Fisheries Administration Director Hsieh Ta-wen said the year's quota of 30 whale sharks was reached March 27 and that no more fishing will be allowed from March 27 till December 31.

Any stockpiled whale shark meat must be sold within three months, meaning that from June 27, no more selling of whale shark meat will be allowed.

Starting from next year, the fishing, selling, importing and exporting of whale sharks will be banned completely, he added.

The whale shark, the gentle giant of the ocean, is found in tropical and warm oceans and live in the open sea. The species is called the tofu shark locally because its delicate meat is purported to taste like tofu.

The shark, believed to have originated about 60 million years ago, can grow up to 20 meters in length and can weigh up to 30 tons. It is considered a delicacy in many Southeast Asian countries.

Hsieh said 12 out of this year's 30 whale sharks were caught in fixed nets this year and were released. The Fisheries Administration has also presented NT$3.47 million (US$104,200) in cash to fishermen for their cooperation in releasing the fish.

The released sharks were fitted with satellite tracking devices to help track their migration routes and provide more information about their ecology.

If more whale sharks are accidentally trapped in the fixed nets, Hsieh instructed fishermen to report the catch immediately and apply for a cash reward for not killing them. Those sharks will also be fitted with satellite tracking devices.

Fisheries officials also noted that two whale sharks accidentally caught off Hualien in eastern Taiwan will be sent to an aquarium in the state of Georgia in the United States early next month for teaching, research and display purposes.

The aquarium purchased two whale sharks from Taiwan in 2005 and 2006, respectively, but one of them died earlier this year of peritonitis.

Meanwhile, fishermen in three counties who mainly fish for whale sharks were disgruntled about the government ban, disputing expert opinion that the great fish are on the brink of extinction and complaining that a complete ban will jeopardize their livelihoods.

They noted that the annual quota has continued to dwindle from 80 in the past to 60 in 2006 and 30 this year in the face of global outrage that the endangered animals are still being hunted.

Huang Juei-yueh, president of the Hualien Fishermen's Association, who runs fixed net operations, said the fixed net operators have in recent years helped aquariums with conservation, research, education and tourism work, which he said is more valuable in terms of diplomacy and conservation than satisfying the insatiable appetites of unscrupulous diners.