'Netting Whale Sharks

A few years ago, numbers of the mysterious whale shark were reported to be in decline. Now, thanks to the internet, the mightiest fish in the ocean may be on the comeback.

Hunting of this harmless giant has been officially banned in most countries and trade in it is now highly restricted under threatened species treaties. But the whale shark has significance beyond its own survival - it is helping to pioneer a new technology in which thousands of ordinary people around the planet can play a direct role in monitoring and helping to protect endangered species.

In a breakthrough for conservation biology, a technique for keeping track of endangered animals and fish via the Internet has been developed by Australian marine scientist Brad Norman, US computer whiz Jason Holmberg and NASA astrophysicist Zaven Arzoumanian.

HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE
The team has adapted a mathematical formula used by Hubble Space Telescope scientists to recognise star patterns for identifying whale sharks from the unique constellation of white spots on their skin. Now, photographs of whale sharks logged on their website by volunteer divers all over the world can be used to recognise and monitor individual sharks. For the first time, this is giving marine scientists a feel for the numbers, distribution and habits of the giant fish, which reaches 18 to 20 metres in length.

Norman tested the concept at Ningaloo Reef, off northwestern Australia. Last year he received a Rolex Award for Enterprise, which is helping him to take the technique to more than 20 countries frequented by whale sharks worldwide.

"We've logged 420 sharks from Ningaloo, in northwest Australia, since we started the library," said Norman.

"We're seeing some sharks returning year after year, while others are completely new.

"In the Philippines and Honduras, which were our first two spotting sites to be set up after Western Australia, we've logged over 100 sightings and 50 sightings respectively. Individual sharks that were seen in Honduras have also been spotted in Mexico and Belize," Norman said.

Norman says he is amazed at the enthusiasm with which divers and tourists round the world have become involved, logging their underwater photos of whale sharks in ECOCEAN Whale Shark Photo-identification Library at www.whaleshark.org

Whale shark spotting centres are now being set up - or soon will be - in Thailand, Taiwan, the Seychelles, the Maldives, the Galapagos, Indonesia, India, the Red Sea and along the east coast of Africa - anywhere, in short, where tourists and divers gather to swim with and marvel at these remarkable creatures.

"We're starting to get a much better picture on the whale shark's global population and conservation status. Till now it was a pure guess," Norman says.

"Now, thanks to our volunteers with their cameras, we are gathering standardized data from all over the world," he said.

That data is playing an important role in helping to protect whale sharks. Since he carried out the first review of its population for the World Conservation Union (IUCN) - in which it was rated ‘vulnerable to extinction' - Norman has campaigned internationally for greater protection.

WHALE SHARK MEAT
One of his most potent arguments is that a live whale shark earns a lot more from tourism than does a dead one sold as meat in the fish market.

Following efforts by Norman and others, the Philippines, India and - most recently - Taiwan, have all agreed to outlaw the hunting of whale sharks. This, at least, has ended the industrial slaughter of whale sharks - though many are probably still being killed by native communities.

This success is due in part to the worldwide publicity generated by the online whale shark library and its many amateur contributors. While birdwatchers have long helped provide global conservation data for migratory birds, this is the first time such a technique has been attempted for a fish. However, the technology is proving so successful that, dependant on funding, the team may soon adapt it for other forms of wildlife which can be identified photographically from distinctive marks on their hide.

"We've had 30 different researchers contact us wanting to use our technique for studying all sorts of animals from manta rays to African wild dogs, from blue whales to lions and cheetahs, and from wrasse to turtles," said Norman.

"Potentially any animal which can be recognized from unique markings on its body can be identified using a simple camera, provided it is photographed in a particular way.

"When whale shark photos are logged in the online library, each shark is assigned its own number and when someone photographs the same creature again, both photographers are informed by email. In this way you can track the progress of ‘your' shark as others spot it," Norman said.

WILDLIFE MONITOR
In an even more dramatic advance in the study of cryptic animals, Norman has joined forces with fellow 2006 Rolex Laureate Rory Wilson from the UK, who has developed the world's most sophisticated wildlife monitor - a tiny motion sensor that records the animal's activity around the clock.

