The present observation illustrates about the incidental sighting of the whale shark, Rhincodon typus (Smith, 1828) on 16^th January 2018 in the coastal waters of Goa (15°47.086΄ N; 073°05.120΄ E) at a depth zone of about 74 m onboard the research vessel FORV Sagar Sampada during the cruise No. 370. The sightings were confirmed by visuals in real-time and photographs. This individual was characterized by pale yellow or white rounded to elongated spots on a dark grey background. Satellite-derived oceanographic parameters such as Sea Surface Temperature (SST), Sea Surface Salinity (SSS) and Chlorophyll ‘a’, (Chl-a) for the location where the animal was recorded, have shown different patterns from rest of the area and thus provided an insight into the preferred environmental conditions and foraging behavior of this species. The sighting location, off the Goa coast, was characterized by high Chlorophyll-a (1.2-1.8 mg/m^-3), dissolved oxygen (4 ml/l) in the 50 m depth and high concentrations of phytoplankton dominated by green Noctiluca scintillans. Present sighting merit the record of R. typus with the probability of foraging on the high abundance of phytoplankton in the coastal waters of the Arabian Sea. Therefore, the animal appeared to move along the gradient zones for its seasonal aggregations.

中文翻译：

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在阿拉伯海北部果阿附近观测鲸鲨Rhincodon typus（Smith，1828）

本观察结果说明了在2018年1月16^日在果阿（15°47.086΄ N; 073°05.120΄ E）沿海水域偶然发现鲸鲨Rhincodon typus（Smith，1828）的情况。在370号巡游中，研究船FORV Sagar Sampada上的高度为74 m。通过实时视觉和照片确认了目击事件。该个体的特征是在深灰色背景上呈浅黄色或白色圆形至细长斑点。卫星获得的海洋参数如海表面温度（SST），海面盐度（SSS）和叶绿素“一个”，（Chl-一个）记录了该动物的位置，与该地区的其他地方显示出不同的模式，因此可以深入了解该物种的优选环境条件和觅食行为。该观测点位于果阿海岸附近，其特征在于叶绿素a（1.2-1.8 mg / m ^-3）高，深度50 m处的溶解氧（4 ml / l）和高浓度的浮游植物（主要由绿色夜光藻）主导。。目前的目光是值得记录的斑疹伤寒杆菌，它有可能在阿拉伯海的沿海水域中以大量的浮游植物觅食。因此，该动物似乎因其季节性聚集而沿梯度区域移动。