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https://reasonstobecheerful.world/whale-sharks-spiritual-movement-saving-a-gentle-giant/>
"The day began as usual for Ganeshbhai Devjibhai Varidum. The 54-year-old
fisherman was on a trawler off the coast of the western Indian state of
Gujarat, and the Arabian Sea was turbid, as it always is in this region.
But as he and his crew drew up their enormous net, he suddenly spotted
something. “I saw some black spots near the surface, and then a massive
shadow.”
They had mistakenly caught a whale shark, the largest fish in the world and one
that fisherfolk in Gujarat are no strangers to. Up to 40 feet in length and an
inveterate migrator, the whale shark is as long as a city bus, and probably
clocks as many, if not more miles. Caught as bycatch in Varidum’s trawling net,
the fish thrashed about, getting increasingly entangled.
Twenty-five years ago, the giant animal would have been killed, towed to the
shore, and its extensive oil reserves used to waterproof fishing boats. But
Varidum did something extraordinary: He cut the net, which would have cost him
upwards of $2,500, to free the shark. “Just imagine, this is the largest fish
in the world and it comes to our shore […] that’s something, right?” he says.
“Watching it go free gave me peace of mind.”"
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