Developed over 25 years, his devices can now detect an animal's speed, direction, heart rate, heat loss, feeding, diving, energy expenditure and other actions.

"It's like keeping an automatic diary of what the animal is doing and where it goes," says Norman, comparing it to a ‘black box' flight recorder for wildlife. The study of energy expenditure, in particular, can tell biologists whether an endangered animal is doing well or poorly.

At Ningaloo, in June, 2007, one of Wilson's monitors was successfully trialed on a whale shark for the first time, recording data about its activity and position for about an hour before breaking loose and resurfacing to be collected and analysed by the research team.

Future use of the tag will reveal much about what the shark gets up to when it is out of human camera range, the researchers hope.

"It's a beautiful alliance," Norman says.

"For the first time we have a real chance to understand the natural behaviour of this magnificent animal, even when it is deep down and out of sight," he said.

One of his aims is to use the tag to study the impact of ecotourism on the giant fish - and whether or not its behaviour changes when in the presence of humans.

The team has also developed a stereo camera system in order to get an accurate assessment of the length of whale sharks. By comparing images of the same shark from year to year they hope to obtain a good estimate of its rate of growth.

At the same time, working with the Worldwide Fund for Nature (WWF) of the Philippines and Denmark, Norman has been implanting whale sharks with simpler tracking devices that record their location, depth and journeys using GPS navigation.

After a time the tag breaks free from the shark, rises to the surface and sends back a record of its travels to the researchers via satellite.

Between the four methods - camera, activity monitor, stereo camera and tracking device - Norman is opening a window on the behaviour of one of the most cryptic beasts on the planet.

Whale sharks were first recorded in South Africa in 1828 and over the next 160 years there have been only 320 confirmed sightings.

The whale shark is harmless to humans, being one of only three sharks that are filter-feeders, using gill rakers to sieve krill (shrimp), small fish and other tiny sea life as its sole source of sustenance.

Individuals have been tracked for 13,000km across the Pacific and 3000km in the Indian Ocean.

It has an uncanny instinct for locating food concentrations, and researchers consider that by building up a detailed picture of whale shark numbers and movement they may gain important insights into the biological health of the oceans themselves.

"We've managed to raise awareness about whale sharks and to stop industrial hunting of them," said Norman.

"The next task is to work out whether the population is declining, stable - or on the increase," he said.

This year, there was great excitement at the sighting of what may have been a pregnant female whale shark at Ningaloo, while another observer recorded what looked like two sharks positioned ‘belly to belly'. If confirmed, this is the first time the breeding of whale sharks has been observed.

INTERNET AWARENESS
Meanwhile, sighting reports and photos continue to stream in on the internet from around the world.

In the Red Sea, a woman diver has recruited six dive clubs to join the global whale shark spotting team and Norman is off on his travels again, with funds from the Rolex Awards for Enterprise to set up a chain of whale shark monitoring centres round the world.

"The internet has been a key factor in the success of this project so far, by generating so many enthusiastic volunteers," said Norman.

"Till now, most field work on wild animals has been done by scientists and their helpers.

"The whale shark project proves that ordinary people can play an important part in helping to conserve wildlife, and protect the oceans - by becoming ECOCEAN ‘Research Assistants' throughout the world," he said.

For more information, phone Brad Norman on 0414 953 627, or email: brad@whaleshark.org

THE ROLEX AWARDS
The Rolex Awards for Enterprise recognize great achievements, encouraging a spirit of enterprise in visionary individuals who advance human knowledge and well-being.

The Awards are presented every two years in Science and Medicine, Technology and Innovation, Exploration and Discovery, the Environment and Cultural Heritage.

A project may be submitted in almost any field of endeavour, provided it contributes to the betterment of humankind and is ongoing.

Anyone, of any age, from any country or background, may apply.

To apply for a Rolex Award, phone (02) 9251 8988 for an application kit, or visit www.rolexawards.com