Unfortunately I haven’t seen these spotty friends in a while, but I must give them a shout for International Whale Shark Day!! 🐋🦈 Contrary to popular belief.... they are 100% shark and 0% whale. I know, crazy right?? #trustme #imascientist Ok here’s a better fun fact... unlike most other sharks, whale sharks are a filter feeder. So instead of being able to bite and chew, they gape their mouth open (like in this pic) which can stretch to over 4ft!! and sieve zooplankton and small fish through their gills. Whale sharks can process over 6,000 liters of water every hour 🤯 Truly the gentle giants of the sea! Though unfortunately, the global whale shark population has been declared ‘Endangered’ by the IUCN Red List due to being slow growing animals that face daily threats from human activities. Have you ever seen these spotty friends? If so, where at? #internationalwhalesharkday #coreyraephotography