Sailors rescue beached Whale Shark
[September 12 2018]
A group of
Naval personnel managed to
successfully save a beached
Whale Shark (Rhincodon Typus)
that had been stranded at
Alampil in Mulathivu on Monday
(10 September). According to
Navy media, sailors of SLNS
Gotabhya in the Eastern Naval
Command had rushed to the rescue
of this protected species after
the matter was brought to their
notice by local Fisheries
Department officials in
Mulaittivu.
Sailors took precautions for the safety of the
distressed creature which is listed on the red list and guided it about
three nautical miles into the sea before it could proceed on its way.
The whale shark is the largest living fish
(non-mammalian vertebrate) on earth. This slow-moving fliter-feeding
shark feeds primarily on plankton. They inhabit tropical and subtropical
oceans. They live for more than 70 years. Whale Sharks are prohibited
from being caught in Sri Lankan waters.
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