It's World Whale Shark Day, 30^th August, 2018: so here are some choice images taken by leading Whale Shark researchers Dr Simon Pierce and Dr Chris Rohner, who host Aqua-Firma Whale Shark and Manta Ray Research & Photography expeditions to Mafia Island in Tanzania, the Galapagos Islands, Komodo, Madagascar and Mexico.

Whale Sharks face many threats, of which two of the most significant are large scale fisheries operating in Southern China; and bycatch from purse seine fishing for tuna. The last image here illustrates why large shipping and speeding boats need to be controlled in seasonal aggregation sites which scientists like Simon and Chris have managed to identify.