Photo: Evans Baudin / Scuba Diving magazine, Grand Prize Winner.
This amazing picture of a shark carrying 50 fish in its mouth has won the 16th annual Through Your Lens Underwater Photo Contest hosted by Scuba Diving magazine.
The image was captured by diver Evans Baudin in Baja California, Mexico, an area known for its shark population. The marine wildlife expert had been diving off the coast of Mexico in order to examine the impact of Covid-19 on marine wildlife, including whether lower levels of tourism had led to a boom in the numbers of some species.
The winning image shows the 50 fish calmly sitting in the shark's mouth as it moves through the ocean. The whale-shark is believed to be around 39 feet in length. The fish were though never in any danger, despite first-impressions. This is because whale-sharks feed only on plankton that they obtain by filtering ocean-water, and the fish enter their mouths to do so in order to pick up debris to eat. In fact, the fish do the shark a service by cleaning its mouth and therefore help to keep it healthy. Whale Sharks are among the world's largest fish and can weigh up to 20,000 kg when fully grown.
Baudin said of the image:
"In June 2020, with a special permit, I went on an expedition to document marine life and the effects of reduced marine traffic due to COVID-19. After two hours in the water with a school of silky sharks near the surface, our boat captain yelled, 'Whale shark, right behind you!'—a 12-plus-meter female. The surprise was twofold when I discovered about 50 remoras peacefully enjoying a free ride in her mouth!"
The winning photograph beat 2,600 other entries to the annual competition and was chosen for the grand prize after being placed in the final with four other category winners.
A post shared by Scuba Diving (@scubadivingmag)
[h/t: My Modern Met]
COMMENTS