Unveiling the whale shark diet: Insights from stomach content DNA metabarcoding

This study presents the first direct dietary assessment of a juvenile whale shark (Rhincodon typus) using DNA recovered from its stomach content. A DNA metabarcoding library for the 18S gene showed the most abundant prey were cnidarians (Class Anthozoa, 43.4%, including soft corals and sea pens) and crustaceans (Class Hexanauplia, 40.2%, represented by four orders of copepods). These results expand the breadth of items present in the diet of whale sharks and underscore gaps in understanding the trophic ecology and habitat use of elusive and threatened marine megafauna.