Whale Sharks

Summer 2023 to Present

Partners: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), University of Southern Mississippi Center for Fisheries Research and Development (USM), Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), Blue World Research Institute, Destin-Fort Walton Beach Natural Resources Team.

In the summer of 2023, an unusually large aggregation of whale sharks (Rhincodon typus) appeared close to shore off Destin-Fort Walton Beach, likely drawn in by favorable water temperatures and food which was the result of a nearshore spawning event. The Okaloosa Natural Resources Team partnered with NOAA, USM and other partners to tag, photograph and document the visiting sharks and study their movement and habitat use.
Over the course of the season, the collaborative effort tagged ten whale sharks with satellite and acoustic tags, each individually identified and named with the help of the local fishing community, who played a central role in locating and reporting the animals. Biological samples were also collected to support genetic research. The tagging effort marked one of the more significant regional data-collection opportunities for a species about which relatively little is known in the northern Gulf, and it drew substantial local and national media coverage as a model of tourism-supported conservation and citizen science.