It turns out whale sharks aren’t full carnivores, and can even go months without eating at all
Whale sharks are the largest fish in the sea, though as filter feeders, they don’t have the same bloodthirsty reputation as their kin. Still, theysharks, so it’s long been believed these gentle giants rely almost exclusively on animal protein.found, though. Careful investigation of blood and tissue samples from over a dozen whale sharks suggests that they actually have a pretty omnivorous diet that includes plants and algae.
Those making conservation decisions need concrete information about a species’ habits, including details like how individuals move around and what they need to eat, to determine the best ways to protect it. Tagging studies have elucidated the movement piece of the puzzle, but it’s basically impossible to follow these very mobile fish around all the time to see what they’re eating.
Prolonged fasting makes a lot of sense when you think about the animals’ environment, says Prebble. “Food availability in the open ocean is very patchy, so it would be a good strategy for them to gorge themselves when food is abundant, then use that energy to sustain them through periods of travelling or searching to find their next seafood buffet,” she says.
Canada Latest News, Canada Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Sudden rise of more transmissible form of Omicron catches scientists by surpriseAs this SARSCoV2 evolutionary tree suggests, the BA.1 and BA.2 strains of the Omicron variant are about as genetically distinct as earlier variants Alpha, Beta, and Gamma are from each other. Learn more: ScienceVisuals
Read more »
I'm Here to Speak Out Against Subpar BreadHow a self-described “bread snob” recommends eating, buying, and baking everyone’s favorite carb.
Read more »
Pandemic pits health care industry against the mediaHealth care professionals and scientists no longer feel that they can rely on media and tech companies to effectively combat misinformation, so they're hitting the airwaves themselves.
Read more »
A taste for wild cereal sowed farming’s spread in ancient EuropeBalkan groups collected and ate wild cereal grains several millennia before domesticated cereals reached Europe.
Read more »
15 Cortisol-Reducing Foods To Eat The Next Time You're StressedHere's what you need to know about cortisol production, including ways to keep it in check using food and nutrition. 📝
Read more »
Why Teen-Agers Are the WorstAt moments of extreme exasperation, parents may think that there’s something wrong with their teens’ brains, Elizabeth Kolbert wrote, in 2015. According to books on adolescence, there is.
Read more »