Baby whale shark rescued

The miniature creature, just 15in long, was spotted on the seashore at the town of Pilar, in the eastern Philippines. It had been washed ashore, helpless with its tail snagged in a piece of rope.

Maritime officials freed the little thing and took it back out into deep water before releasing it. Given a good life, the creature will eventually grow to about 40ft and live for close on 70 years.

According to the WWF's Whale Shark Tracking Project, the find is thought to have been the smallest example of whale shark ever handled or approached closely by man.

The only other incidence noted by the WWF was the sad case of an adult female found dead in 1996, with a womb full of embryos measuring between 15in and 19in.