Age and growth of the whale shark (Rhincodon typus) in the north-western Pacific
Hua Hsun Hsu A B F , Shoou Jeng Joung A B E F , Robert E. Hueter C and Kwang Ming Liu B D
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations
A Department of Environmental Biology and Fisheries Science, National Taiwan Ocean University, 2 Pei-Ning Road, Keelung 20224, Taiwan.
B George Chen Shark Research Center, National Taiwan Ocean University, 2 Pei-Ning Road, Keelung 20224, Taiwan.
C Center for Shark Research, Mote Marine Laboratory, 1600 Ken Thompson Parkway, Sarasota, FL 34236, USA.
D Institute of Marine Affairs and Resource Management, National Taiwan Ocean University, 2 Pei-Ning Road, Keelung 20224, Taiwan.
E Corresponding author. Email: f0010@mail.ntou.edu.tw
F Note: equal contribution of first author and corresponding author.
Marine and Freshwater Research 65(12) 1145-1154 https://doi.org/10.1071/MF13330
Submitted: 13 December 2013 Accepted: 14 April 2014 Published: 10 October 2014
Abstract
This study estimated age and growth of the largest extant fish, the whale shark (Rhincodon typus) by counting vertebral band pairs from 92 specimens comprising 43 males (2.68–9.88 m total length [TL]), 30 females (1.60–7.02 m TL), and 19 unsexed individuals (2.83–6.67 m TL) taken by Taiwanese commercial fisheries during 2001–06. Growth band pairs up to 25 and 42 were counted for a 6.38-m TL female and a 9.88-m TL male, respectively. Using marginal increment ratio and centrum edge analysis, band pairs were postulated to be formed twice a year. The two-parameter von Bertalanffy growth function provided the best fit without significant differences between sexes. Growth parameters were calculated for both sexes as L∞ = 16.80 m TL, k = 0.037 year–1; annual band pair formation would modify these parameters to L∞ = 15.34 m TL, k = 0.021 year–1. Using data reported in another study for 50% size at maturity for males (8.1 m TL), and the largest immature and smallest mature females (8.7 and 9.6 m TL, respectively) in the Indo-Pacific, these TLs converted to ages at maturity of 17 years for males and 19–22 years for females. The longevity was calculated to be 80.4 years.
Additional keywords: band pair, Taiwan, vertebra, X-ray.
References
Admassu, D., and Casselman, J. M. (2000). Otolith age determination for adult tilapia, Oreochromis niloticus L. from Lake Awassa (Ethiopian Rift Valley) by interpreting biannuli and differentiating biannual recruitment. Hydrobiologia 418, 15–24.| Otolith age determination for adult tilapia, Oreochromis niloticus L. from Lake Awassa (Ethiopian Rift Valley) by interpreting biannuli and differentiating biannual recruitment.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Akaike, H. (1973). Information theory as an extension of the maximum likelihood principle. In ‘Second International Symposium on Information Theory’. (Eds B. N. Petrov, and F. Csaki.) pp. 267–281. (Akademiai Kiado: Budapest.)
Andrews, A. H., Natanson, L. J., Kerr, L. A., Burgess, G. H., and Cailliet, G. M. (2011). Bomb radiocarbon and tag–recapture dating of sandbar shark (Carcharhinus plumbeus). Fishery Bulletin 109, 454–465.
Anislado-Tolentino, V., and Robinson-Mendoza, C. (2001). Age and growth for the scalloped hammerhead shark Sphyrna lewini (Griffith and Smith, 1834) along the central Pacific coast of Mexico. Ciencias Marinas 27, 501–520.
Beamish, R. J., and Fournier, D. A. (1981). A method for comparing the precision of a set of age determinations. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 38, 982–983.
| A method for comparing the precision of a set of age determinations.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Beckley, L. E., Cliff, G., Smale, M. J., and Compagno, L. J. V. (1997). Recent strandings and sightings of whale sharks in South Africa. Environmental Biology of Fishes 50, 343–348.
| Recent strandings and sightings of whale sharks in South Africa.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Bradshaw, C. J. A., Mollet, H. F., and Meekan, M. G. (2007). Inferring population trends for the world’s largest fish from mark–recapture estimates of survival. Journal of Animal Ecology 76, 480–489.
