFr":null,"displayOrder":370,"iucnThreat":"Y","parentThreatId":19,"iucnThreatLevel":2},"iucnThreatScope":null,"iucnThreatSeverity":null,"iucnThreatTiming":{"id":1,"iucnThreatTimingDescEn":"High: Continuing","iucnThreatTimingDescEs":null,"iucnThreatTimingDescFr":null,"displayValueEn":"High (continuing)","displayValueEs":null,"displayValueFr":null,"displayOrder":1},"threatImpactCalc":null},{"elementGlobalThreatAssessId":20277,"iucnThreatCategory":{"id":24,"iucnThreatCategoryCd":"6","iucnThreatCategoryDescEn":"Human intrusions & disturbance","iucnThreatCategoryDescEs":null,"iucnThreatCategoryDescFr":null,"displayValueEn":"6 - Human intrusions & disturbance","displayValueEs":null,"displayValueFr":null,"displayOrder":380,"iucnThreat":"Y","parentThreatId":null,"iucnThreatLevel":1},"iucnThreatScope":null,"iucnThreatSeverity":null,"iucnThreatTiming":{"id":1,"iucnThreatTimingDescEn":"High: Continuing","iucnThreatTimingDescEs":null,"iucnThreatTimingDescFr":null,"displayValueEn":"High (continuing)","displayValueEs":null,"displayValueFr":null,"displayOrder":1},"threatImpactCalc":null},{"elementGlobalThreatAssessId":20278,"iucnThreatCategory":{"id":25,"iucnThreatCategoryCd":"6.1","iucnThreatCategoryDescEn":"Recreational activities","iucnThreatCategoryDescEs":null,"iucnThreatCategoryDescFr":null,"displayValueEn":"6.1 - Recreational activities","displayValueEs":null,"displayValueFr":null,"displayOrder":390,"iucnThreat":"Y","parentThreatId":24,"iucnThreatLevel":2},"iucnThreatScope":null,"iucnThreatSeverity":null,"iucnThreatTiming":{"id":1,"iucnThreatTimingDescEn":"High: Continuing","iucnThreatTimingDescEs":null,"iucnThreatTimingDescFr":null,"displayValueEn":"High (continuing)","displayValueEs":null,"displayValueFr":null,"displayOrder":1},"threatImpactCalc":null}]}