VIJAYAWADA: Two Whale Sharks, locally known as Chukka Sora, each weighing approximately one tonne, were caught in the net of local fisherman Viswanathapalli Veera Babu near Gilakaladindi village in Machilipatnam mandal. The fishermen used a backhoe loader to haul the massive fish.
On Friday, Veera Babu reported that one of the Whale Sharks was dead by the time they were pulled from the sea. After identifying the fish as Chukka Sora, which have no commercial value, the fishermen decided to release both the dead and live sharks back into the ocean.
Veera Babu explained that during low-pressure conditions in the Bay of Bengal, turbulent seas often drive large fish closer to shore, where they can accidentally get caught in nets. He noted that if the fish had been teak fish, which are rare and valued at around Rs 1 to 2 lakh per tonne, the situation might have been different. He also addressed false reports claiming the fish were teak fish and had been purchased by traders in Chennai.
Vivek Rathod, a conservationist and founder of Wildlife Conservation Through Research and Education (WCTRE) from Visakhapatnam, confirmed that the captured fish were indeed Whale Sharks, which are listed as endangered on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List.