| Inferring population trends for the world’s largest fish from mark–recapture estimates of survival.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Branstetter, S. (1987). Age, growth and reproductive biology of the silky shark, Carcharhinus falciformis, and the scalloped hammerhead, Sphyrna lewini, from the northwestern Gulf of Mexico. Environmental Biology of Fishes 19, 161–173.
| Age, growth and reproductive biology of the silky shark, Carcharhinus falciformis, and the scalloped hammerhead, Sphyrna lewini, from the northwestern Gulf of Mexico.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Branstetter, S., and Musick, J. A. (1994). Age and growth estimates for the sand tiger in the northwestern Atlantic Ocean. Transactions of the American Fisheries Society 123, 242–254.
| Age and growth estimates for the sand tiger in the northwestern Atlantic Ocean.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Burnham, K. P., and Anderson, D. R. (2004). Multimodel inference: understanding AIC and BIC in model selection. Sociological Methods & Research 33, 261–304.
| Multimodel inference: understanding AIC and BIC in model selection.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Bwanika, G. N., Murie, D. J., and Chapman, L. J. (2007). Comparative age and growth of Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus L.) in lakes Nabugabo and Wamala, Uganda. Hydrobiologia 589, 287–301.
| Comparative age and growth of Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus L.) in lakes Nabugabo and Wamala, Uganda.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Cailliet, G. M., and Goldman, K. J. (2004). Age determination and validation in chondrichthyan fishes. In ‘Biology of Sharks and their Relatives’. (Eds J. C. Carrier, J. A. Musick, and M. R.Heithaus.) pp. 399–447. (CRC Press: Boca Raton, FL.)
Cailliet, G. M., Martin, L. K., Harvey, J. T., Kusher, D., and Welden, B. A. (1983a). Preliminary studies on the age and growth of the blue shark, Prionace glauca, common thresher, Alopias vulpinus, and shortfin mako, Isurus oxyrinchus, from California waters. NOAA Technical Report 8, 179–188.
Cailliet, G. M., Martin, L. K., Kusher, D., Wolf, P., and Weldon, B. A. (1983b). Techniques for enhancing vertebral bands in age estimation of California elasmobranches. NOAA Technical Report 8, 157–165.
Cailliet, G. M., Natanson, L. J., Welden, B. A., and Ebert, D. A. (1985). Preliminary studies on the age and growth of the white shark, Carcharodon carcharias, using vertebral bands. Memoirs of the Southern California Academy of Sciences 9, 49–60.
Cailliet, G. M., Smith, W. D., Mollet, H. F., and Goldman, K. J. (2006). Age and growth studies of chondrichthyan fishes: the need for consistency in terminology, verification, validation, and growth function fitting. Environmental Biology of Fishes 77, 211–228.
| Age and growth studies of chondrichthyan fishes: the need for consistency in terminology, verification, validation, and growth function fitting.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Campana, S. E., Natanson, L. J., and Myklevoll, S. (2002). Bomb dating and age determination of large pelagic sharks. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 59, 450–455.
| Bomb dating and age determination of large pelagic sharks.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Castro, A. L. F., Stewart, B. S., Wilson, S. G., Hueter, R. E., Meekan, M. G., Motta, P. J., Brown, B. W., and Karl, S. A. (2007). Population genetic structure of Earth’s largest fish, the whale shark (Rhincodon typus). Molecular Ecology 16, 5183–5192.
| Population genetic structure of Earth’s largest fish, the whale shark (Rhincodon typus).Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | 1:CAS:528:DC%2BD1cXhtVGmsrY%3D&md5=2d8ad306de2c11aa2ffe3069ed896801CAS |
Chang, W. Y. B. (1982). A statistical method for evaluating the reproducibility of age determination. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 39, 1208–1210.
| A statistical method for evaluating the reproducibility of age determination.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Chang, W. B., Leu, M. Y., and Fang, L. J. (1997). Embryos of the whale shark, Rhincodon typus: early growth and size distribution. Copeia 1997, 444–446.
| Embryos of the whale shark, Rhincodon typus: early growth and size distribution.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Chen, V. Y. and Phipps, M. J. (2002). Management and trade of whale sharks in Taiwan. Taipei, TRAFFIC East Asia–Taipei: A Traffic East Asia Report.
Chen, C. T., Leu, T. C., Joung, S. J., and Lo, N. C. H. (1990). Age and growth of the scalloped hammerhead, Sphyrna lewini, in northeastern Taiwan waters. Pacific Science 44, 156–170.
