WHALE SHARK PREDATORS

A juvenile specimen was found in the stomach of a blue shark (Prionace glauca). Another specimen was found in the gut contents of a blue marlin (Makaira nigricans).

Parasites – Many parasitic copepods were found on the lining of the pharynx of a small (60cm total length) whale shark from Taiwan.

Examples of parasitic copepods found on elasmobranchs ex Caira (1990) NOAA Tech. Rep. NMFS 90