00:00Record-breaking whale shark highlights urgent need for ocean protection a 60
00:07foot whale shark crossed the Pacific like a moving reef the Pacific Ocean
00:12holds blue water plankton clouds cargo ships and whale sharks feeding near
00:17warm tropical currents a whale shark measuring about 60 feet swam through
00:23Pacific water far longer than the roughly 40 foot whale shark most divers
00:27expect the giant whale shark opened its wide mouth and filtered plankton while
00:33camera footage showed it spotted back moving below the surface marine
00:38researchers watched the record-size whale shark because extreme body length can
00:42reveal clues about age food supply and migration whale sharks glide slowly near
00:48coastlines but cargo ships and fast vessels can strike their broad backs
00:53before crews even notice global whale shark numbers have dropped by more than
00:58half over 75 years and the IUCN lists whale sharks as endangered Pacific bluefin
01:05tuna once crashed by more than 96% but fishing limits and international rules
01:10helped their numbers begin recovering large marine protected areas in the Pacific
01:15and Indian oceans have boosted nearby tuna catches by 12 to 18% in one major
01:21study scientists say protected corridors could guide whale sharks past feeding
01:26zones breeding routes fishing lines and crowded shipping lanes one giant fish in
01:32the Pacific does more than break a size record it shows how much blue water still
01:36needs guarding when a 60-foot whale shark vanishes under the waves the ocean
01:41the ocean loses both a giant body and a warning sign
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