Chen, C. T., Liu, K. M., and Joung, S. J. (1997). Preliminary report on Taiwan’s whale shark fishery. Traffic Bulletin 17, 1–5.
CITES (2002). Prop. 12.35 Consideration of proposals for amendment of appendices I and II. CITES Prop. 12.35 – p.1. Available at http://www.cites.org/eng/cop/12/prop/E12-P35.pdf (last accessed 10 December 2013).
Clarke, M. W., Connolly, P. L., and Bracken, J. J. (2002). Age estimation of the exploited deepwater shark Centrophorus squamosus from the continental slopes of the Rockall Trough and Porcupine Bank. Journal of Fish Biology 60, 501–514.
| Age estimation of the exploited deepwater shark Centrophorus squamosus from the continental slopes of the Rockall Trough and Porcupine Bank.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Colman, J. G. (1997). A review of the biology and ecology of the whale shark. Journal of Fish Biology 51, 1219–1234.
| A review of the biology and ecology of the whale shark.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Compagno, L. J. V. (2001). ‘Sharks of the World: An Annotated and Illustrated Catalogue of Shark Species Know to Date.’ FAO species catalogue for fishery purposes No. 1, Vol. 2. FAO, Rome.
Conrath, C. L., Gelsleichter, J., and Musick, J. A. (2002). Age and growth of the smooth dogfish (Mustelus canis) in the northwest Atlantic Ocean. Fishery Bulletin 100, 674–682.
Davis, D., Banks, S., Birtles, A., Valentine, P., and Cuthill, M. (1997). Whale sharks in Ningaloo Marine Park: managing tourism in an Australian marine protected area. Tourism Management 18, 259–271.
| Whale sharks in Ningaloo Marine Park: managing tourism in an Australian marine protected area.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Eckert, S. A., and Stewart, B. S. (2001). Telemetry and satellite tracing of whale sharks, Rhincodon typus, in the Sea of Cortez, Mexico, and the north Pacific Ocean. Environmental Biology of Fishes 60, 299–308.
| Telemetry and satellite tracing of whale sharks, Rhincodon typus, in the Sea of Cortez, Mexico, and the north Pacific Ocean.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Fabens, A. J. (1965). Properties and fitting of the von Bertalanffy growth curve. Growth 29, 265–289.
| 1:STN:280:DyaF287gs1WmtA%3D%3D&md5=fe5a20f92a08e94d79e517ae2607d23aCAS | 5865688PubMed |
Fowler, S. L. (2000). Whale shark Rhincodon typus: policy and research scoping study, June-September 2000. Nature Conservation Bureau: Newbury, Berkshire.
García, V. B., Lucifora, L. O., and Myers, R. A. (2008). The importance of habitat and life history to extinction risk in sharks, skates, rays and chimaeras. Proceedings. Biological Sciences 275, 83–89.
| The importance of habitat and life history to extinction risk in sharks, skates, rays and chimaeras.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Goldman, K. J., Branstetter, S., and Musick, J. A. (2006). A re-examination of the age and growth of sand tiger sharks, Carcharias taurus, in the western North Atlantic: the importance of ageing protocols and use of multiple back-calculation techniques. Environmental Biology of Fishes 77, 241–252.
| A re-examination of the age and growth of sand tiger sharks, Carcharias taurus, in the western North Atlantic: the importance of ageing protocols and use of multiple back-calculation techniques.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Gompertz, B. (1825). On the nature of the function expressive of the law of human mortality, and on a new mode of determining the values of life contingencies. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London 115, 513–583.
| On the nature of the function expressive of the law of human mortality, and on a new mode of determining the values of life contingencies.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Hamady, L. L., Natanson, L. J., Skomal, G. B., and Thorrold, S. R. (2014). Vertebral bomb radiocarbon suggests extreme longevity in white sharks. PLoS ONE 9, e84006.
| Vertebral bomb radiocarbon suggests extreme longevity in white sharks.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | 24416189PubMed |
Hsu, H. H., Joung, S. J., Liao, Y. Y., and Liu, K. M. (2007). Satellite tracking of juvenile whale sharks, Rhincodon typus, in the Northwestern Pacific. Fisheries Research 84, 25–31.
