Occurrence of whale sharks along the Indian coastline: Challenges and conservation efforts

Although endangered, whale sharks are found worldwide in warm water regions.Their continued existence depends entirely on conservation efforts.In the current study, a whale shark sighting was recorded off the coast of Andhra Pradesh along the east coast of India during a marine faunal assessment in the area.To assess the current habitat range of this species and increase awareness for future conservation efforts along the east coast of India, where conservation initiatives are lacking, a comprehensive review of whale shark sightings and their status has been conducted.This review utilizes existing literature sources covering the Indian coastline over the past decade.