Whale Shark

Rhincodon typus

Insufficient data

overall probability at Isla del Coco National Park

1 Verified records at Isla del Coco National Park

☀️ Diurnal When it's active during daytime hours (6am–6pm)

The whale shark (Rhincodon typus) is a slow-moving, filter-feeding carpet shark and the largest known extant fish species. An individual with a length of 18.8 m (61.7 ft) has been considered the largest reliably recorded. The whale shark holds many records for size in the animal kingdom, most notably being by far the largest living non-cetacean animal. It is the only living species of the genus Rhincodon and the only extant member of the family Rhincodontidae, which belongs to the subclass Elasmobranchii in the class Chondrichthyes. Before 1984, it was classified as Rhiniodon into Rhinodontidae. An extinct species, Rhincodon ferriolensis, was described in Europe (probably in Spain), in the Late Burdigalian stage. Wikipedia →

📅 Monthly Probability

📊

Fewer than 5 records of Whale Shark at Isla del Coco National Park — not enough to chart months honestly.

☀️ When They're Spotted

Most active during daytime hours (6am–6pm) · across all parks (global)

☀️Diurnal

Global Distribution

Where this species is recorded worldwide. Restricted to human observations from 2019 onwards — the same kind of record and the same period the probabilities on this page are built from, so collar-tracking studies, camera-trap arrays and museum specimens are excluded. Around Santa Rosa that removes 5,924 GPS fixes from a handful of tagged jaguars.

where this species is recorded (GBIF density — it tracks where observers go, not how likely a sighting is) · parks where it occurs — tap a pin for the sighting probability there

Parks Where Found

#	Park	Country	Probability
1	Ningaloo Marine Park	🇦🇺 Australia	60–70%
2	Coiba National Park	🇵🇦 Panama	30–40%
3	Galápagos Islands	🇪🇨 Ecuador	5–10%
4	Isla del Coco National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	Insufficient data
5	Machalilla National Park	🇪🇨 Ecuador	Insufficient data
6	Bahía de Loreto National Park	🇲🇽 Mexico	Insufficient data

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