| Satellite tracking of juvenile whale sharks, Rhincodon typus, in the Northwestern Pacific.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Hsu, H. H., Joung, S. J., and Liu, K. M. (2012). Fisheries, management and conservation of the whale shark Rhincodon typus in Taiwan. Journal of Fish Biology 80, 1595–1607.
| Fisheries, management and conservation of the whale shark Rhincodon typus in Taiwan.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | 1:STN:280:DC%2BC38rksVOqtw%3D%3D&md5=7899e5961e9efd1874834d80572026b3CAS | 22497399PubMed |
Hsu, H. H., Leu, M. Y., Wang, W. H., Hsieh, T. C., and Joung, S. J. (2013). Tagging and release of a captive whale shark after eight years in Taiwan’s aquarium: a case study. Journal of the Fisheries Society of Taiwan 40, 143–151.
Hueter, R. E., Tyminski, J. P., and de la Parra, R. (2013). Horizontal movements, migration patterns, and population structure of whale sharks in the Gulf of Mexico and northwestern Caribbean Sea. PLoS ONE 8, e71883.
| 1:CAS:528:DC%2BC3sXhtlyhsrnF&md5=4fa80b5499adce4f93210f8336e727e3CAS | 23991000PubMed |
Irvine, S. B., Stevens, J. D., and Laurenson, L. J. B. (2006). Surface bands on deepwater squalid dorsal-fin spines: an alternative method for ageing Centroselachus crepidater. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 63, 617–627.
| Surface bands on deepwater squalid dorsal-fin spines: an alternative method for ageing Centroselachus crepidater.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Joung, S. J., Chen, C. T., Clarck, E., Uchida, S., and Huang, W. Y. P. (1996). The whale shark, Rhincodon typus, is a livebearer: 300 embryos found in one ‘megamamma’ supreme. Environmental Biology of Fishes 46, 219–223.
| The whale shark, Rhincodon typus, is a livebearer: 300 embryos found in one ‘megamamma’ supreme.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Joung, S. J., Liao, Y. Y., and Chen, C. T. (2004). Age and growth of sandbar shark, Carcharhinus plumbeus, in northeastern Taiwan waters. Fisheries Research 70, 83–96.
| Age and growth of sandbar shark, Carcharhinus plumbeus, in northeastern Taiwan waters.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Kimura, D. K. (1980). Likelihood methods for the von Bertalanffy growth curve. Fishery Bulletin 77, 765–776.
Kitafuji, M., and Yamamoto, K. (1998). Rearing of the whale shark, Rhincodon typus, in the Osaka aquarium ‘Kaiyukan’. Journal of Japanese Association of Zoological Gardens and Aquariums 39, 47–54.
Kohler, N. E., Turner, P. A., Hoey, J. J., Natanson, L. J., and Briggs, R. (2002). Tag and recapture data for three pelagic shark species: blue shark (Prionace glauca), shortfin mako (Isurus oxyrinchus), and porbeagle (Lamna nasus) in the North Atlantic Ocean. Collective Volume of Scientific Papers. International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas 54, 1231–1260.
Kotas, J. E., Mastrochirico, V., and Petrere Junior, M. (2011). Age and growth of the scalloped hammerhead shark, Sphyrna lewini (Griffith and Smith, 1834), from the southern Brazilian coast. Brazilian Journal of Biology 71, 755–761.
| Age and growth of the scalloped hammerhead shark, Sphyrna lewini (Griffith and Smith, 1834), from the southern Brazilian coast.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | 1:STN:280:DC%2BC3Mfgt1yrtA%3D%3D&md5=bf8a77d02463f0dec2300ca879721f27CAS |
Krishna Pillai, S. (2002). Gentle giants of the sea. Seshaiyana 10, 6.
Last, P. L., and Stevens, J. D. (1994). ‘Sharks and rays of Australia.’ (CSIRO: Melbourne.)
Lessa, R., Santana, F. M., and Hazin, F. H. (2004). Age and growth of the blue shark Prionace glauca (Linnaeus, 1758) off northeastern Brazil. Fisheries Research 66, 19–30.
| Age and growth of the blue shark Prionace glauca (Linnaeus, 1758) off northeastern Brazil.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Martin, R. A. (2007). A review of behavioural ecology of whale sharks (Rhincodon typus). Fisheries Research 84, 10–16.
| A review of behavioural ecology of whale sharks (Rhincodon typus).Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Matsumoto, R., Asahina, K., Matsumoto, Y., Ueda, K., and Sato, K. (2013). Long-term observation of the clasper development and the serum concentration of testosterone in captive male whale shark at maturity. In ‘Abstracts of the 9th Indo-Pacific Fish Conference, Okinawa, Japan, June 24–28, 2013’. p. 121. (Organizing Committee of IPFC9: Okinawa, Japan.)
