Whale shark tagged with satellite collar
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Whale shark
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For the first time in India, a whale shark has been tagged with a
‘satellite collar’ to track the migration routes, behaviour and
ecological preferences of this member of the largest fish species in the
world.
The satellite tag was put on the fish last week by a team of
researchers from the Whale Shark Conservation Project, a joint venture
of the Gujarat Forest Department and Wildlife Trust of India (WTI).
According to WTI Assistant Field Officer, Manoj Matwal, another whale
shark will be tagged by mid-May.
“The first set of data received indicated that the tagged whale
shark, a 6.5 m long male rescued off the Gujarat coast, had reached the
coast of Maharashtra moving southward,” Matwal told PTI.
“We plan to install a similar satellite tag on another whale shark,
preferably a female, by mid-May as after that they are not seen off the
Gujarat coast,” he said. “For the second tagging, we are exploring the
sea near Veraval and Sutrapada in Junagadh district where the spotting
(of whale shark) has been good.”
Satellite-tagging is the latest initiative under the Whale Shark
Conservation Project.
PTI
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