By Andrea Filmer

GEORGE TOWN: Four fishermen had a huge New Year's surprise when an unexpected visitor swam into their nets, 10 nautical miles off the coast of Teluk Bahang.

The group was deep-sea fishing near Pulau Kendi when a 7m-long whale shark got entangled in their trawl nets at 3am yesterday.

"We didn't know what was in the net, so two of us pulled it up and saw the shark.

"In my 30 years of being a fisherman, I have never seen this. I didn't even know what species it was," said fisherman Keh Chai Yang, 52.

They returned to shore with the shark at 5.30am.

Keh said they had informed the state Department of Fisheries of the two-tonne whale shark and would surrender the fish to them.

The whale shark (Rhincodon typus) is a filter feeding shark that is the largest living fish.

The slow-moving creature is known for its playful character and poses no harm to humans. -The Star/Asia News Network