Mohan, P. J., Clark, S. T., and Schmid, T. H. (2004). Age and growth of captive sharks. In ‘The Elasmobranch Husbandry Manual: Captive Care of Sharks, Rays and their Relatives’. (Eds M. Smith, D. Warmolts, D. Thoney, and R. Hueter.) pp. 201–226. (Ohio Biological Survey: Columbus, OH.)
Motta, P. J., Maslanka, M., Hueter, R. E., Davis, R. L., de la Parra, R., Mulvany, S. L., Habegger, M. L., Strother, J. A., Mara, K. R., Gardiner, J. M., Tyminski, J. P., and Zeigler, L. D. (2010). Feeding anatomy, filter-feeding rate, and diet of whale sharks Rhincodon typus during surface ram filter feeding off the Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico. Zoology (Jena, Germany) 113, 199–212.
| Feeding anatomy, filter-feeding rate, and diet of whale sharks Rhincodon typus during surface ram filter feeding off the Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Natanson, L. J. (1993). Effect of temperature on band deposition in the little skate, Raja erinacea. Copeia 1993, 199–206.
| Effect of temperature on band deposition in the little skate, Raja erinacea.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Natanson, L. J., and Cailliet, G. M. (1990). Vertebral growth zone deposition in Pacific angel shark. Copeia 1990, 1133–1145.
| Vertebral growth zone deposition in Pacific angel shark.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Natanson, L. J., Casey, J. G., and Kohler, N. E. (1995). Age and growth estimates for the dusky shark, Carcharhinus obscurus, in the western North Atlantic Ocean. Fishery Bulletin 93, 116–126.
Natanson, L. J., Kohler, N. E., Ardizzone, D., Cailliet, G. M., Wintner, S. P., and Mollet, H. F. (2006). Validated age and growth estimates for the shortfin mako, Isurus oxyrinchus, in the North Atlantic Ocean. Environmental Biology of Fishes 77, 367–383.
| Validated age and growth estimates for the shortfin mako, Isurus oxyrinchus, in the North Atlantic Ocean.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Natanson, L. J., Wintner, S. P., Johansson, F., Piercy, A., Campbell, P., Maddalena, A. D., Gulak, S. J. B., Human, B., Fulgosi, F. C., Ebert, D. A., Hamida, F., Mollen, F. H., Vanni, S., Burgess, G. H., Compagno, L. J. V., and Wedderburn-Maxwell, A. (2008). Ontogenetic vertebral growth patterns in the basking shark Cetorhinus maximus. Marine Ecology Progress Series 361, 267–278.
| Ontogenetic vertebral growth patterns in the basking shark Cetorhinus maximus.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Norman, B. M. (2000). ‘2000 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.’ (IUCN: Cambridge.)
Norman, B. M. (2004). ‘Review of the Current Conservation Concerns for the Whale Shark (Rhincodon typus): A Regional Perspective.’ (Australian Marine Conservation Society: Canberra.)
Norman, B. M., and Stevens, J. D. (2007). Size and maturity status of the whale shark (Rhincodon typus) at Ningaloo Reef in Western Australia. Fisheries Research 84, 81–86.
| Size and maturity status of the whale shark (Rhincodon typus) at Ningaloo Reef in Western Australia.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Okamura, H., and Semba, Y. (2009). A novel statistical method for validating the periodicity of vertebral growth band formation in elasmobranch fishes. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 66, 771–780.
| A novel statistical method for validating the periodicity of vertebral growth band formation in elasmobranch fishes.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Pauly, D. (2002). Growth and mortality of the basking shark Cetorhinus maximus and their implications for management of whale sharks Rhincodon typus. In ‘Elasmobranch Biodiversity: Conservation And Management. Proceedings of an International Seminar and Workshop Held in Sabah, Malaysia’. (Eds S. L. Fowler, T. Reid, and F. A. Dipper.) pp. 199–206. (IUCN: Gland, Switzerland.)
