On September 3 two tourists on a beach decided to pull a beautiful whale shark out of the water. This species of shark is completely harmless, so much so that the menwere able to commit an act of cruelty, reports the site The Dodo.They threatened the magnificent beast's life to take a photo sitting on his back.
Source: The Dodo
Luckily, a passer-byintervened. He offered the two tourists $75 for the shark.He then helped the animal swim back to deeper waters, free at last.
Source: The Dodo
The exact number of whale sharks in the wild is unknown, but the population is dwindling and it has been on the International Union for the Conservation of Nature's list of endangered species since 2002. The whale shark holds its own in nature - such a large, intimidating sea creature hardly has any natural predators. Man is the principle threat to this animal.An enormous quantity of whale sharks' flesh and fins are consumed in China and Taiwan, where they sell for very high prices on the black market.The whale shark is a very docile, peaceful animal and eats plankton, like whales. The biggest fish on the planet can measure up to 15m and havea life span of 70 years.They only start giving birth at the age of 30 and arevery threatened by human activities such as fishing and tourism. All the shark species in the world have experienced decreasesin their populations of 90% in the last 40 years. The association, Sea Shepherd, has been fighting to save them for a number of years. Click here to support this association.
Tourists Drag Shark Out Of Ocean Just So They Can Take PicturesThis guy saw a whale shark being mistreated — and decided to save his life.Posted by The Dodo on Friday, September 2, 2016
H/t: The Dodo
.png)
