Are whale sharks endangered species? The population figures of whale sharks are unknown, but since they are victims of commercial fishing whale shark are considered “vulnerable” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) www.iucn.org. In the Maldives, there are several active projects to save whale shark in the Maldives, the most important being the Maldives Whale Shark Research Programme maldiveswhalesharkresearch.org). To protect the species from becoming endangered, it is considered a protected species and commercial fishing is illegal, as is the trade of whale shark meat in the market. How can I learn more about whale sharks in the Maldives vacations?