Piercy, A. N., Carlson, J. K., Sulikowski, J. A., and Burgess, G. E. (2007). Age and growth of the scalloped hammerhead shark, Sphyrna lewini, in the north-west Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico. Marine and Freshwater Research 58, 34–40.
| Age and growth of the scalloped hammerhead shark, Sphyrna lewini, in the north-west Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Pratt, H. L., and Casey, J. G. (1983). Age and growth of the shortfin mako, Isurus oxyrinchus, using four methods. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 40, 1944–1957.
| Age and growth of the shortfin mako, Isurus oxyrinchus, using four methods.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Rao, D. M., and Rao, K. S. (1986). Studies on the age determination and growth of Nemipterus japonicus (Bloch) off Visakhapatnam. Indian Journal of Fisheries 33, 426–439.
Ribot-Carballal, M. C., Galván-Magaña, F., and Quiñónez-Velázquez, C. (2005). Age and growth of the shortfin mako shark, Isurus oxyrinchus, from the western coast of Baja California Sur, Mexico. Fisheries Research 76, 14–21.
| Age and growth of the shortfin mako shark, Isurus oxyrinchus, from the western coast of Baja California Sur, Mexico.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Robertson, T. B. (1923). ‘The Chemical Basis of Growth and Senescence.’ (JB Lippincott: Philadelphia, PA.)
Rowat, D., Gore, M. A., Baloch, B. B., Islam, Z., Ahmad, E., Ali, Q. M., Culloch, R. M., Hameed, S., Hasnain, S. A., Hussain, B., Kiani, S., Siddiqui, J., Ormond, R. F., Henn, N., and Khan, M. (2008). New records of neonatal and juvenile whale sharks (Rhincodon typus) from the Indian Ocean. Environmental Biology of Fishes 82, 215–219.
| New records of neonatal and juvenile whale sharks (Rhincodon typus) from the Indian Ocean.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Schwartz, F. J. (1983). Shark ageing methods and age estimation of scalloped hammerhead, Sphyrna lewini, and dusky, Carcharhinus obscurus, sharks based on vertebral ring counts. NOAA Technical Report 8, 167–174.
Stevens, J. D. (2007). Whale shark (Rhincodon typus) biology and ecology: a review of the primary literature. Fisheries Research 84, 4–9.
| Whale shark (Rhincodon typus) biology and ecology: a review of the primary literature.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Taylor, C. C. (1958). Cod growth and temperature. Journal du Conseil Permanent International pour l’Exploration de la Mer 23, 366–370.
| Cod growth and temperature.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Uchida, S., Toda, M., Kamei, Y., and Teruya, H. (2000). The husbandry of 16 whale sharks Rhincodon typus, from 1980 to 1998 at the Okinawa expo aquarium. In ‘Abstracts of the American Elasmobranch Society 16th Annual Meeting. La Paz, Mexico, June 14–20, 2000’. p. 359. (American Elasmobranch Society; place: La Paz, Mexico.)
Von Bertalanffy, L. (1938). A quantitative theory of organic growth (Inquires on growth laws II). Human Biology 10, 181–213.
| 1:CAS:528:DyaA1MXksVGhtg%3D%3D&md5=6cfc46940e65ac15c1b9a7b4d843d73dCAS |
Wells, R. J. D., Smith, S. E., Kohin, S., Freund, E., Spear, N., and Ramon, D. A. (2013). Age validation of juvenile shortfin mako (Isurus oxyrinchus) tagged and marked with oxytetracycline off southern California. Fishery Bulletin 111, 147–160.
| Age validation of juvenile shortfin mako (Isurus oxyrinchus) tagged and marked with oxytetracycline off southern California.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Wintner, S. P. (2000). Preliminary study of vertebral growth rings in the whale shark, Rhincodon typus, from the east coast of South Africa. Environmental Biology of Fishes 59, 441–451.
| Preliminary study of vertebral growth rings in the whale shark, Rhincodon typus, from the east coast of South Africa.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Wintner, S. P., and Cliff, G. (1999). Age and growth determination of the white shark, Carcharodon carcharias, from the east coast of South Africa. Fishery Bulletin 97, 153–169.
Wolfson, F. H. (1983). Records of seven juveniles of the whale shark, Rhincodon typus. Journal of Fish Biology 22, 647–655.
| Records of seven juveniles of the whale shark, Rhincodon typus.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Young, H. C., and Horike, H. (1998). Status records of Taiwanese premature whale shark raised and died in Japan. Fisherman Magazine 252, 39–44.
