Inside the World of the Whale shark

Question 1 · multiple choice

Which field camp would place a researcher closest to the natural home of a Whale shark?

shallow saline lagoons, mudflats, and coastal wetlands dry forest, savanna, and coastal scrub on Indonesian islands dry grassland, scrub, and sandy areas with grazing mammals warm open ocean, coastal upwellings, and seasonal feeding areas

Question 2 · multiple choice

Which food tray most closely copies what a Whale shark normally finds in nature?

plankton, fish eggs, and small schooling fish filtered from water rodents, rabbits, insects, fruit, eggs, and scraps grasses, shrubs, hay, and other fibrous plants adults mainly graze seagrasses and algae

Question 3 · multiple choice

Which activity schedule best describes a Whale shark?

active by day and travels between fruiting trees activity follows food patches and can continue day or night often active in dim light and at night drifts and pulses continuously without a day schedule

Question 4 · multiple choice

A Whale shark must travel through its habitat. Which movement strategy does it actually use?

flies with deep wingbeats interrupted by glides walks along the bottom and swims with tail waves swims steadily by sweeping the rear body and broad tail contracts its bell to move slowly through water

Question 5 · multiple choice

A Whale shark succeeds in its habitat partly because of which adaptation?

heat-sensing facial pits locate warm prey in darkness skin cells change colour and texture while flexible bodies squeeze through gaps milkweed toxins stored from the caterpillar diet make adults distasteful wide mouth and filter pads separate tiny prey from huge volumes of water

Question 6 · multiple choice

A wildlife nursery prepares for a young Whale shark. Which developmental fact should guide the team?

gives birth to live young developing from eggs retained inside the mother eggs develop through larval and pupal stages before adulthood pups are born in a protected underground chamber the female lays eggs and feeds hatchlings with milk released onto skin

Question 7 · multiple choice

A group-behaviour study follows a Whale shark. Which result should the team expect?

mostly solitary except mothers with cubs and brief pairings usually solitary but forms temporary feeding aggregations pairs defend broad territories and may hunt separately mostly solitary but can share favourable cave shelters

Question 8 · multiple choice

If Whale shark numbers fell sharply, which ecosystem service could be affected?

controls rodents and disperses seeds from fruit grazes with less soil damage than hard-hoofed livestock concentrates plankton into a food source for scavengers through waste grazing keeps seagrass beds productive and nutrient-rich

Question 9 · multiple choice

Which defence strategy is actually used by a Whale shark?

forms dense groups and flies to safer open water uses camouflage, a muscular tail, claws, teeth, and venom buries food quickly and uses strong legs in contests relies on enormous size and a thick spotted skin

Question 10 · true false

True or False: A whale shark wide-set eyes provide a broad field of view including strong depth overlap ahead.

True False