Scientists are diving into the waters around the Galapagos Islands to gather more information about the whale shark.

Whale sharks are the largest found in the world¡¯s oceans, but they are also one of the least understood, with some scientists calling them a mystery species. The animal can weight up to 18 tonnes and its size ranges from 6 to 16 metres in length. Despite the size, these sharks are gentle giants and only eat tiny fish and plankton.

Scientist Alex Hearn explained that there is a whole proportion of the population that scientists do not have much access to and would like to find out more about the shark¡¯s sexual maturity, mating, pupping ground, mortality and early life stages.

It is also really important to understand the migratory patterns of the species if scientists wish to protect them in a meaningful way.

Difficult words: species (an animal kind), tiny (very small), plankton (very small organisms in the water), proportion (a part), pupping ground (the area where the sharks have their pups – baby sharks).